Nunavut formed Canada’s newest territory in 1999 and Inuit form about 85% of the population. The self-government and land claim agreement combined three Inuit regions into one territory. The new territory has a publicly elected legislature with responsibility for many aspects of the day-to-day lives of its residents, including education and employment.
The Nunavut economy is in transition from one based on traditional activities on the land to a cash-based economy. Where Inuit hunted and fished to sustain themselves, their families and their communities, they are now expected to get a job and receive cash in exchange for their time, skills and labour. The skills people need to work in the cash economy may be vastly different from those they need for traditional land activities.
A recent international study on living conditions in the Arctic involved six countries, including Canada Footnote 1. The Canadian data are based on 60-minute interviews with 4,700 Inuit from Nunavut, Nunavik, the Inuvialuit region and Labrador. The findings across all six countries show a persistent combination of paid work in the cash economy and traditional work in the land-based economy. Almost three-quarters of the Canadian respondents reported having hunted or fished in the previous year and over half reported having worked for pay in the previous week. This demonstrates that both kinds of economic activity are important to Inuit. It could be expected that youth would follow similar patterns.
It is worth noting that there is a greater focus in Nunavut to increase the employability and skills of individuals with lower educational achievement than would normally be the case Footnote 2. This is largely because of two things: mining companies have made commitments to the communities in which they operate; the Nunavut land claim has a goal of 85% Inuit employment in the public service.
Despite the economic demand for local employees and a strong commitment to education and training in Nunavut, young Nunavummiut are often not finding their way into available jobs. Many forces are at work in Nunavut that have impacts on the participation of youth in the paid work force.
Return to note 1 Poppel, Birger, Jack Kruse, Gérard Duhaime, Larissa Abryutina. 2007. SLiCA Results. Anchorage: Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage. Retrieved from http://www.arcticlivingconditions.org/
Return to note 2 International comparative literature has demonstrated a consistent “under-investment” in low-skilled workers, across countries. Tergeist, W.O. a. P. (2003). Improving Workers’ Skills: Analytical Evidence and the Role of the Social Partners. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. p. 4.