Many young nurses in Ontario leaving profession, says think tank

According to a new study, more than a third of young nurses in Ontario are leaving the workforce.

Revealed in a new publication by independent think-tank MEI, 38 nurses below the age of 35 departed the workforce for every 100 new nurses that started their careers in 2023.

“This growing exodus is worsening the shortage of health care workers and putting even more pressure on our already strained system,” said Renaud Brossard, vice president of communications at the MEI in a release.

The MEI report noted that Ontario’s situation has “worsened by 68 per cent” since 2014.

“Ontario’s numbers show that simply training more nurses won’t solve the problem,” said Mr. Brossard. “Without better working conditions and flexibility, it’s like filling a leaky bucket.”

According to the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions’ 2025 survey, more than one-third of nurses reported working involuntary overtime in the past six months with 60 per cent saying they have experienced some form of violence or abuse in the past year.

Nationally, nursing job vacancies have tripled in just five years across the country, jumping from 13,178 in 2018 to 41,716 in 2023.