The United States labor market has been undergoing a substantial shift toward small-scale entrepreneurship. The number of proprietors – owners of businesses who are not wage and salary employees, has skyrocketed, especially in the last decade. Proprietors are self employed business owners who use Internal Revenue Service Schedule C to file their federal income tax. Wage and salary workers are all employees of any establishment (private or government), from executives to non-supervisory workers.
Workplace
Alberta Education Minister’s “vision” not-yet developed
Listening to Alberta Minister of Education Jeff Johnson, one would think that he was a modern visionary in education. His vision, however, as he has himself acknowledged, is half-baked: “There is a vision developing,” he's been quoted to say in the context of...
EI for Seasonal Workers is a Corrosive Economic Policy
There is no justification, in logic or in economics, for seasonal EI, and the dogged pursuit of this policy flies in the face of the interests of Canada and people who become trapped in the cycle of working seasonally and then receiving EI benefits while unemployed. Some day a politician will have the guts to say so, but apparently not today.
Marissa Mayer’s Misstep And The Unstoppable Rise Of Telecommuting
The real issue is how we deal with three concerns: the promotion of families; humane methods to reduce greenhouse gases; and, finally, how to expand the geography of work and opportunity.
Featured News
Traditional Teaching is not Obsolete
Artificial intelligence has come a long way. Unlike the rudimentary software of the past, modern-day programs such as ChatGPT are truly impressive. Whether you need a 1,000-word essay summarizing the history of Manitoba, a 500-word article extolling the virtues of...
Ottawa’s Policies Defeat Its Critical Minerals Push
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a recent rush visit to the Saskatchewan Research Council’s experimental rare earth refining facility in Saskatoon. He touted his government’s efforts to promote rare earth discovery, development, and extraction, along with the...
FCPP Green Jobs Study Covered in National Post
This week, the Frontier Centre released a new study showing that European experiments with centrally planned "green job" creation schemes have generally failed to produce positive outcomes. Instead of creating jobs and generating economic growth, "green jobs"...
The Environmentalists Need to Stop Crying Wolf
A study released this week concludes that government “green-job” programs aren’t the yellow-brick road to happiness in Europe.
HST Research News
A study reported on today in the Financial Post indicates the implementation of HST did not significantly inflate consumer prices. As time progresses, it appears that businesses are passing cost savings associated with HST input cost credits onto consumers.
“With the compensating income tax changes also enacted by the Ontario government, the net impact of the reform for most families by the end of 2010 was a gain or very small loss in after-tax real incomes,” Mr. Smart said in the report.
National Post Debate on Minimum Wages
The National Post has two op-eds today arguing for and against higher minimum wages in Canada. They're both worth reading. Unsurprisingly, the debate hinges on the complicated question of whether and to what extent higher minimum wages increase unemployment. Jim...
Want to Enjoy Great Wages and Job Security?: Join the civil service and you’re set for your working life
A new study from the Winnipeg based Frontier Centre for Public Policy reveals that between 1998 and 2009 average weekly wages for federal public servants grew by 59 per cent; for their provincial counterparts, by 55 per cent. (The groups cited include bureaucrats, but not teachers, nurses, doctors and Crown corporation staff.)
FDR on Public Sector Unions
A letter from FDR’s archives shows a surprising position on unionisation in the public sector.
Ken Olsen RIP – Lessons for the Public Sector
There is a lesson here for the politicians who sit atop the immense low performing structures that permeate the public sector.
Growth in U.S. Occupational Licensing Requirements
A neat post at the economics blog Marginal Revolution shows that the percentage of workers in the United States who are required to hold a state license to do their job has steadily increased over the years.
Ministry of Silly Feminist Numbers
“Statistics Canada’s latest contribution to the gender wars was eagerly seized upon by feminists as further evidence of women’s inequality. The agency recently summarized findings from the latest Women in Canada report that shows that women with university degrees earned 30% less than men.”