Job fair tickets bereft of monetary worth, according to CNE, following a scam targeting job seekers
The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) job fair in July saw an unusual development, with scammers attempting to sell tickets to the free event. The CNE confirmed that anyone could attend the job fair without prior registration or payment.
The CNE used Eventbrite to create a registration page for the job fair, which was free to attend. However, scammers exploited the situation by charging for these fake tickets. The CNE urges the public not to pay for any ticket to this event.
The CNE received an unprecedented number of job applications for their 5,000 openings at the Exhibition, with 54,000 applications submitted online. This is a record number of applications for the CNE.
Youth unemployment rates have also been on the rise, with Statistics Canada reporting a 14.2 per cent unemployment rate for this group in their latest labour force survey. This figure is up by 0.7 percentage points year-over-year and is significantly higher than the pre-pandemic average, which was between 10.8 per cent between 2017 and 2019.
The unemployment rate for students returning to school in the fall was around 17.4 per cent in June, which is also a significant increase from the pre-pandemic average. This figure is the highest unemployment rate for this group since June 2009, excluding the pandemic.
The Toronto Police Service has not heard of any reports related to this job scam, and the CNE has not been made aware of any reports to the police regarding the scam. The Toronto Police Service urges anyone who believes they fell victim to the job scam to report the incident to them.
News Toronto is inviting readers who paid for a ticket to a fake job fair to share their story. Readers are asked to provide their name, general location, and phone number for potential follow-up.
[1] The CNE job fair was free to attend, and no registration was required. Scammers tried to exploit job seekers by charging for tickets to the event. The CNE warns the public not to pay for any ticket to this event.
[2] Despite the rise in unemployment rates among young people and students returning to school, it's important to be aware of scams like the one at the CNE job fair. Education and self-development resources may provide information on how to spot and avoid such scams in career development and general news, as crime and justice reports could include warnings about similar fraudulent activities.
