Youth unemployment hits 30-year high: study

The unemployment rate among Canada's youth has soared during the past year's recession, a report released Tuesday says.

A report entitled Canada's Vital Signs 2009 from the Community Foundations of Canada found that even the normally lucrative summer months were a bust, with the number of hours worked by young people — defined as those between the ages of 15 and 24 — hitting 30-year lows.

Youth unemployment rose from 10.7 per cent in January 2008 to 16.3 per cent during the summer of 2009, the report found.

"The report shows us how the impact of the recession has been immediate and severe for vulnerable groups, such as youth," CFC president Monica Patten said.

As of August 2009, employment among youths was falling faster than for any other age group, the report found.

Among students looking for summer jobs, 19.2 per cent were unemployed this summer. And even for those who were lucky enough to find work, the average number of work hours of 23.4 per week was the lowest in more than 30 years.