What Work in Canada Will Look Like in the Future?

1847 Words4 Pages

What Work in Canada Will Look Like in the Future Work is more than just a way of earning money to pay the bills; it is also a key feature of our culture and provides people with purpose and dignity. Many people define themselves by what they do. Thus, determining the future prospects for the job market in Canada is very important (Watson 2008). For the most part, Canada’s economy has done relatively well during the recent economic crisis, especially when compared to some other nations. However, the economic and technological trends that have driven changes in the workforce in recent years are likely to continue for the near future. These shifting trends will affect Canadian society and its workers in a number of areas, and it is vital that steps be taken to deal with any problems that result. In many nations, the relationship between labor and production has often been a tense one. On one side of the equation, businesses have insisted on greater productivity at lower costs. On the other side, labor (most often in the form of labor unions) has insisted that increased productivity can be best be achieved if the workers have a reasonable “living” wage and job security (Howard 2002). The concept of a “productive” worker is a complex one. Ultimately, the question that must be asked is what societal benefit there is in increased productivity. One the one hand, it might be argued that what is best for the businesses that employ workers is best for the nation. To paraphrase, this “what is good for business is good for Canada” perspective suggests that when business does well it will automatically mean that workers benefit. However, is this approach really the best goal for society? Instead of this view, it might be better to place th... ... middle of paper ... ...e in the coming years. It is only by this kind of concerted and thoughtful effort that the nation can avoid serious disruptions in the economy, as well as in society as a whole. References Minster of Public Works. (2012) Is Working Working?: Work Laws That do a Better Job. Law Commission of Canada. Howard, J. & Gereluk, W. (2002) Core Labour Standards and Human Rights in the Workplace. International Institute for Environment and Development. Adams, R. J. (2005) Organizing Wal-mart: The Canadian Campaign. Journal of Just Labour. Waring, Marilyn. (1988). If Women Counted: A New Feminist Economics. San Francisco: Harper and Row. Bradley, H. (2000) The Myth of the Death of Class. Myths at Work. Watson, T. (2008) The Meaning of Work. The Sociology of Work and Industry. London: Routledge. Canadian Labour Market at a Glance. (2009) Statistics Canada.

Show More
Related

  • The White-Collar Union Organizer and The Frustrated Labor Historians

    2269 Words  | 5 Pages

    To conclude this analysis on the basis of the labor’s extensive history, Sloane & Witney (2010) propose, “it is entirely possible that labor’s remarkable staying power has been because of the simple fact that to many workers, from the nineteenth century to the present, there really has been no acceptable substitute for collective bargaining as a means of maintaining and improving employment conditions” (p.80). In the end, it is important to anticipate unions and employers presently work together to find solutions that will enhance collective bargaining strategies and practices to serve the interest of both parties.

    Read More

  • Precarious Employment In Canada

    958 Words  | 2 Pages

    This article stated that, according to a study conducted by the United Way and Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), approximately 40% of young workers in Ontario are in jobs classified as part-time, temporary or self-employed. The same study also found that less than half of part-time/temporary workers were able to transition into full-time higher-wage work and, perhaps most importantly, the percentage of those able to transition will likely decline over the next decade. Clearly, the growth of part-time and temporary jobs has been growing on an upward trend over the past decade and appears to have become part of business as usual. A study conducted in 2015 by the United Way and the Law Commission of Ontario (LCO) states that approximately 22% of part-time/temporary work in the past year can be characterized as precarious work, i.e. work with poor or no benefits and job security. The growth in precarious employment is due to many factors including Globalization, improved technology, changes to business models, and the economic shift from manufacturing to the service sector. These shifts have essentially formed a new economy that has a high demand for fluidity and flexibility in the common workplace, and has low a demand for the old fashioned “Standard” model of the workplace (largely full-time employees with a full suite of

    Read More

  • Second-Wave Feminism and Labour in Canada

    2849 Words  | 6 Pages

    Canadian workplaces today seem to be a fairly diverse place, with a blend of many religions, ethnicities, and genders present. However, although people preach affirmative action and melting pots in current times, many inequality and power issues still abound. One strikingly noticeable example is gender discrimination. Women in the workforce face many challenges like smaller wages, harassment, male privilege in hiring or promotions, and lack of support when pregnant or raising children. One half of the planet is women, and it can be assumed the same for Canada, but they still face judgment at work because they lack the authority to dispute against big corporations or even their male supervisor. It cannot be argued that Canadian women’s status has worsened over the past hundred years, of course, thanks to feminism and activism. However, their status is not as high as it could be. Women as a group first started fighting for workplace equality during the second wave of feminism, from the 1960s to the 1990s. Legislation was approved during the second wave to try to bring gender equality to the workplace. Feminists both collided and collaborated with unions and employers to ensure women received fair treatment in an occupation. Quebec had the same issues, only the province approached the conflict differently than English Canada with its own unique viewpoint. It became clear that women were entering the workplace and did not plan on leaving. Second-wave feminism in Canada shifted power from the government and businesses to women in order to try to bring equality, although the discrimination never completely disappeared.

    Read More

  • Nickel And Dimed Reflection

    1047 Words  | 3 Pages

    Hodson, Randy and Sullivan A. Teresa. (2008). The Social Organization of Work, Fourth Edition. Published: United States of America.

    Read More

  • Precarious Employment: A Growing Trend in Canada

    1590 Words  | 4 Pages

    Precarious employment is work that is not secure, generally does not include any type of benefits, and is paid so lowly that it generally does not meet the living wage. This type of employment is unfortunately a growing trend in today’s societies due to many factors such as outsourcing, globalization, a saturated job market, shifts from manufacturing to the service sector and jobs also being replaced by computerized units. When speaking on precariousness these trends also affect European societies due to the fact that the outsourcing is generally to places where labour is extremely cheap in order to lower the costs of goods such as Asia and South America. This growing trend is also resulting in negative effects on the economy such as the bottoming out of the middle class and a large amount of citizens living below the poverty line and not able to earn a livable wage. Minimum Wage is on the incline, however, it is still not enough to live on practically and there are many other factors that make precarious work disadvantageous other than the wages such as job security and room for growth and promotion within the company. The negative changes to the job market brought on by the changes to it have resulted in higher expectations and demands from the employers which reduce the amount of people which are eligible for what are now known as “good jobs”. These good jobs generally entail a livable wage, benefits, more flexibility and better job security. Precarious work is categorized and gendered as women and immigrants make up the vast majority of employees in this type of work. Since precarious work affects citizens on a global scale, in this essay, there will be comparisons and contrasts drawn between precarious work in Canada ...

    Read More

  • Women's Roles in World War II

    2151 Words  | 5 Pages

    When we look at the history of women’s paid employment in Canada, we can see that society has come a long way. Previously, women’s work was in the home, in the private sphere. Her work consisted of taking care uniquely of the home and the children. Rarely, would we see women working for a wage expect for poor women; only because, their families needed the income. Mainly, the only jobs that were available for women were domestic service, a job that relates to the private sphere of the home. People believed that if a woman had paid employment, she was taking away a paycheck from a man, or she would become too manly.

    Read More

  • Star Trek: Voyager, A Template To Follow

    1803 Words  | 4 Pages

    Blumenstein, Rebecca. "Women in the Economy (A Special Report) --- Life Imitates Art: Geena Davis

    Read More

  • Myth of Powerlessness

    1083 Words  | 3 Pages

    Canada’s economic troubles is not unique. Although, Canada is enjoying a period of relative economic growth, and the level of unemployment is at its lowest level since April 1976 at 6.8% in January 2001 (Tam). However, these 6.8% still mean 1.1 million people jobless. McQuaig argues that combating the unemployment should be the number one national economic policy, at times at the expense of the corporate and governmental financial institutions and currency speculators. The fiscal conservatism of Bank of Canada under Gordon Thiessen, the bank’s governor, and anti-inflationism which have become, it seems, the idée fixe for most state financiers became a source of tremendous political apathy, hindering the capacity of elected officials to carry through on their more progressive and egalitarian campaign promises.

    Read More

  • The Pros And Cons Of Outsourcing

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    Canadian companies are beginning to outsource more and more jobs outside of our borders to foreign countries. Outsourcing out of the country comes with a lot of benefits and risks for both the companies and the economy. There are a multitude of different jobs and services that can be outsourced; a few of the main ones include IT services, technical and customer support services, manufacturing, and legal services. Even though outsourcing saves companies a lot of money and makes it easier to keep your business running, it still poses a very large treat to our economy since it leaves Canadian citizens out of the job and instead gives them away to foreigners. Even with this problem however, I still strongly believe that outsourcing to other countries outside of Canada is a wise business decision and should be allowed to continue. I will demonstrate this belief by contrasting the advantages and disadvantages of outsourcing outside of Canada.

    Read More

  • Women Of Star Trek Voyager: Breaking Stereotypes

    567 Words  | 2 Pages

    Blumenstein, Rebecca. "Women in the Economy (A Special Report) --- Life Imitates Art: Geena Davis

    Read More

  • Employment Insurance

    1808 Words  | 4 Pages

    As illustrates, there have been many more failures compared to success of the Employment Insurance program. It is very important to take these failures seriously and try to improve them, because this department is very helpful to many Canadian citizens. But it is useless if many Canadians do not know the many benefits of it to try and help them. Plus many restrictions are put into place to filter many citizens from receiving this benefit.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Atlantic Canada on Canadian Buisness

    2040 Words  | 5 Pages

    I wasn’t born in Atlantic Canada but Atlantic Canadian business certainly has had an impact on my life. My father has worked for McCain Foods for over 25 years and is currently employed as the Retail Area Sales Manager, Atlantic Canada for McCain Foods so it’s no coincidence that I was born in Kitchener Waterloo just forty minutes from Sobeys Ontario’s head office which was located in Brantford Ontario and my sister in St. John’s N.L. just two years later. I guess we moved a lot in those early years, if you call six moves in 14 years a lot, but McCain was growing and McCain always promoted from within wherever possible. In this paper I will discuss some of the reasons I feel Atlantic Canadians play such an important role in Canadian business and what motivates them. I’ll draw on some of my own personal observations as well as others from reference materials.

    Read More

  • Labor Movement

    1809 Words  | 4 Pages

    The need for fair labor practices has been a key factor in fueling the majority of grassroots movements led by workers. Various instances of racial, class, gender and age discrimination added to the frenzy as the human rights movement inspired society to make changes that created a fairer playing field for all citizens in the labor force (Brecher & Costello, 1996).

    Read More

  • Labor Relations

    952 Words  | 2 Pages

    Holley, W. H., Jennings, K. M., & Wolters, R. S. (2009). The labor relations process (9th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning.

    Read More

  • Human Resource Management and Labor Relations

    1511 Words  | 4 Pages

    Holley, Jr., W., Jennings, K. & Wolters, R. (2012). The labor relations process. (10th ed.)

    Read More

More about What Work in Canada Will Look Like in the Future?

Open Document