Parisa Mahboubi – Alberta’s Student Minimum Wage
From: Parisa Mahboubi To: Jason Copping, Alberta Minister of Labour and Immigration Date: June 6, 2019 Re: Alberta’s student minimum wage On June 26, Alberta will reduce its minimum wage for students under 18 from $15 to $13 per hour to improve youth employment and spur job creation. But close examination shows this adjustment is unlikely to have […] David R. Johnson – Resources and outcomes at Ontario secondary schools: 2005-06 to 2017-18
From: David R. Johnson To: Ontarians concerned about proposed changes in high schools Date: May 17, 2019 Re: Resources and outcomes at Ontario secondary schools: 2005-06 to 2017-18 The Ontario government proposes a reduction in resources, and an increase in the number of students per teacher, at secondary schools. There are three lessons to be drawn from the […] Joe Nunes – Time for Boomers to Wake Up About Retirement
From: Joe Nunes To: Canadians concerned about retirement Date: April 26, 2019 Re: Time for Boomers to Wake Up About Retirement That fifty is the new 40 may be a dated cliché, but the concept retains its important underlying meaning beyond babyboomer optimism. As they continue to celebrate their generation’s continued vigor, boomers have not been as eager to […] Richard P. Chaykowski – Reforming the Labour Interest Arbitration System
From: Richard P. Chaykowski To: Provincial ministers of labour Date: April 25, 2019 Re: Reforming the Labour Interest Arbitration System Interest arbitration, or third-party arbitration, is an essential element of the Canadian industrial relations system, with considerable impact on the public interest, particularly in relation to public-sector industries. This instrument of labour relations policy has become the primary alternative […] Canada’s Vulnerable And Precarious Workers Need More Support – Globe And Mail Op-ed
Job quality and compensation are key determinants of living standards. Workers in non-standard jobs are particularly vulnerable as a growing number find themselves precariously employed. The government can protect this group by offering more equitable access to both employment insurance and job-training programs to better address income and employment insecurity.
Traditionally, preferred jobs are stable, well-paid and full-time, with access to benefits. On the other hand, precarious employment often offers low pay and is relatively insecure and unstable.
While employment precariousness can be found in many categories, several types of non-traditional employment are more likely to capture its features: temporary positions (…
Time to Tweak or Re-boot? Assessing the Interest Arbitration Process in Canadian Industrial Relations
Policymakers should ensure the public interest is a priority in arbitrated public-sector labour settlements, says a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Time to Tweak or Re-boot? Assessing the Interest Arbitration Process in Canadian Industrial Relations,” author Richard P. Chaykowski assesses the current state of the arbitration system and raises several concerns. They […] David Johnson – Class size and student outcomes: a mystery yet to be resolved
From: David Johnson To: Ontarians concerned about class sizes Date: March 15, 2019 Re: Class size and student outcomes: a mystery yet to be resolved Proposals are being floated to increase elementary class sizes in Ontario. They are very controversial. There are only four real options to reduce spending on elementary education: reduce the compensation of teachers; reduce […] Tammy Schirle – The varying size of the gender pay gap
From: Tammy Schirle To: Canadians concerned about the gender pay gap Date: March 8, 2019 Re: The varying size of the gender pay gap How big is the wage gap between men and women? It depends on who, specifically, you are talking about, and why you ask. In January 2019, Canadian women working full time between the ages of […] Santé et bonne scolarité : Les programmes d’alimentation saine au Canada
À plusieurs endroits au Canada et ailleurs dans le monde, les élèves du primaire et du secondaire ont accès à des aliments nutritifs par le biais de programmes de nutrition en milieu scolaire. Financés par les gouvernements, les entreprises, les fondations et le public, ces programmes sont conçus pour que les enfants d’âge scolaire aient […] Health and Grades: Nutrition Programs for Kids in Canada
A strategy targeting the most at-risk children is needed to get the most out of school nutrition programs, says a new report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Health and Grades: Nutrition Programs for Kids in Canada”, authors Rosalie Wyonch and Abby Sullivan investigate the potential short and long-term impacts of student nutrition programs, including […] Canada’s Youngest Generations Bear The Largest Tax Burden – Globe And Mail Op-ed
We already know that Canada’s population aging will drag down government revenue and blow up social and health spending, but its long-term impact on fiscal sustainability and intergenerational fairness greatly depend on future government policies. While this demographic change substantially shifts the tax burden away from baby boomers and their children − the baby busters or Generation X – to the boomers’ grandchildren, achieving long-term fiscal sustainability can be possible.
In my recent study for the C.D. Howe Institute, I estimate average lifetime tax burdens for the current generations by birth cohort, and for an unborn future generation. Lifetime tax burdens are simply the total amount of taxes minus cash…
Alejandro Adem – Future Skills, Future Work
From: Alejandro Adem To: Canadians Concerned About Skills Development Date: February 20, 2019 Re: Future Skills, Future Work We hear a lot about technological innovation and the disruption it brings. This usually includes ominous predictions of new technologies replacing workers in many jobs. But we hear much less about how Canada’s most indispensable resource—its people—can rise to the […]