By Tyne Johnson-DHillon

Which came first: the chicken or the egg? Riddles always frustrated me because they highlighted how when I’m put on the spot I struggle to think beyond what is right in front of me. Or, that I assume both things can be true at the same time and give up because it feels like there is no answer that is more right than the other. A chicken would’ve had to birth the egg and that chicken came from an egg, and around we go. Teasing out the logic hidden inside a riddle is precisely what makes them so satisfying for those inclined to a “Well, actually…” moment when there’s a lull in conversation. 

The so-called “labour shortage” that has infiltrated the Canadian public consciousness in recent years has split people into two camps. If you’re not sure what side you fall on, ask yourself this: Do people not want to work anymore or are there less good jobs for people to work?

British Columbia had steadily experienced dropping unemployment rates prior to March 2020 when many lost their jobs related to the COVD-19 pandemic causing the rate to jump from 4.7% to 8.9%. Although the unemployment rate has largely recovered since then, national data reveals that various racialized groups experience steep disparities in unemployment rates with many on the rise. 

South Asian and Black Canadians experience unemployment rates that are up to 4.5 percentage points higher than the national average, according to a report from Statistics Canada released this month. Higher than average unemployment rates among these racialized groups is largely driven up by unemployed women.

Diving deeper into the status of jobs available today reveals a difficult reality facing many of those in our labour market today. 

It ain’t what it used to be

Many jobs today look very different than a time when workers could expect a career path made up of a permanent, full-time job with a benefits-providing employer. If you’re one of the lucky ones in this position, have you ever settled in for the evening after a full day's work and thought, “Ordering from Skip the Dishes sounds really good right now”? The delivery driver and others finding on-demand work through online platforms are part of the “gig economy”, an under-documented reality that is changing our employment landscape in unprecedented ways. 

The growth and impact of precarious work in BC was largely unknown publicly before this year when an innovative study from researchers at Simon Fraser University and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives shed some light on its dark corners.

Work can be called “precarious” when things like its pay, schedule, expectations and benefits are unstable in some way. The rise of precarious work has called into question what makes a “good job” and who in our labour markets gain access to one.

Over half of workers surveyed reported working a non-standard job that does not fit the mold of having a single employer that provides a stable, full-time, permanent job with access to benefits. Those less likely to have standard jobs were women (especially those who are racialized and Indigenous), younger adult workers and recent immigrants, according to the study.

It was revealed that even among standard jobs there are increasing degrees of precarity present like unpredictable schedule changes, need to work multiple jobs and limited benefits. 

Among those caring for children, precarious employment is link to struggles in affording school supplies and extra curriculars as well as having less time to engage with school and community happenings. These challenges may impact the experiences and opportunities available to children of parents in precarious employment.

Precarious employment is mostly commonly linked in lower incomes — close to two-thirds of precarious workers made less than $40,000 annually — but some people in precarious jobs reported earning above $80,000. Secure jobs are mostly concentrated by white workers. Racialized, Indigenous, younger adult and recent immigrant workers were less likely to be in secure jobs.

This study illuminates the dire status of precarious work happening in the province and those most likely to be negatively impacted by it that had previously gone uninvestigated — despite being well known to those operating through it.

Where are the workers going?

It might be easy to try to draw conclusions about these findings like, people just don’t want to build a career or this is why so real jobs can’t hire anyone. I invite you to put aside the harmful guesswork and take a look in the mirror. No, seriously. What do you see? Maybe a wrinkle (or many) that is getting harder to ignore, grey hair that wasn’t there a few years ago. This is where you’ll find a likely cause for “labour storage”: population aging.

The fastest growing population in this country is those over 65, according to Statistics Canada, and there are just not enough younger people to cover the gap created as they age out of the workforce. More people are exiting the workforce than there are entering it.

Coupled with the increased precarity creeping into traditionally secure, stable jobs, it’s a daunting reality out there for today’s workforce. Work is not meeting people’s needs in ways that for some, privileged people it used to.

As the largest age demographic of our population ages, new labour demands are also ushered in. This is particularly true for care-providing sectors such as in hospitals and care homes, which are already stretched thin by the effects of the pandemic and ongoing healthcare privatization.  

The refrain of “no one wants to work anymore” is a red herring. Since the pandemic, Canada has seen historically low unemployment rates on average. More people are working than ever before. 

Chicken or the egg?

Well, it turns out that the egg came first. Evolutionary biologists agree that two not-quite-chickens laid an egg that the first chicken was born from. Unfortunately, the answer to whether no one wants to work anymore or there are no more good jobs is not as simple.

For the few reasons laid out here (and many others that were not) this issue is complex and multifaceted. It remains a question that will spark lively debate depending on who you ask. And it’s also worth reflecting on who is in the room when these debates are happening because this does not affect all people equally.

The fact is there needs to be a reckoning with the labour market as it stands. It’s a serious issue when both workers and employers are pointing out issues left, right and centre. For better or for worse (probably the latter), work is essential to our survival under capitalism. 

In this effort to survive, many people are falling through the cracks of supportive work environments into precarious work. Those experiencing employment precarity with low incomes were far more likely to report adverse physical and mental health. Its harms also seep into other areas of life.

The demands of unpaid care work and lack of access to child care (especially affordable) increase strain on the ability for many to work coupled with the strain of precarious work’s demands themselves. Children, communities and society more broadly experience negative consequences from the significant and uneven burden of precarious work. The negative effects of employment precarity do not exist in isolation.

It’s crucial to remember that unemployment and precarious work disproportionately impacts racialized and Indigenous people, younger adults, women and recent immigrants in both deep rooted and ongoing systemic ways.

As well, employers investing in career development, creating safer work environments and mentoring programs may be able to offset some of the impacts of people aging out of the workforce.

In our current work culture, there lies the power to improve the lives of people and their families today — with some serious intervention from multiple levels. A shift towards equitable wages and benefits, dignified work and healthy conditions is long overdue.