Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thanks very much to both of you for joining us today.
In your report, you state, “The level of average hours worked continues to be below its trend, driven primarily by youth underemployment.” Young Canadians today still have 224,000 fewer jobs than they did before the recession, despite a slight growth in their population. Of the new jobs created in Canada since 2009, only 0.5% have gone to young Canadians, despite their representation of 15% of the labour force. Earlier this year, TD Bank estimated that this extended period of youth unemployment and underemployment would cost Canada's economy $23 billion over the next 18 years.
For Canadians who are watching this today and for the many middle-class Canadian families who have young people who are struggling to find paid work, can you describe the impact that youth unemployment and underemployment is having on the Canadian economy?