At least that is the news for some folks. The year to date average salary increase is 3.1% which is higher than the current rate of inflation (which is always worrying, because that usually starts inflation up). The areas where wages are increasing the most are health and social assistance, followed by educational services retail and then manufacturing. There are over 187,000 more employees than from the start of the year in Canada too.
More jobs, and more wages, is a good thing, I think. The areas where salaries are increasing is quite interesting too. Health and Social Assistance is an interesting area to hear growth in wages, but also worrying. I think it is due to these areas getting little or no increases in the past few years, but now a lot of the new monies going to this area are going to wages? Educational Services is again another area where more money is going into, but it is being taken up by wage settlements. This kind of “catch up” helps the folks working in the areas, but does it add services or needed machinery or needed facilities? I don’t want to sound like I am against Teachers, and Nurses getting pay raises, but I’d like to see more money going to making the whole system better not just raising wages.
Interesting, no mention of high tech, and manufacturing employees are well below the average too. Not news to us in High Tech, but still interesting.
New years suggestion: get a job with the government. Less stress, better pension benefits, no need to dress up, take more holidays. Working in high tech is so passe.
Would you like QUALITY with that? In Canada we are are faced with the continued threat of a two tier Healthcare system, and already have a two-tier educational system. The private sector has the ability to draw the brightest and best to it, in large part by the payment of ever increasing wages. If we wish the bulk of our population to be served by teachers that appropriately challenge our children to excel, or nurses that provide the best possible care, then you have to be prepared to satisfy their demands for remuneration.
We have watched the increase in Real Estate prices outstrip many individuals’ ability to obtain adequate housing in recent years — the move to 35 and 40 year morgtage insurance by GE Capital and CMHC is an indicator of this.
As always, be careful what you wish for.
David