Millennials are frequently portrayed as big supporters of greater flexibility in work. They want to explore their interests, like hobbies and travel, and work from anywhere. But this doesn’t tell the whole story: ‘flexible’ work can create insecurity, make it harder to pay off debt, and delay reaching milestones like buying homes and having a family. How millennials feel about increasing flexibility in the workplace depends on who you ask and what you mean by flexibility. Ausma breaks apart these issues with Jenny Fortin and Vass Bednar.
Jenny Fortin is a community organizer with the Sudbury Workers Education and Advocacy Centre (SWEAC).
Vass Bednar is a senior associate at AirBNB Canada and chaired the Expert Panel on Youth Employment for the federal government in 2017. She is also the co-host of Detangled, a pop-culture and public policy radio show.
Get Connected
The Sudbury Workers Education and Advocacy Centre (SWEAC) works to improve the lives and wages of low-income people and precarious workers. They run educational seminars, peer support groups, and information services.
The Fight for $15 and Fairness is a campaign for decent work, including a $15 minimum wage, paid sick days, decent hours, and much more.
“A living wage reflects what earners in a family need to bring home based on the actual costs of living in a specific community.” Living Wage Canada calculates the living wage for municipalities and connects to advocacy groups advocating for those wages in Canada.
Etcetera
Check out the reports from the Canadian government’s Expert Panel on Youth Employment, chaired by Vass.
Vass also co-hosts Detangled, a CIUT 89.5 FM radio show and podcast on pop-culture and policy with a millennial bent.
CBC’s The Pollcast asks “Are millennials now Canada’s most important voters?”