A new report to Parliament says young Canadians are facing such severe financial pressure that more than one‑quarter are skipping meals to get by, a sign of what Food Banks Canada calls a growing crisis in youth economic security.The organization told the Commons human resources committee that 28% of young adults reported going without a meal because they lacked money, while 20% relied on free food from community groups — nearly double the rate seen in the general population. The findings come as MPs examine youth unemployment and the fallout from cabinet’s now‑reversed 2023 move that opened the labour market to roughly one million foreign students.The data, based on surveys of 1,500 Canadians aged 18 to 24 conducted by Pollara Strategic Insight, paints a bleak picture of the pressures facing young workers. When asked what was driving their financial stress, 42% cited the rising cost of living. Low wages were blamed by 38%, the high cost of gas by 23%, and 16% pointed to an unemployed spouse..Food Banks Canada said the numbers show “something is not working,” noting that student unemployment averages 14.7% nationwide. The report argues that unstable work, low pay and gaps in income supports are leaving young people exposed to “material hardships” and rising food insecurity.The organization warned that youth unemployment reflects a broader crisis: many young adults are stuck in precarious jobs with limited benefits while facing rapidly increasing living costs. These conditions, it said, leave them highly vulnerable to financial shocks.Student joblessness climbed after cabinet temporarily allowed 1,040,985 foreign students unrestricted access to the Canadian workforce in 2023. Immigration data later showed 81% of those students found work, and 38% logged more than 30 hours a week off campus. Ottawa has since restored a 24‑hour weekly cap, but only during winter months.A labour department briefing last June acknowledged that young Canadians are often the first to feel the effects of economic turbulence. “Youth unemployment is on the rise,” officials wrote, adding that the federal government recognizes the scale of the challenge facing the country’s emerging workforce.
