The latest unemployment numbers from Statistics Canada should seize every working Canadian with trepidation.
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In May, our national jobless rate climbed to a sobering seven per cent. That is not just a statistic; it is a flashing red light, marking the highest level in almost nine years, not counting
those bizarre pandemic peaks.
We now have 1.6 million people actively looking for work, and their searches are taking longer. The average job search now drags on for 21.8 weeks, up nearly 20 per cent from only
a year ago. Gone is the tight job market you have heard about for years. The hiring spree has slowed to a crawl, with only a slim 8,800 new jobs added across the country last month,
according to Statistics Canada. That is only about half of one per cent of those looking for work.
For employers, this means a larger pool of available talent. For employees, it means a workforce with fewer options, and a whole new ball game when it comes to job security — and,
critically, what you are owed if your employer decides that you are no longer part of their plan.
Forget the old playbook where employers thought they could offer low severance because employees could quickly find a new job. That seven per cent unemployment rate, and the
fact that it now takes almost half a year to find a new job, fundamentally changes the rules of the game.
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Many think severance is a simple math equation: take your years of service, multiply by some number and — presto! That is your payout. They might only know about those basic
government minimums, which are, frankly, ludicrously low in most cases. But the real game is governed by common law severance. This is where a judge looks at your unique situation
and decides how much you should receive to find a comparable new job.
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Here is what most people do not realize: the job market itself is a huge factor in that calculation. When unemployment was low, a judge might assume that you could land on your feet
quickly. But now? With 1.6 million people fighting for scraps and job hunts dragging on for nearly six months, your “re-employability” just plummeted.
