The Liberals are being accused of inflating youth employment stats by encouraging employers to hire students for only half the summer, a move Conservatives say boosts job counts on paper while shortchanging young workers.Blacklock's Reporter says at the Commons human resources committee, Conservative MP Garnett Genuis argued the Canada Summer Jobs program is being quietly reshaped to generate more job listings rather than better jobs. He pointed to a federal guide telling employers that positions “about eight weeks” long — half a normal summer — would be prioritized even though the program subsidizes wages for up to 16 weeks.Genuis said employers typically want students for the full summer and accused cabinet of cutting job durations to make the numbers look better. He said the approach “artificially” increases the number of jobs funded, even if most students would rather work longer..Labour Minister Patty Hajdu defended the policy, saying shorter placements allow more young Canadians to participate. She said the program will support 100,000 jobs next year, including nearly 35,000 additional students. When pressed on why Ottawa is effectively backing “half jobs,” Hajdu said the eight-week model creates a wider range of opportunities.Youth unemployment remained above 14.2% last summer, according to Statistics Canada, with analysts warning that labour market conditions for young Canadians remain tough.The Canada Summer Jobs program spends more than $280 million a year on wage subsidies, but the Auditor General has repeatedly questioned whether it actually creates any new jobs. A 2024 audit found the employment department tracks how many positions it funds, not how many are created, and doesn’t require proof that the jobs wouldn’t exist without government money. Auditor General Karen Hogan told MPs she saw no evidence the program meets its stated goals.
