Barriers to Employment

Why is it harder to get an IT related job in Canada than it is in the USA? From what I've gathered, skilled programmers and other IT types can get a decent job even out of high school. Meanwhile, here it's difficult even if one has a college diploma or Bachelor's degree. So someone in my situation is pretty much screwed. But why is this so? I've been programming since I was just a kid on my grandfather's Commodore 64. I did a better job of writing code and designing applications than more than half of my classmates through college (although there were quite a few who put me to shame, and if any of you are reading this, greetz) although I didn't focus as well on the grades themselves as perhaps I should. So here I am, still looking for real employment while trying to hold on to any McJobs that might pass by. And yet if I were in the States, I'd have the jobs I wanted after having a chance to actually demonstrate my skills.

Perhaps if the IT industry in Canada was as well developed as in the States, I wouldn't be in this situation. As it is, I need to return to college if I want a decent programming job, and in the meantime it's checking out retail, call centres, and the like. Which, frankly, sucks. This is not what I've been trained to do, this isn't what I'm comfortable doing, this is my own personal hell. Every day not spent developing games or other applications is a day wasted. I want a good job... I want a career.