CBC Town Hall: Just-In-Time Jobs

The world of work is changing.

Gone are the days of guaranteed full-time work with benefits. Today, barely half of working adults in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area have full-time, permanent jobs with benefits and some degree of security.

Instead, freelance, contract and part-time work are becoming the new normal. Pensions, benefits and job security are the exception, not the rule. This shift could have real consequences – not just for individuals, but for society.

In CBC's Town Hall discussion, called Just-In-Time Jobs: Getting by in a world of part-time, contract and precarious work, CBC Toronto examines the shift in the labour market, the cost of unstable jobs and what we need to do to respond to the changing work landscape.

• After layoffs, legal assistant turns to online business
• Mohammad Ali Aumeer raps about Toronto job market
• Contract work in post-secondary education, a former bastion of secure work

Moderated by Metro Morning's Matt Galloway, our town hall discussion takes place at 7:30-9 p.m. on March 4, 2015 in Glenn Gould Studio.

Join us in person. Doors open by 7 p.m. – first come, first seated.

Tune in to CBC Radio 1, 99.1 FM to listen live, or catch highlights the next day on Metro Morning, starting at 5:30 a.m. You can also watch live online

Our Panelists

In addition to your stories, we will hear from community members with experience in these issues.

Navgeet Bajaj

Navgeet was working as a scientist when a surprise lay-off found her out of work. She landed a great job at the University of Toronto. But the angst she felt during her job search compelled her to leave that job after a year and share her personal journey with other displaced professionals. She co-founded Transition to Hired, where she now coaches professionals on how to adjust quickly to downsizing -- and get their careers back on track.

Lauren Friese

Lauren Friese is the founder of TalentEgg.ca, a national online career resource for students and recent graduates. Lauren started TalentEgg in 2008 after receiving her master's degree at the London School of Economics, because she wanted to create a better way for students to transition from school to work in Canada. She also attended Queen's University and has worked in consulting and financial services in the UK.

Deena Ladd

For more than two decades, Deena has worked in community and labour organizing, education, training and building various organizations to support the actions and voice of immigrant, racialized, women and low-wage workers in Ontario. She is co-founder and coordinator of the Workers’ Action Centre (WAC) – a worker based organization committed to improving the lives and working conditions of people in low-wage and unstable employment.

Wayne Lewchuk

Wayne is a founding member of the School of Labour Studies at McMaster University and the co-director of a five-year joint university community research program on Poverty and Employment Precarity in Southern Ontario (PEPSO). PEPSO, which released its first major report in 2013, is a joint initiative of the School of Labour Studies at McMaster University and United Way Toronto. A follow-up report The Precarity Penalty will be released later this spring. Wayne holds a BA and MA in economics from the University of Toronto, and a Ph.D in economics from the University of Cambridge.