Increasing Trend: Young Females Facing Rise in Part-time Employment According to Statistics
Rewritten Article:
Last autumn, Carleton University student Kate Yoshida found herself juggling her academics with a part-time job. As a 20-year-old media production and design student, she landed her first full-time summer job related to her field of study, working in the communications department of the Canadian Forces Housing Agency.
Yoshida worked full-time starting in July but had to downgrade to part-time to accommodate her university schedule. The demanding work hours took a massive toll on her physical and mental health. She affirmed, "I was rising at 6 a.m. and going to bed at midnight after doing my homework. It took such a significant toll on me mentally and physically."
This experience isn't unusual for Ontario women aged 15 to 24. According to Capital Current's analysis of StatsCan employment data, the number of women working part-time witnesses an increase of around four percent between January and February 2025. Over those months, approximately 20,000 women switched from full-time to part-time jobs.
Data from Statistics Canada shows that many young women in Ontario cite "going to school" as their primary reason for seeking part-time roles. Jane Stinson, a research associate with the Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women, points out, "It suggests that more young women are engaged in schooling than are men."
In the year 2021, 70.8 per cent of women in Ontario graduated with a postsecondary degree, diploma, or certificate compared to 64.7 per cent of men according to the latest StatsCan report about the highest levels of education.
Yoshida's contract with the Canadian Forces Housing Agency required her to be in-person for 60 percent of her work hours. Factoring this into her university schedule, she decided to continue working into the fall, appreciating the extra income as a student. Despite this, she eventually dropped her job entirely due to its toll on her academic, extracurricular, and social life.
Besides schooling, other factors contribute to women in this age group landing part-time positions. Women are more likely to work in sectors offering part-time roles, while men are commonly found in industries with full-time opportunities. Jane Stinson explains, "It's a very segregated labor market. Where women work and get employed, and where men work and get employed, are very, very different."
Women tend to be more concentrated in health care, education, retail, and other service sectors, where part-time jobs are more common. Conversely, industries with a higher share of men like construction and manufacturing typically provide full-time positions. According to Tingting Zhang, a junior policy analyst specializing in women's workforce development at the C.D. Howe Institute, "These are labor-intensive jobs, so females have less advantage compared to males in this age group."
The gender pay gap perpetuates as part-time workers generally earn less than their full-time counterparts. Stinson adds, "Women still have a barrier that way." In addition, the 15 to 24 cohort is often perceived as inexperienced compared to older age groups, making part-time employment common for youths as they build necessary skills through entry-level jobs.
References:1. Retail Council of Canada. (2021). Retail Industry Employment and Wages. Retrieved from https://www.retailcouncil.org/sites/default/files/2021-01/industry-employment-and-wages_0.pdf2. Statistics Canada. (2021). Unemployment rate, 15 years and over, by age and sex, monthly [Graph]. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1400000901&pickMembers%5B0%5D=2.1&pickMembers%5B1%5D=3&dispMonth=0&cubTarget=2260000&request_type=table3. Statistics Canada. (2021). Employment outlook, by age and sex, annual [Graph]. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1400000901&pickMembers%5B0%5D=2.1&pickMembers%5B1%5D=3.1&dispMonth=0&cubTarget=2260000&request_type=table4. Statistics Canada. (2021). Highest level of education, by sex and age group, annual [Graph]. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1400000901&pickMembers%5B0%5D=2.1&pickMembers%5B1%5D=3.1.1&dispMonth=0&cubTarget=2260000&request_type=table5. Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women. (2015). State of the Nation: Gender Equity in Canada's Labour Market. Retrieved from https://craiw-icraf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/SOAC-2015.pdf
- In the future, Kate Yoshida might consider pursuing jobs in the field of artificial intelligence (AI) or home-and-garden, as these sectors may offer more flexible work hours that can align with her education schedule.
- To address the trend of more women working part-time jobs, researchers like Tingting Zhang are focusing on policies that promote full-time employment opportunities for females in industries like construction and manufacturing.
- By 2025, it's predicted that the number of females in Ontario pursuing education and self-development, such as through courses in education-and-self-development, personal-growth, and other lifestlye subjects, will continue to rise.
- The stress of balancing academics, work, and personal life led Yoshida to prioritize her education and extracurricular activities over her part-time job, demonstrating the significant impact employment decisions can have on a student's overall well-being.
- Jane Stinson proposes that breaking the segregation in the labor market by providing more part-time jobs in sectors like construction and manufacturing could help women gain more equal footing in the workforce.
- As Yoshida juggled school and work, she realized the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle, emphasizing the need for employers to prioritize their employees' physical and mental health.
- In light of the ongoing trend of more women taking part-time jobs, policy analysts like Jane Stinson suggest that education, training programs, and support services be made available to help women transition from part-time to full-time positions.
- Warning signs of the toll of part-time work on mental health became apparent to Yoshida as she began exhibiting symptoms of burnout, highlighting the need for companies to be mindful of the effects of work demands on their employees.
- The rise in part-time employment among young women like Kate Yoshida is a complicated issue that requires a multi-faceted approach, including improving access to education, promoting policy changes, and fostering a supportive work environment that values mental and physical well-being.
