As we look forward to the budget next week, we need to remember that the wealthy in Canada are doing very well. Rising fiscal pressures could be eased if the richest Canadians and multinational corporations paid their fair share. 5/5

In 2023, women accounted for of the top 1%ers (at 26.4%). Over $80K still separates men and women in this income group ($627,000 vs $547,500). That’s a wage gap of 87.3%. Not surprisingly, women make up a larger share of tax filers in the bottom 50%. 4/5

The average total incomes of the top 1% varied across the country from a high in Alberta ($644,400), followed by Ontario ($623,200), to a low in PEI ($460,800). Manitoba takes top spot once capital gains are factored in ($896,700) and Newfoundland the lowest ($654,000). 3/5

The respective figures for the top 0.1% were $2.1M and $3.0M. And among people in the bottom half of tax filers, just $21,500 and $21,800 because this group isn’t trading stocks and bonds. 2/5

As we mark Gender Equality Week, it’s time to push back against the silencing women’s voices and concerns in government. And to make the case that gender equality is essential to a just and prosperous future for us all. www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

Pre-election, the Liberals promised to “never” compromise women’s rights in Canada. Now the government is contemplating cuts so deep that they will exceed those that laid waste to the women’s sector during the Harper years.

Violent crime against women is higher today than it was before the pandemic. Globally, Canada ranks 73rd in terms of women’s representation in parliament—behind eight of 10 provincial legislatures.

It’s still the case that Canada has one of the largest pay gaps in the OECD. Women in Canada working full-time earn 84 cents for every dollar men earn—and for Indigenous women, women with disabilities and racialized women, the gap is much larger still.

We can do better. Let’s raise the wage replacement rate from 55 to 75%. Let’s lower the eligibility threshold. Let’s increase program flexibility & create non-transferable leave for other parents. Our new report provides a roadmap for getting there: bit.ly/3THstvI

Quebec boasts very high rates of participation among fathers too. With the introduction of a non-transferable paternity leave and high wage replacement rates (70-75%) in 2006, uptake among insured fathers or other parents has shot up to 93%.

And Canada’s EI parental leave system only replaces 55% of earnings compared to 100% in Spain!! This is a key reason why more than 75% of fathers in Spain take leave compared to about 30% under EI.