Youth across Canada are struggling to find summer jobs, and many in St. Albert are still searching as the season begins.
As of May, Alberta's unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 to 24 was 17.2 per cent. That is more than double the province's overall unemployment rate of 7.4 per cent.
Sixteen-year-old St. Albertan Piper Holcek said she has been applying for jobs since November 2024, applying to everything from McDonald's to retail stores and hasn’t had any luck.
"People tell you all the time to apply in person, but I apply in person and they tell me to apply online," she said. "You go in person, they tell you to apply online."
Holcek said even entry-level jobs often require experience, which is frustrating as she is just entering the workforce.
"They [companies] need experience," said Holeck. "And I don't have experience because I haven't worked before."
Marissa Guay-Dallaire, also 16, said she has had a similar experience.
Guay-Dallaire said it is frustrating watching her friends find employment.
"It's kind of difficult, because all my friends are getting hired, and I'm like, 'How come I'm not getting hired?'" said Guay-Dallaire.
Holcek said most of the people she knows who have a job got it through connections.
One student who has found employment this summer is Ben Warren, 16.
"I got really lucky that I have a job through my family," he said. "But I know that for lots of people it's almost impossible."
He said he has watched his friends apply for dozens of jobs and get no response.
"It's hopeless if you don't have connections already — it's hopeless," said Warren.
According to a report by the Indeed Hiring Lab, summer job postings were down 22 per cent compared to the same time last year. Postings for camp roles dropped by 44 per cent, from April 2024 to April 2025, while other seasonal jobs like lifeguards, painters and customer service workers also declined.
Tristan Longworth created Game Plan Services to help student-athletes like himself find casual jobs they can do over the summer to make some cash. He said the ideas came from trying to raise funds for a soccer trip to Portugal in 2023.
Now, Longworth employs student-athletes in Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
"Game Plan Services, we're a company that finds jobs for student athletes that are short-term work opportunities," said Longworth. "We've really seen first-hand how hard it is for young people to find summer jobs."
He said there are currently around 200 people in a queue waiting to be hired. Longworth said he expects they will take all of the students, as it helps them make money and gain job experience.
Everyone starts as a landscape level one, where they work weeding gardens and flower beds. From there, students work their way up through online and in-person training and mentorship.
"For a lot of teenagers, they're coming to us, and this is their first job ever," said Longworth. "We want to make sure that we take time and we teach them, we train them on what to do."
Despite many struggling to find summer positions, the City of St. Albert said summer staffing looks similar to last year.
"Staffing for season-specific services varies across our departments and roles," said Shawn O'Connell, manager of labour relations and advisory services. "While we do hire summer-specific positions in certain departments, other departments may increase the number of shifts existing casual employees get to help deliver these services."
On July 6, the federal government announced it created 6,000 more summer jobs to help youth find jobs across the country.
Currently, in the St. Albert area, there are 181 positions available on the summer jobs website.
