This generation was pummelled by Covid high school. Now the job market wants to replace them with AI - Toronto Life
© 2026 Toronto Life Publishing Company Limited. Reproduction in whole or in part strictly prohibited. Toronto Life is a registered trademark of Toronto Life Publishing Company Limited. Kennedy Lashley was pummelled by pandemic high school. Then she faced an emaciated post-secondary system. Now she’s trying to find work in a market determined to replace her with AI, and she’s one of many. Tales from the lost generation It’s an age-old dynamic: people in their early 20s bemoan the state of the world, and everyone else tells them they’re being melodramatic. But adulting in 2026 is genuinely hard. This generation had their high school experiences upended by the pandemic. They were thrown into a post-secondary system decimated by the twin financial blows of provincial underfunding and a federal cap on international students. The grads who made it across the stage are staring down the barrel of a hyper-competitive job market. Employers are replacing entry-level positions with AI, obliteratin
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