Desirée Zagbai
Black Canadians have significantly impacted the labour force in Canada. However, the increased Black unemployment rate limits their opportunities.
Layla Michel, 20, a computer science student at Concordia University, has been searching for a job since March 2024. She expressed that she has more free time now. Still, it has been stressful, and she believes that systemic racism plays a part in the Black unemployment rate in Canada.
“I think in Canada, the thing is that they like to say that it’s not as bad as the U.S. You compare a lot, and so you kind of end up ignoring our issues,” Michel said. “But I think it’s there, and just because our issues aren’t the same as the states, they are not equal in the same regard. It doesn’t mean that it’s not there,” Michel emphasized.
She mentioned how she believes that racism in Canada is more hidden, and people are more lenient with the racist remarks they make—some hiring managers will not be blatant and tell a Black individual that somebody will not hire them due to their skin color.
Michel believes that networking is a solid way of fighting the unemployment situation. Having connections may also help one get into the job market.
“People who are hiring are usually strangers, and if they already have a bias against Black people, they already have this barrier. So if you don’t have any connection with them or someone they know, it’s very hard,” Michel said.
Research by Statistics Canada shows that from 12 months to June 2024, the Black unemployment rate
rose by 4.4 percentage points to 11.9 percent.
Solange Pati, owner of the West African restaurant Maquis Yasolo, was inspired to create her own business to promote the “afro-québéqois” culture. She has been self-employed for more than 20 years and keeps experiencing the same issue—getting a stable loan as a Black business owner.
Pati explained that she gets approached by many Black individuals looking for jobs. To help some of them, she tries to schedule them for her restaurant’s events. However, since she cannot take out a loan to help her business, it becomes difficult to help more Black job searchers.
She expressed that the most significant issue Black business owners face is the ability to get a loan for their business.
Despite the financial challenges she is still facing, she remains favourable to the people around her.
“I always say to my employees and the family, one thing that we have: we have this space in our food, and nobody can take that,” Pati emphasized.
Pati mentioned the slave labour Black people have gone through in Canadian history; the Black community has felt the impact of kidnappings, rape and abuse.
She believes Labour Day in Canada is more than a symbol. It represents the path of Black Canadians in Western society.
“We worked hard to build what the Canadian society is today,” Pati emphasized.
Suzanne Spiteri has been the research lead at the Labour Market Information Council (LMIC) for two years. She has conducted multiple projects and research on the labour market and Black Canadians.
She believes the main reasons for the increased Black unemployment rate are due to systemic racism, biases, and the legacy of colonialism.
“If we don’t make real efforts to change the systems, then everything is going to stay exact,” Spiteri said.
Spiteri is working on a project about unemployment among Black youth in Canada. She believes that there will be a large population of Black youth who are not in formal education, employment, or training. It can affect their future employment prospects without proper education, causing them to decline when they are not involved in the labour market as a youth.
Spiteri explained that there is the racism of “low expectations.” Some teachers have low expectations about Black children, and this influences how they educate them. If adults do not believe in Black children at an early stage, they will have a hard time believing in themselves and their potential to get higher education. Which later will lead to limited opportunities. She emphasized that without a fundamental systemic change, the cycle will continue.
“We need to untangle the legacy that we have with settler colonialism. We need to ensure that people get the equal rights and freedoms provided to them,” Spiteri emphasized.
