Employment Hero's Kevin Kleeman explains why Canada's workforce is underemployed and worries about 2026.
It's been a crazy year for Canada.
Elections! Trade war! Talk about elbows and digital sovereignty… and, of course, artificial intelligence.
In a year that has seen so much change, what is the impact on Canada's labor market?
“Can you imagine that a quarter (25 per cent) of Canadians are unsure if they will be employed in the next year? That's a wild statistic.”
Kevin Klieman
Hero of Employment
This week on Podcast BetaKitwe have Kevin Kleeman, co-founder of Canadian HR platform Humi, who acquired by Australia's Employment Hero earlier this year.
Now Kliman, president of Canadian business at Employment Hero, is armed with new survey data that shows Canadians are worried about their job prospects in 2026: One in four Canadians surveyed by the company are worried about being laid off in the next year, and about the same percentage are putting off important financial decisions because of that fear.
The data also looks bad for Gen Z workers, especially those who are underemployed and hungry for change. Nearly half (46 percent) of all Gen Z employees say their current role is not in their desired field, and more than half (55 percent) are looking for a new job in the new year.
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According to Kleeman, the data is driven by three macroeconomic trends: the impact of tariffs, the impact of AI on entry-level jobs and the industry-wide desire to return to the office. In this episode, he offers advice to Gen Z workers who want to make their mark in today's workforce, and surprisingly, it may have something to do with AI. He also provides commentary on the emerging trend of young Canadian entrepreneurs exploring the Canadian landscape and decided to build somewhere else.
So what do you need to get And keep your job in Canada in 2026?
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Recorded and edited Toronto Podcasts. Artistic image provided by Pavel Danilyuk via Pexels.
