Ontario Municipal Human Resources Association

Canada’s upside-down population pyramid has long cast an ominous shadow over the public sector, and Generation Z will have to accomplish far more with far fewer resources to keep civil services from crumbling entirely.

But Gen Z may be just the generation for the job, since it’s the first cohort of skilled workers who’ve only ever known a world with the internet and social media. A growing body of research, including a new report from Environics Research, is showing the seismic influence of always having the world in your pocket — Gen Z is already known for having an innate kind of tech-savviness, along with a strong sense of social consciousness and an earnest sensitivity toward other cultures, environment and mental health.

“Growing up in the digital age has made me more inclined to see the potential of technology in solving societal problems,” says Chenhao Zhou, a computer science student doing his co-op placement in the public sector through the Arts and Science Co-op Program at U of T Scarborough. “The widespread use of social media has also made me more aware of the public sector’s role in connecting with and serving communities.”

Zhou is completing his co-op placement as a special project assistant in the Regional Municipality of York, and the list of responsibilities in his co-op role is a smorgasbord of different software, databases and technologies — several of them older than he is. That’s a perfect fit for Zhou and his self-proclaimed passion for data-driven decision-making, which he’s using to find technological solutions and opportunities for the region. He says his digital fluency has helped him quickly grasp new software and analytics tools for data management and reporting. He’s working extensively with data, implementing and assessing machine learning and automation techniques, developing pipelines for ingesting and integrating large amounts of data, and looking at potential strategies, solutions and technologies that could better streamline the department’s needs.

“I was excited to work in an environment where data is used to improve public services, particularly in areas like environmental sustainability,” Zhou says.

Gen Zers like Zhou are deeply attuned to their values, and foundationally driven by them — a discussion paper by Employment and Social Development Canada notes a staggering near 90 per cent of Gen Z and young millennials stated they prefer to work for companies that are socially and environmentally responsible, with 60 per cent of respondents categorically refusing to work for an unethical organization. Indeed, that was why Zhou chose a co-op role in public service, specifically because it was “a unique chance to contribute to meaningful change and work on projects that impact the community.”

Gen Z seems like a generation that would gravitate toward civil service, yet en masse, they’re turning away. According to a 2025 research by the Professional Motivations Research Lab at Dalhousie University, young Canadians are increasingly avoiding public service roles due to a widespread perception of government incompetence and inefficiency, along with negative views of bureaucracy’s sluggishness.

Gen Z is hungry to drive change, and Zhou says some Gen Zers may have a hard time looking past the temptation of the public sector, which often comes with more competitive salaries and career opportunities, and a chance to spur change much faster.

“One of the initial challenges a co-op student may face is adapting to the hierarchical and structured nature of the public sector, which can differ significantly from the more flexible environments found in the private sector,” Zhou says. “It’s important for co-op students to stay open to learning, seek guidance from mentors, and actively participate in team meetings and projects.”

Raj Dam, assistant director of Partnerships and External Relations at U of T Scarborough, says Zhou is one of many Gen Z co-op students he’s seen make major impacts in their public sector placements over the years — and at every scale. He’s seen students help improve current government services, and even launch their own innovative community programs.

“For municipal employers, they bring fresh technical skills, digital fluency, and data-driven problem-solving approaches that enhance team capacity and create lasting operational improvements,” Dam says.

Co-op placements, such as the one Zhou is completing in the Arts and Science Co-op Program at U of T Scarborough, are just one opportunity for Gen Z to challenge their beliefs about working in government, while challenging their employers’ beliefs of what tech or innovations they can leverage. And maybe, inadvertently, that might help municipal offices chip away at what’s led so many to see them as slow and resistant to change in the first place.