While it is not news that Sudbury has had a difficult time keeping young graduates in the city following their graduation, having southern Ontario newspapers cover it is relatively new (at least in this blogger's eyes). I am referring to an article in the Globe and Mail written by Adam Radwanski on Friday, which you can read here. I'm not going to go into the politics of having a southern newspaper write about the north, but it's a great thing that Laurentian Univeristy is finally getting more southern exposure. Time to discuss the article.
I'll begin with a quote that summarizes the article: "But ultimately, employers must have enough high-end jobs to keep graduates around permanently. And For all of Sudbury’s progress, that’s where the constraints typical for northern Ontario cities still fall leave it short." Beginning a sentence, much less a paragraph with 'but,' and some of the obvious grammar errors, may send some of our more grammar-savvy readers into a frenzy, but that's not the focus of the discussion.
Sudbury's exodus of educated youth is nothing new, nor is the discussion of it. I cannot count the amount of people who I've talked to about it, in both the private and public sector. The discussion is usually centered on my future, or the future of associates of mine, in Sudbury. I'm at the age now (23) where seeking a career is a priority and something I’ve been working on for quite some time. I’m not opposed to leaving town for work, in fact I’d welcome it some days, but in my heart I know I’d prefer Sudbury. Where does that leave me?
Well, I’ve applied to work at some of the typical, available options in town. These include Laurentian University, the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, Cambrian College, the city itself, the provincial offices, and federal offices. Beyond that, there are a host of other public development corporations, several private institutions, local media, and community colleges I’ve applied to also. I’ve worked for some of them, and been interviewed by more of them, but in the end I have not found a career out of it. Once again, where does that leave me?
At the moment, I’m continuing my studies. I’ve already got my Honours Bachelor of Arts in History from Laurentian University, my diploma from Print Journalism from Cambrian College, and will be finishing up a BA in Political Science this year. At 23 years old (24 when I graduate PoliSci), that’s not too bad of a resume. Add in all of the local volunteering, my hefty work resume, the various sports teams and committees, and the internships I’ve completed, and it looks even nicer. The sad reality, however, is that it’s difficult to find entry-level careers in meaningful work in this city. That’s the reality of the situation.
Simply put, the city needs to refocus their strategy on the youth brain drain. I understand that career turn-over has become a bit more stagnant due to the “harsh economic times,” as my favourite professor likes the call it. I also understand that companies want to hire people with experience, because they don’t have to train them. The problem with this two factors is they are causing educated people of my generation to have to leave town for employment. What’s the solution?
I would suggest more internships as a start. With internships, recent graduates, and even students, are able to gather valuable work experience. The issue with these internships is that they are usually too short-term. Take my current internship as an example. As a summer contract, I’m working for the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce. My contract expires this Friday. In total, I’ll have spent about three months and change here. Was it valuable? Definitely. The issue is that while it’s been a positive experience, it hasn’t nearly been long enough.
Another fellow Chamber intern has been here for almost a year, and then will be departing because her contract is up as well. Without diving too far behind closed doors, the Chamber will be sad to see her go. She has become an integral part of events planning here. The Chamber has asked for an extension, but has been declined. It simply is not in the budget to offer a new contract without government funding (remember, we’re a non-profit organization.) It is probable a new intern will be brought in, which will not be as efficient as retraining is a must for any new intern.
I’m really not sure what the answers are for this problem. It seems Sudbury, and Northern communities in general, have struggled mightily to attract educated youth into the work-force. I want to hear from you. How can Sudbury work towards attracting more educated youth into the workforce? Will a new government help the situation? Will the municipal candidates positions on this matter in the October elections?
Andy Veilleux 
I’ve thought about this problem many times since my own departure from Sudbury many years ago now. One of the key problems is that for all Sudbury’s big talk about attracting new employers to the city, it tends to concentrate too many of its efforts on the blue collar sector and not enough on attracting the “new economy” jobs that today’s young people actually want. To this day, I still see far too much of the mindset that if Sudbury wants to keep its young’uns at home, all it needs to do is convince Vale to staff up like in the Good Old Days; never mind that (a) it’s not going to happen, and (b) those aren’t the jobs that most of us who came of age after The 1979 Strike want anyway.
We mostly want “knowledge worker” jobs, in media or public administration or technology or software development, but the city’s economic development department still spends most of its time chasing welding shops and mining supply companies — and on the rare occasion that they pay any attention to “white collar diversification” at all, the city ends up with another minimum wage telemarketing call centre. (And yes, there are people who need those kinds of jobs too — but the city’s always going to lose a big chunk of its young people as long as that’s *all* it can offer them.)
Sudbury also doesn’t pay nearly enough attention to quality of life issues sometimes. Building a desirable city that people aspire to live in isn’t just a matter of chasing down jobs, and it isn’t just a matter of the roads; it’s also a matter of the cultural and recreational spaces the city has to offer. But let anyone propose any development of that type at all — performing arts centre, upgraded sports facilities, new art gallery building, new downtown library, rehabilitate the Bell Park amphitheatre before it falls down completely, etc. — and the first thing you hear is the eternal howl that Sudbury doesn’t need all this elitist Toronto artfag stuff, we need the city to spend its money on roads and roads and more roads (as if it were an either/or proposition, and as if the best roads in the world would mean anything at all if there’s nothing for you to drive *to* once you’re on them.)
I don’t have a whole lot of easy answers. But what I do know is this: if Sudbury wants to keep its young people, it needs to start paying a whole lot more attention to what would make those young people *want* to stay.
I definitely agree, “knowledge” jobs are a requirement for keeping the youth around, and Sudbury desperately needs to address the issue.