Worries about the economy are having an unusual effect on Canadian workers—rather than hunkering down ahead of a potential recession, a growing number of people are hunting for new jobs.
What’s new: Half of Canadians polled said they plan to find a new job this year, a 31% increase from six months ago.
- The tech sector stands to be the most heavily impacted, as 67% of employees in the field are looking to move jobs.
- Gen Z, working parents and people who’ve been at the same company for two to four years rank highest in potential job changers.
Why it’s happening: Wages aren’t keeping up with price rises, and moving jobs can often be the fastest way to get a big raise.
- Workers also cited unclear or unreasonable responsibilities and poor communication within the organization as the top problems leading them to seek employment elsewhere.
Why it matters: A looming recession and economic uncertainty usually cause people to stay in place until the economy recovers, so this is an unusual dynamic.
- One possible explanation: Unemployment is at historic lows, and there are almost a million jobs needing to be filled, so job seekers might have the upper hand for now.
- A recession could change that, however, so now might be the time to lock in higher pay.
Dig deeper: On this episode of The Peak’s newest podcast, Free Lunch, Brendon Bernard, a Senior Economist at the Indeed Hiring Lab, explains what’s going on in Canada’s labour market and how things could change this year.