Latest news with #CanadianCentreForPolicyAlternatives
CTV News
25-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Report: up to 24K federal public service jobs could be cut
Ottawa Watch David MacDonald is a senior economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. He discusses how the federal job cuts could affect the economy.
CBC
16-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Income inequality hit record high at start of 2025, Statistics Canada says
The gap between the country's highest- and lowest-income households reached a record high in the first quarter of 2025, Statistics Canada said Wednesday. The agency said the difference in the share of disposable income between households in the top 40 per cent of the income distribution and the bottom 40 per cent grew to 49 percentage points in the first three months of the year. "It's not a surprise," said Katherine Scott, a senior researcher focused on gender equality and public policy at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Scott said the current economic uncertainty is "contributing to a lot of economic distress," in particular for young people seeking employment. Statistics Canada said the measure has increased each year following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the first quarter of 2025, it said the increase came as the highest-income households gained from investments, while the lowest-income households saw wages decline. Scott said many individuals at the higher end of the income scale didn't see their incomes decline during the pandemic, with many staying in their jobs. "But more importantly, they were in a position to take advantage of the huge run-up of the investment markets that happened at that time and have continued to increase ever since," Scott said. Disposable income gap widens Those in the bottom 20 per cent of the income distribution saw the weakest growth in disposable income in the first quarter at 3.2 per cent compared with a year ago, as their average wages edged down 0.7 per cent. The lowest-income households also saw the largest drop in net investment income as their earnings fell 35.3 per cent, while net transfers received, including increased government support measures, rose 31.2 per cent. The average disposable income for those in the top 20 per cent of the income distribution increased at the fastest pace of any income group as they benefited from a 7.7 per cent increase compared with a year earlier. The highest-income households saw a 4.7 per cent increase in average wages and a 7.4 per cent gain in investment income. Statistics Canada said the wealth gap also increased as the top 20 per cent of the wealth distribution accounted for 64.7 per cent of Canadians' total net worth in the first quarter, averaging $3.3 million per household. The bottom 40 per cent of the wealth distribution accounted for 3.3 per cent of net worth, averaging $85,700 per household. Scott highlighted that following the 2008-09 recession, there was a "real discussion" regarding rising income inequality, which doesn't appear to be taking place currently. "This kind of information, the largest gap ever, it's a wake-up call. We can't sustain it, we have to pay attention to the structure of our economy and the distribution of that," she said. "We have to grow the pie, but we have to talk about the distribution of the pie. It matters that people are able to live a decent quality of life with dignity. I think that's a really important public policy goal, which seems to be lost in the current conversation."
CTV News
16-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
The income gap reached a record high in the first quarter of 2025
OTTAWA -- The income gap between the country's highest and lowest income households reached a record high in the first quarter of 2025, Statistics Canada said Wednesday. The agency said the difference in the share of disposable income between households in the top 40 per cent of the income distribution and the bottom 40 per cent grew to 49 percentage points in the first three months of the year. 'It's not a surprise with the economic uncertainty we've been experiencing and the stress in the labour market. Unemployment is rising, and it's really rising in particular for young people -- young graduates coming out of school, they're not finding their first job,' said Katherine Scott, a senior researcher focused on gender equality and public policy at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. 'This is all contributing to a lot of economic distress, and it is turning up in the data.' Statistics Canada said the measure has increased each year following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. For the first quarter of 2025, it said the increase came as the highest income households gained from investments, while the lowest income households saw wages decline. Scott said many individuals at the higher end of the income scale didn't see their incomes decline during the pandemic, with many staying in their jobs. 'But more importantly, they were in a position to take advantage of the huge run-up of the investment markets that happened at that time and have continued to increase ever since,' Scott said. Those in the bottom 20 per cent of the income distribution saw the weakest growth in disposable income in the first quarter at 3.2 per cent compared with a year ago as their average wages edged down 0.7 per cent. 'I think it's generally related to poor income growth by lower-income earners, people earning less than the average income. They're having a harder time making ends meet. Whereas the income growth is being pretty positive for people above average,' said David Soberman, a professor at Rotman School of Management. 'When that happens, you get an increasing wealth gap, and I think it creates a lot of frustration in society.' The lowest income households also saw the largest drop in net investment income as their investment earnings fell 35.3 per cent, while net transfers received, including increased government support measures, rose 31.2 per cent. The average disposable income for those in the top 20 per cent of the income distribution increased at the fastest pace of any income group in the first quarter of 2025 as they benefited from a 7.7 per cent increase compared with a year earlier. The highest income households saw a 4.7 per cent increase in average wages and a 7.4 per cent gain in investment income. Statistics Canada said the wealth gap also increased as the top 20 per cent of the wealth distribution accounted for 64.7 per cent of Canada's total net worth in the first quarter, averaging $3.3 million per household. The bottom 40 per cent of the wealth distribution accounted for 3.3 per cent of net worth, averaging $85,700 per household. Scott highlighted that following the 2008-09 recession, there was a 'real discussion' regarding rising income inequality, which doesn't appear to be taking place currently. 'This kind of information, the largest gap ever, it's a wake-up call. We can't sustain it, we have to pay attention to the structure of our economy and the distribution of that,' she said. 'We have to grow the pie, but we have to talk about the distribution of the pie. It matters that people are able to live a decent quality of life with dignity. I think that's a really important public policy goal, which seems to be lost in the current conversation.' --- Daniel Johnson, The Canadian Press This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2025.
CBC
14-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Surrey child-care fees some of the most expensive in Canada, survey finds
An annual survey by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives on the federal child-care plan shows Surrey is failing to meet the $10-a-day target. Rhea Hubbard, who works on non-profit child care with the Surrey Child Care Task Force, says things are so hard, getting a $10-a-day spot is "like winning the lottery" for parents.
CBC
09-07-2025
- Business
- CBC
Halifax has some of the highest child care costs in Canada, study finds
A new report says Halifax has some of the highest child care costs among major Canadian cities, a finding that advocates say risks forcing Nova Scotians — particularly women — out of the workforce. Released Wednesday by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, the data says Halifax has the sixth most expensive child care fees out of 35 major Canadian cities. The median fee for daycare in Halifax was $24 a day per child as of April, according to the think tank's study, more expensive than fees in Toronto, Oakville, Ottawa and all other Atlantic cities studied. Five cities in British Columbia — Richmond, Surrey, Vancouver, Burnaby and Kelowna — ranked higher than Halifax, according to the report. Kenya Thompson, with Child Care Now Nova Scotia, said families in the province are struggling to find daycare they can afford, with many parents forced to leave their jobs to care for children. "I hear so many stories of folks whose employment has been significantly disrupted," she said. Thompson said the provincial government needs to significantly invest in child care to subsidize fees and ensure parents with young children remain in the workforce. "If you don't have child care, it has huge implications for your employment, and frankly it's a gendered issue," she said in an interview Wednesday. "Women, moms are the ones who are taking time off and have to try to juggle all these different responsibilities." The report examined the progress provinces and territories are making on hitting the federal government's target of having regulated child care cost an average of $10 a day by 2026. In 2021, the federal Liberals budgeted $27 billion over five years to reach child care deals with all 13 provinces and territories. And while Ottawa succeeded in striking all 13 agreements — and even though fees have dropped significantly across the country since 2021 — the federal government is unlikely to meet its self-imposed deadline. "It's almost certain that even after the 2026 deadline passes, many parents in five provinces will be paying more than $10 a day for child care," said David Macdonald, an economist with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The report says just six provinces and territories — Nunavut, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador — have met or improved upon the government's $10-a-day target. Five provinces — Ontario, Alberta, B.C., New Brunswick and Nova Scotia — do not yet have plans to reduce fees to an average of $10 a day, the report says. Paul Wozney, the Nova Scotia NDP's education and early childhood development critic, said in a statement Wednesday the think tank's report raises serious concerns about the province's ability to hit the federal target. "The daily child care cost for a preschool child in Halifax is just over $22 — meaning families here are paying more than twice what parents in cities like Winnipeg, Charlottetown, St. John's and Montreal pay," Wozney said. "That adds up to hundreds of dollars a month because the (provincial) government isn't taking action to deliver more affordable child care," he added. Thompson said that while the centre's report focused on major cities, previous research by the think tank and her advocacy group show that rural parts of Nova Scotia are also short on affordable child care spaces. "The reality of the province is that many folks live in rural and remote areas, and people cannot access child care where they live," she said. In July 2021, Nova Scotia became the second province to sign a child care deal with Ottawa, totalling $605 million to fund thousands of subsidized daycare spots. Nova Scotia agreed to use the money to create 9,500 new spaces by March 2026. Nova Scotia's Department of Education and Early Childhood Development did not immediately answer questions about Halifax's child care fees or say when it expects to make $10 a day a reality. Department spokesperson Krista Higdon noted that almost 7,000 new child care spaces have been created since 2021.
