Article content

CALGARY – Mornings for recent chemical engineering graduate Stephen Situ consist of a bowl of cereal and a search through job boards before he starts driving for Uber Technologies Inc. at lunch.

Situ, like many in his under-25 age bracket, hasn’t found regular, full-time employment since graduating from the University of Calgary two years ago, except for a few months doing door-to-door internet sales for Telus Corp. and some construction labour in various parts of northern Alberta.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or 'It is so stark': Young men left behind in Alberta's recovery amid 'male-dominated recession' Back to video

This is life and sometimes it doesn’t work out

“I lost hope, but I started to see the bigger picture. This is life and sometimes it doesn’t work out,” said the 24-year-old, who estimates he has sent out more than 1,000 resumés. He said he’s also had a difficult time finding jobs in other sectors as well.

Indeed, young Albertan men are the only demographic whose employment numbers have continued to fall — and sharply at that — while employment levels for older men and women of all ages have almost recovered to pre-recession levels.