It was a busy day on Friday for Prime Minster Justin Trudeau in Saskatoon.
He started the day at an Eid al-Adha gathering, speaking to thousands at the Muslim celebration at Prairieland Park.
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“We must continue to stand together, united against racism, hatred and Islamophobia,” Trudeau said to the crowd.
Next, he was whisked away to meet with the chiefs of the Saskatoon Tribal Council at White Buffalo Youth Lodge.
He spent the rest of the day at the University of Saskatchewan, spending time in discussions with students.
The focus was on a new federal program, announced Tuesday, that will create 10,000 paid student work placements over the next four years. The government will spend $73 million on the project.
Patricia Hajdu, minister of employment, workforce development and labour, also joined Trudeau on Friday.
She said combined with other programs, the new announcement brings the total to 60,000 paid work placements over the next five years.
“Without that experience, you can’t get that first job, but without that first job you can’t get that experience on your resume,” Hajdu explained.
“For every one of them here that I got to meet with, there are 10, 20 friends back in the communities who haven’t had the kinds of opportunities and this sense that even these young people, or even the young people who are lucky enough to be studying in universities are facing real difficult paths with multiple barriers,” Trudeau said.
“We know that today’s work force is very different than it was even a generation ago, even a decade ago and with the changing economy, we hear all the time, about the challenges that students are facing, and that employers are facing,” Hajdu said.
Friday marked Trudeau’s third stop in Saskatoon this year.
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“Ready to repurpose myself even more to working hard for their future, for our future, for Canada’s future,” Trudeau said.
After approximately 24 hours in Saskatoon, Trudeau caught a plane for a Friday evening event in Whitehorse, followed by more community events there on Saturday.