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THERE’S STATS, STATSCAN, AND DAMN STATISTICS

Study: Are good jobs disappearing in Canada?
1981 to 2004
Hourly wages have been very stable over the last two decades, with little change in the proportion of workers holding either well-paid jobs or low-paid jobs. However, newly hired employees have seen their wages drop substantially relative to those of other workers, according to the new study Are Good Jobs Disappearing in Canada?

Recent media reports in the United States and in Canada have raised the possibility that new forms of outsourcing, involving service sector positions with high skill requirements, may be driving jobs offshore and contribute to the elimination of well-paid jobs in Canada.

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/050126/d050126a.htm

Study: Earnings of temporary versus permanent employees
2003
Temporary work accounted for almost one-fifth of overall growth in paid employment between 1997 and 2003 despite a period of economic growth and favourable employment conditions.

However, a new study shows that temporary jobs are generally less well paid than permanent ones. In addition, the gap between the two groups varied with the type of temporary employment.

The study "Earnings of temporary versus permanent employees", released today in the online edition of Perspectives on Labour and Income, examines the salary gap for the first time on the basis of the type of temporary employment. Temporary workers are not a homogenous group. Their characteristics vary greatly depending on whether their jobs are term or contract, seasonal, casual, or obtained through an employment agency.

The study showed that in 2003, temporary workers earned 16% less per hour than their permanent counterparts, or $16.69 compared with $19.98.

Between 1997 and 2003, this gap between the two groups ranged from 16% less per hour to 19% less per hour.

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/050126/d050126b.htm