Apparently, youth will not be served. Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey, released on July 10, shows youth employment has been hit hard by the economic recession.

Canada’s jobless rate for workers aged 15 to 24 jumped to 16 per cent in June – the highest rate in 11 years and a loss of 33,000 jobs from May.

Youth in Abbotsford are not immune to these numbers, either. The city’s average unemployment rate for the months of April, May and June hit 15.3 per cent, a total of 16,300 people. This has increased from 14,400 for the same three months last year.

“It looks like young people are probably hit severely because they have the least experience,” said Vincent Ferrao, analyst in the labour market division at Statistics Canada. “When a labour market downturn hits, young people are more vulnerable.”

However, Ferrao says that more accurate numbers will come throughout the summer. “July is when you really get a good picture of the summer labour market,” he said. “We get everybody coming in, even the younger ones, the 15 to 20 year-olds.”

It’s not surprising that in a time of recession, it’s those who are the youngest that get the axe first.

Enjoying a coffee in a local Starbucks, Brittany Ritchie, aged 21, said she is employed, but has noticed the drought.

Ritchie works at a nearby White Spot and at Great West Fitness Abbotsford.

“I’ve been at the restaurant for a while, so it’s good because I’m also a student,” she said, noting that it’s been better for her because she already had her foot in the door.

“Obviously, business is slower. I have friends that tried to come back to the restaurant, but they couldn’t get their jobs back.”

Sitting beside her, Courtney Johnston, aged 20, has battled the stats by going the self-employed route, renting her own space to work as a hair dresser in Port Moody.

“Business is really down, now that the recession is starting to hit home,” she said, especially among young people and men who are getting their hair cut over longer intervals.

“People are definitely getting a lot less hours,” she said of those who are working. “A lot of our friends are also in trades, and they’re getting laid off.”

by Kolby Solinsky