Recognizing a London Free Press series

Brain drain, struggling economy of London

By Mark Schadenberg

The City of London seems to be lagging behind other major Canadian centres in attracting major industry and commerce, and therefore, at the same time, is apparently losing another resource – an educated youth.

London’s unemployment rate is now at 9.8% according to Stats Canada and that’s simply too high for a community with almost half a million residents when you factor in nearby St Thomas and the mayor’s home of Arva.

The London Free Press (LFP) over the past 10 days or so has contributed a series about both the lack of recovery in the London economy since 2008 and the subsequent brain drain.

When I think of the Forest City, medical research is dominate in my mind.

Employment numbers at CAMI Automotive in Ingersoll do not count in any London figures.

The thriving Woodstock-to-Cambridge corridor for Toyota manufacturing has boosted circumference manufacturing in those centres plus Simcoe and Stratford.

Is London struggling?

One of the Norm DeBono LFP writings does a great job of breaking down the demographics with further analysis of London versus Hamilton, Windsor and other locales.

Graduation delivers growth?

There is a true need for skilled trades . . . and there is a big big demand actually, you would think that Fanshawe College grads would love to stay in London if there were jobs available in their specialty upon graduation.

Is London simply too far from Toronto to gain some of the spill-over industry?

There is no reason why London shouldn’t grow in size and population to the 750,000 level over the next generation, but it won’t if that generation doesn’t have a job as a magnet to London.

Here are some of the LFP links:      

http://www.lfpress.com/2013/04/11/an-old-refrain--do-more-to-hang-onto-young-brainpower--is-ringing-again-in-london

http://www.lfpress.com/2013/04/14/underground-economy-driving-up-london-jobless-rate

http://www.lfpress.com/2013/04/24/getting-it-right

http://www.lfpress.com/2013/04/17/london-losing-six-top-level-bureaucrats-between-the-thames-valley-and-london-district--catholic-school-boards

Mark Schadenberg

Sales Representative

Royal LePage Triland Realty

757 Dundas St, Woodstock

(519) 537-1553, cell or text

Email: mschadenberg@rogers.com

Twitter: markroyallepage

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