COVID-19 has affected us all in ways that are impossible to fully express.

Being a 4^th year student at Fanshawe College in the Honours Bachelor of Commerce – Digital Marketing program, even the way that school will function when I go back in September has drastically changed. We will no longer be sitting in classrooms, learning with our fellow students.

Just like how I am currently working as an Intern at Sociable Media, everything is online. We have daily Zoom calls where it is easy to just roll out of bed, throw on my Blue Jays hat, and get to work. During one of these calls I was asked to assist with a new start-up project Sociable Media is working on: Career Digital Portfolio (name TBA).

I was tasked with researching how COVID-19 has affected unemployment levels, the labour market, and the economy overall to get a better idea of what the employment climate is like and whether this project was worth pursuing.

Regarding unemployment levels, I found that by the end of April, 3 million Canadians were no longer employed, with 2.5 million being furloughed or working at reduced hours. The work shortage turned around in May with 290,000 more people retaining jobs, and 2.4 million Canadians returning back to basic work hours by the end of the month. 

Something I found interesting was how many people were working remotely, as it affects my current situation. Prior to February, only 16.6% of people in Canada were working away from the office. By the end of May, that number almost doubled to 32.6%, with the expectation that 22.5% of Canadians would be working remotely post-pandemic.