Today we feature a quest opinion piece from Jesse Donovan.
Jesse Donovan is
a Political Science student at the University of Toronto. He was born and raised
in North and West Vancouver. Jesse has served in the Canadian Armed Forces
since 2010, and he is currently, he works as a Summer Intern for the BC Conservative
Party.
Jesse is also the President and Founder of the BC Conservative Youth
Association, a grassroots organization for young conservatives in BC.
In
2010, after nearly a decade of BC Liberal rule, the youth unemployment rate in
British Columbia had reached a staggering 13.8 percent. This was the highest it
had been in the past seven years.
Under
the BC Liberal Government, young British Columbians have faced many obstacles
to their economic success. High unemployment, slow wage growth, and a
disproportionate amount of part-time labour are some of the severe threats to
the financial well-being of young British Columbians.
Under
the BC Liberal government, young British Columbians have not only had to deal
with high unemployment, but also incredibly slow wage growth. Between 2007 and
2010, the weekly wages of BC Youth have grown around 20 times slower than the
weekly wages of British Columbians aged 25-54.
British
Columbia is the anomaly among the successful Western Provinces. Young Canadians
from Alberta and Saskatchewan have fared relatively well under their
Conservative governments. While all Western Provinces experienced rising youth
unemployment from 2008 to 2010, BC’s was by far the highest. Between 2008 and
2010, British Columbia’s youth unemployment rate increased by 5.8%. This is
over twice as much as Manitoba’s increase and almost three times more than
Saskatchewan in the same period.
Many
young British Columbians are concerned and angry about their seemingly bleak
economic future. They are right to be concerned and their anger is justified. There is,
however, a worrying trend in how young people are directing these emotions.
