Hundreds line up to apply at job fairs near Toronto over the weekend
Videos of massive lineups for job fairs in and around Toronto continue to surface on social media every few weeks, shedding light on just how competitive the region’s job market has become over the past few years.
The latest video of a congested job fair, taken at Save Max Sports Centre at 1495 Sandalwood Parkway East in Brampton, shows a long line of prospective workers snaking around the building and waiting in the cold.
A separate angle of the job fair, which took place on Saturday, December 9 from 10 am to 3 pm, shows a large crowd of hopeful candidates waiting patiently inside the building.
“I salute their dedication that they are not giving up but trying to to find a job and make a living,” one person commented under the video.
Other similar videos of packed job fairs around the GTA have also made headlines in the past few months, including ones hosted at Dufferin Mall, Garage, McDonald’s, Fortinos, and Bath & Body Works.
Another job fair, hosted at 7855 Keele Street in Vaughan on December 10, also attracted a massive lineup of prospective employees, including many international students.
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Last fall, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Minister Sean Fraser introduced a pilot program that lifted the 20-hour-per-week cap on the number of hours eligible post-secondary students can work off-campus while class is in session.
Huge lineup of people looking for retail roles shows tough reality of Toronto job market https://t.co/aQBW5aVMgA #Toronto #TorontoJobs #TorontoJobMarket
— blogTO (@blogTO) October 6, 2023
However, with the pilot program coming to an end on December 31, 2023, certain international students in Canada won’t be able to work more than 20 hours per week.
On December 7, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marc Miller announced that starting January 1, 2024, the cost-of-living financial requirement for study permit applicants will also be raised to $20,635, in addition to their first year of tuition and travel costs.
The cost-of-living requirement for study permit applicants has not changed since the early 2000s, when it was set at $10,000 for a single applicant.
International students in Canada will be restricted to a 20-hour work week https://t.co/uMlqNxwiIm #Toronto #Canada #InternationalStudents
— blogTO (@blogTO) November 17, 2023
“As such, the financial requirement hasn’t kept up with the cost of living over time, resulting in students arriving in Canada only to learn that their funds aren’t adequate,” the announcement reads.
“I feel bad for these students, they’re only allowed to work 20 hours a week. How can they survive with that? No one will understand the real struggle they go through,” another person wrote under a video of the job fairs.
Aside from discussions surrounding financial support for international students, videos of these most recent job fairs once again stirred up polarizing conversations regarding Toronto’s living wage, cost of living, and sky-high rent.
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