Harper must take action on jobs

New Democrats are calling for action in the wake the devastating loss of nearly 40,000 Canadian jobs in July.

“There are still over 300,000 more people unemployed today than before the recession, and that number is going in the wrong direction,” said Official Opposition Finance Critic Peggy Nash. “In the face of devastating job losses, the Harper government has done nothing. No new jobs plan, no youth employment plan and no plan to address record household debt.”

“Instead, Conservatives are buying ads to promote a training program that doesn’t exist. Even the Wall Street Journal has acknowledged that these job losses are largely a result of Conservative austerity cuts.”

Statistics Canada reports that youth unemployment was also up significantly in the month of July.

“Youth unemployment is now the highest it’s been since the worst months of the recession.” said Matthew Dubé, NDP Youth Caucus Chair.

“And this isn’t just a short-term problem. TD Bank has shown that for young people graduating into a job market like this, their wages are 4-5% lower and they can take up to 17 years to recover. The potential of an entire generation is being lost.”