It’s often said that public-sector employees are somehow privileged. That they are fat cats. That their wages are rather exceptional. Actually, some commentators even contend that working for the Québec government is synonymous with phenomenal wages and truly out of the ordinary working conditions. Let’s be honest: getting a government…
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Ironically, Statistics Canada’s third-quarter GDP report on Black Friday showed the growth rate of consumption being cut in half. Final consumption expenditure grew by 0.4% in the third quarter compared to 0.8% in the second quarter. Household spending growth fell to 0.6% from 0.9%. Government consumption growth plummeted to 0.1%…
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On November 25th, I made the following submission to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance regarding Bill C-4, Economic Action Plan 2013 Act No. 2, on behalf of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. 1. Introduction and Context Thank you for the invitation to appear before the Committee,…
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At the end of the week, the United States will celebrate their national holiday, or rather that of the American Dream in its most mercantile, superficial —and bloody— incarnation. At the end of the week, it will be Black Friday, the day which unofficially kicks off the Holiday shopping season….
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Walmart is holding a food drive for its….wait for it…own employees. A Walmart store in Ohio is asking employees to give out of the goodness of their hearts to ensure that their fellow associates in need can enjoy Thanksgiving dinner (which in the United States happens this Thursday). Walmart’s head…
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In a brochure published this week, IRIS researcher Caroline Joly shows that artificial intelligence (AI) is responsible for more than two-thirds of decision-making worldwide regarding stock buys and sells. It’s called algorithmic trading. We’ll probably hear “Who cares so long as it works?” The brochure nonetheless demonstrates that such a…
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The decade long petro-boom has caused major distortions in the Canadian economy, and has driven growing interpersonal and interprovincial inequality. The flood of petro-revenue into Alberta— the source and destination of the vast majority of petro-wealth— pushed up its per capita GDP from 10% above the Canadian average in 2002,…
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For the first time in Canadian history, an election is being waged on this question: Which political candidate do you trust to reduce income inequality? Welcome to the Toronto-Centre by-election, where voters go to the polls on November 25. Two Toronto-Centre political candidates are stealing the show in this by-election…
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After more than 100 years of business, Leamington’s Heinz plant is closing, throwing 740 people out of work and sending the community into economic shock. I grew up in Leamington. Many of my first memories are of the tomato harvest. Tomato season meant family dinners sitting on the tailgate of…
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I have been hard on our new Employment and Social Development Minister, Jason Kenney, for buying into a widespread myth about labour shortages and skill mismatches in Canada. So, to give credit where credit is due, it appears Minister Kenney has been listening to the growing chorus of voices disputing the existence of a…
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