Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities

This House of Commons committee meeting of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA) was held in two parts: the first hour studied the government mandate and key priorities for seniors, featuring Secretary of State for Seniors Stephanie McLean, and the second hour studied youth employment in Canada, with witnesses Derek Nighbor of the Forest Products Association of Canada, Sharif Mahdy of The Students Commission of Canada, and Julie-Ann Vincent of the YMCA of Greater Halifax/Dartmouth.

Derek Nighbor described the forestry sector’s 200,000 direct jobs and the severe impact of U.S. softwood lumber duties and tariffs exceeding 45%, which have led to layoffs and made youth recruitment difficult. He recommended a forest-sector skills development plan, employer-led training in rural and northern communities, and multi-year funding for proven youth employment programs like the outland youth employment program, warning that funding instability forces successful initiatives to close camps. He stressed the need for government to keep the forestry sector informed during trade negotiations and to include contractors in any worker support packages.

Sharif Mahdy reported that youth are anxious about a shifting economy and need a whole-of-society approach to employment, integrating pre-employment skill development, formal education, and work-placed learning. He highlighted the Take Our Kids to Work program, which reached over 400,000 students in 2025, and called for expanding it year-round and beyond grade 9. He noted that youth expectations have already adjusted to economic realities and that the most effective federal program for preventing a “failure to launch” is the Youth Employment and Skills Strategy (YESS).

Julie-Ann Vincent emphasized that youth employment programs must be youth-centred and recognize that each young person has unique strengths and barriers. She recommended sustained investment in community-based programming with stable, multi-year funding rather than constant pilot projects, and urged that employment interventions address social determinants of health such as housing, food security, and mental health support. She noted that the YMCA of Greater Halifax/Dartmouth employs 260 youth, representing 52% of its workforce, and that YMCAs collectively employ over 13,000 youth across Canada.

Following the witnesses, Conservative MP Laila Goodridge moved a motion to invite the Auditor General to appear for two hours on the Canada-Wide Early Learning and Child Care System report by November 28, 2025. Liberal members argued this would duplicate work likely done by the public accounts committee and disrupt the committee’s agreed calendar, while Conservatives maintained it was a modest request for accountability on a $35-billion program. After debate, the committee proceeded to a vote on the motion.