Speech (committee meeting)

{
    "time": "2013-04-30 09:25:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Prof. Nicole Fortin (Professor, Vancouver School of Economics, University of British Columbia, Senior Fellow, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, As an Individual)",
        "fr": ""
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"3324062\" data-originallang=\"en\"> I'm glad to be here. <em></em></p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324063\" data-originallang=\"en\">Today I will provide some highlights on a recent paper on Canadian wage inequality in Canada.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324064\" data-originallang=\"en\">As others have said, it's important to note that the changes in income inequality in Canada have been different from changes in the United States, where the changes were larger, happened earlier, and resulted in greater gains at the top than in Canada.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324065\" data-originallang=\"en\">Second, as already mentioned, the Canadian fiscal regime does somewhat lessen the blow of increasing inequality. In 2009, the inequality in the after-tax and transfer of family income was 28% lower than the before and after-tax transfer of family income inequality. Nevertheless, given the tension between redistribution and economic growth, it's important to consider the economic forces that are behind the changes and whether they can be addressed directly.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324066\" data-originallang=\"en\">To understand how these forces work, we have to note that in the 2000s especially, the Canadian experience with wage inequality has been one of wage polarization. When we're talking about wage polarization, we're talking about situations where the wage of the median worker\u2014and here I am talking mostly of the median male worker\u2014is not improving as much as those at the bottom or at the top. In the 2000s, the real\u2014meaning after inflation\u2014hourly wages of the median male have increased by 5%, while the wages of the men at the top 90% have increased by 12% and those at the bottom by 9%.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324067\" data-originallang=\"en\">That being said, in terms of the Canadian post-recession experience, from 2009 to 2012 we have seen decreasing wage inequality. This is in contrast with the U.S., where wage inequality has continued to increase.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324068\" data-originallang=\"en\">So what are the driving forces behind the difficulties of the middle workers? They are usually attributed to two forces: declining unionization rates and technological change. In Canada, the decline in union coverage of males has been quite substantial; it dropped from 47% in 1980 to 25% in 2012. The reason that declining unionization rates do contribute to the polarization of male earnings is that the union premium is highest in the lower wage distribution of males.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324069\" data-originallang=\"en\">Technological change is also thought to adversely affect mostly the routine, male-dominated jobs that are in the middle of the wage distribution, the wages on the plant floor.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324070\" data-originallang=\"en\">Let's note that these forces apply less to women because they are more likely to work in the wider public sector, including the health and education sectors. So women fare generally better against these winds of change than men; however, there remains a gender gap.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324071\" data-originallang=\"en\">In terms of some of the policy options that work with these forces, many of them come under provincial jurisdiction. They would include the support for public education. Most of the time we talk about higher education, but it's also important to have policy to foster high school completion. When we're talking about exclusion, we're usually talking about individuals who have not completed high school. Support for a minimum wage in an appropriate range is among the policy tools to be thought about, as is support for collective bargaining.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324072\" data-originallang=\"en\">As I noted, Canada has performed relatively well in terms of generating new university degrees. However, it is important to note that not all carry the same prospect of high-paying jobs. In a changing environment, information relative to the prospects of the different degrees I think is quite important.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324073\" data-originallang=\"en\">Raising the minimum wage is a tool that can help reduce inequality at the very bottom of the wage distribution. However, because there is limited spillover, it's not a very effective tool overall.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324074\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Moving in the direction of a policy environment that is more supportive of unions, especially in terms of the procedure governing union certification, is one option to be considered.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324075\" data-originallang=\"en\">Let me conclude by saying, as many others have done before me, that while growth-oriented economic policies, such as encouraging trade and deepening investment in new technology, may provide the basis for economic success for future generations, these policies may also have the effect of exacerbating inequality. This should be kept in mind to continue to get public support for such policies.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324076\" data-originallang=\"en\">This concludes my remarks.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"3324062\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je suis heureuse de me joindre \u00e0 vous. <em></em></p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324063\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je vais vous pr\u00e9senter aujourd'hui les points saillants d'un article sur l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 des salaires au Canada publi\u00e9 r\u00e9cemment. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324064\" data-originallang=\"en\">Comme d'autres l'ont dit, il est important de signaler que les changements dans l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 des revenus au Canada ont \u00e9t\u00e9 diff\u00e9rents de ceux qui se sont produits aux \u00c9tats-Unis, lesquels ont \u00e9t\u00e9 plus importants, ont surgi plus t\u00f4t et ont conduit \u00e0 des gains plus importants dans la partie sup\u00e9rieure de la distribution. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324065\" data-originallang=\"en\">Ensuite, le r\u00e9gime fiscal canadien att\u00e9nue quelque peu l'accroissement des in\u00e9galit\u00e9s. En 2009, l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 du revenu familial apr\u00e8s imp\u00f4ts et transferts \u00e9tait de 28 p. 100 moindre que l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 du revenu familial avant imp\u00f4ts et transferts. N\u00e9anmoins, compte tenu de la tension entre la redistribution et la croissance \u00e9conomique, il est important de se demander si les forces \u00e9conomiques qui sous-tendent ces changements peuvent \u00eatre redress\u00e9es. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324066\" data-originallang=\"en\">Pour comprendre le fonctionnement de ces forces, indiquons que l'exp\u00e9rience canadienne quant aux in\u00e9galit\u00e9s salariales, dans les ann\u00e9es 2000 surtout, se caract\u00e9rise par la polarisation des salaires. Dans cette situation, le salaire du travailleur m\u00e9dian \u2014 et je parle ici surtout des travailleurs m\u00e9dians de sexe masculin \u2014 ne s'am\u00e9liore pas autant que ceux des autres qui se trouvent au bas ou au sommet de l'\u00e9chelle. Au cours des ann\u00e9es 2000, le salaire horaire r\u00e9el \u2014 apr\u00e8s rajustement en fonction de l'inflation, donc \u2014 de l'homme m\u00e9dian a augment\u00e9 d'environ 5 p. 100, alors que les salaires des hommes au 90<sup>e</sup> centile sup\u00e9rieur ont augment\u00e9 de 12 p. 100 et deux des hommes au 10<sup>e</sup> centile inf\u00e9rieur, de 9 p. 100. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324067\" data-originallang=\"en\">Cela \u00e9tant dit, l'exp\u00e9rience post-r\u00e9cession au Canada, de 2009 \u00e0 2012, a \u00e9t\u00e9 caract\u00e9ris\u00e9e par une diminution de l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 des salaires. C'est diff\u00e9rent de ce qui s'est pass\u00e9 aux \u00c9tats-Unis, o\u00f9 l'in\u00e9galit\u00e9 des salaires a continu\u00e9 d'augmenter. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324068\" data-originallang=\"en\">Quelles sont donc les forces motrices et difficult\u00e9s des travailleurs au milieu de la distribution? Ces difficult\u00e9s sont g\u00e9n\u00e9ralement attribu\u00e9es \u00e0 deux forces: la baisse des taux de syndicalisation et l'\u00e9volution technologique. Au Canada, le d\u00e9clin du taux de syndicalisation des hommes a \u00e9t\u00e9 tr\u00e8s important: il est pass\u00e9 de 47 p. 100 en 1980 \u00e0 25 p. 100 en 2012. La raison pour laquelle la baisse du taux de syndicalisation contribue \u00e0 la polarisation des gains des hommes est que la prime syndicale pour les hommes est le plus \u00e9lev\u00e9e dans la moyenne inf\u00e9rieure de la distribution des salaires.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324069\" data-originallang=\"en\">On consid\u00e8re \u00e9galement que l'\u00e9volution technologique nuit \u00e0 la plupart des emplois \u00e0 pr\u00e9dominance masculine dans le milieu de la distribution des salaires, c'est-\u00e0-dire les salaires des travailleurs d'usine. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324070\" data-originallang=\"en\">Notons au passage que ces forces ne s'appliquent pas aux femmes dans la m\u00eame mesure, car les femmes sont plus susceptibles que les hommes de travailler dans le secteur public g\u00e9n\u00e9ral, notamment dans le secteur de la sant\u00e9 et dans celui de l'\u00e9ducation. Ainsi, les femmes s'en sortent relativement mieux face \u00e0 ces changements; toutefois, un \u00e9cart entre les sexes continue d'exister. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324071\" data-originallang=\"en\">Pour ce qui est des politiques qui ont une incidence sur ces forces, bon nombre rel\u00e8vent des provinces. Elles comprennent le soutien de l'\u00e9ducation publique. La plupart du temps, nous parlons d'enseignement sup\u00e9rieur, mais il est \u00e9galement important d'avoir une politique favorisant l'ach\u00e8vement des \u00e9tudes secondaires. Lorsque nous parlons d'exclusion, il s'agit habituellement de gens qui n'ont pas termin\u00e9 le secondaire. Le soutien du salaire minimum dans une mesure appropri\u00e9e fait partie des politiques \u00e0 envisager, comme le soutien de la n\u00e9gociation collective. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324072\" data-originallang=\"en\">Comme je l'ai dit d\u00e9j\u00e0, le Canada a eu de bons r\u00e9sultats au chapitre des nouveaux dipl\u00f4mes universitaires. Toutefois, il est important de faire remarquer que ces dipl\u00f4mes n'offrent pas tous les m\u00eames perspectives d'emplois bien r\u00e9mun\u00e9r\u00e9s. Dans un environnement en constante \u00e9volution, l'information relative \u00e0 ces diff\u00e9rentes perspectives est assez importante, selon moi. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324073\" data-originallang=\"en\">L'augmentation du salaire minimum peut contribuer \u00e0 r\u00e9duire les in\u00e9galit\u00e9s tout au bas de la distribution, mais son efficacit\u00e9 est limit\u00e9e comme outil global. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324074\" data-originallang=\"en\">\u00c9voluer vers un environnement public plus favorable aux syndicats, plus pr\u00e9cis\u00e9ment en adoptant une proc\u00e9dure r\u00e9gissant l'accr\u00e9ditation, est aussi une option \u00e0 consid\u00e9rer. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324075\" data-originallang=\"en\">En terminant, je dirais, comme beaucoup d'autres, que, si des politiques \u00e9conomiques ax\u00e9es sur la croissance comme celles qui favorisent le commerce international et l'investissement dans les nouvelles technologies peuvent constituer la base de la r\u00e9ussite \u00e9conomique pour les g\u00e9n\u00e9rations futures, ces politiques peuvent aussi avoir pour effet d'exacerber les in\u00e9galit\u00e9s. Il faut en tenir compte pour continuer d'obtenir le soutien de la population \u00e0 l'\u00e9gard de ces politiques. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"3324076\" data-originallang=\"en\">Voil\u00e0 qui conclut mes observations. </p>"
    },
    "url": "/committees/finance/41-1/117/prof-nicole-fortin-1/",
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    "source_id": "7988112",
    "document_url": "/committees/finance/41-1/117/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fcommittees%2Ffinance%2F41-1%2F117%2F"
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