A new study of more than 5,000 Canadians from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute shows an 18 per cent decline in the number of workers in the service sector over two-and-a-half-years. This includes a 22 per cent decline among 18- to 24-year-olds and a drop of 15 per cent among 25- to 34-year-olds.

Their study also shows a trend towards retirement instead of away from it so the service sector has experienced significant attrition but there has been a corresponding boost for the tech sector.

And as COVID-19 shut down the country, many older Canadians chose not to return to work. Angus Reid suggests that the six per cent who were retired in 2020 and have chosen to go back to work maybe doing so because of employers hoping to fill vacancies with experienced staff.

Among those who are 55 to 64 years of age, there has been a 27 per cent increase in retirement, despite those individuals remaining below retirement age.