The unemployment rate for young Ontarians was higher in August than in April when much of the province was under lockdown because of COVID-19, according to the StatsCan labour force survey from last month.

The unemployment rate refers to people of working age who are without work, are available for work, and have taken specific steps to find work. For Ontarians aged 15-24, the unemployment rate in male and female job seekers was 1.26 and 1.04 times higher in August than in April respectively.

Michael Edgar, a student at Carleton University in Ottawa, has been searching for employment since he was let go from a restaurant in March. He is 21 years old and this is the first time in five years that he is without work.

At first, Edgar says he applied for jobs in data analysis because they would allow him to work from home. But after not hearing back, he decided to begin applying at restaurants again since that’s where he had the most experience. But one of the big challenges he is facing when applying for jobs is not hearing back about the status of his applications.

“A lot of places aren’t telling you when you don’t get the job, which is really annoying,” Edgar says. “I have had everything—from them taking my application and telling me they’re seriously considering hiring me to them pretty much laughing me out of the restaurant. It’s really tough out there.”

Brodie Martin, another Carleton student who was let go from his job at the start of the pandemic has had a similar experience. He says finding employment has been difficult because he is unable to find work that he can do from home.

Martin worked in a shoe outlet in Ottawa Train Yards before the pandemic. He was let go in March, rehired over the summer, but left his workplace because of the lack of safety. His roommate is immunocompromised and he did not want to put her under risk.

“The store supplied us with masks, they supplied us with face shields, they supplied us with hand sanitizer and all that. And there were markers on the floor of how close you’re supposed to get to customers. But in practice, customers just ignored it,” Martin says.

Both Edgar and Martin have been unsuccessful in finding employment at a time when the government has been adding new jobs to the economy each month. Employment in the country rose by 246,000 in August alone, with 142,000 new jobs in the province of Ontario.

Although young Ontarians are struggling to find employment, August was not the worst month for them. The unemployment rate for young Ontarians was highest in the months of June and July, with the unemployment rate in males and females 1.28 times and 1.33 times higher than in April during that time.

Edgar and Martin say they understand it’s difficult for students and young Canadians to find jobs, especially during a global pandemic, but that it might help if employers and the government create more volunteer opportunities within their organizations and better communicate them.

“As much as I’d love to be paid for something I’m good at, I understand that it’s hard to get it right off the bat,” Edgar says. “But even volunteer opportunities are a bit scarce or hard to come across, so maybe even more communication on more popular platforms with youth like Instagram, or Snapchat to tell them what’s out there or who’s hiring. In today’s technology, you would think that the job market would be pretty accessible, but it’s still shrouded in darkness.”

“I think if they sort of pushed these opportunities more in our face it’d be quite nice,” Martin adds.