Get used to ‘job churn,’ finance minister says

NIAGARA FALLS, Ont. — Finance Minister Bill Morneau says Canadians should get used to so-called “job churn” — short-term employment and a number of career changes in a person’s life.

Morneau made the comment on Saturday at a meeting of the federal Liberal Party’s Ontario wing, days before he’s scheduled to deliver a fall economic update.

The remark comes just three days after the Bank of Canada downgraded the country’s growth outlook yet again.

And when asked about precarious employment, the finance minister told delegates that high employee turnover and short-term contract work will continue in young people’s lives, and the government has to focus on preparing for it.

“We also need to think about, ‘How do we train and retrain people as they move from job to job to job?’ Because it’s going to happen. We have to accept that,” Morneau said.

Morneau noted that some people will see their jobs disappear in the years to come — truck drivers and receptionists, for instance.