Us Job Growth Vs. Canadian And Eu Job Growth

There are good reasons why the US creates jobsquantity of society's work is fixed and ergo by dividing
and the Canada-EU socialist axis does notthis fixed amount of work by requiring less hours and
August 10 2005more vacation or sick time from a population, the
There is barely a whimper in the Canadian media ongreater will be the number of workers, and hence the
the July '05 jobs report - or more accurately, the nolower the unemployment rate. In fact the exact
job creation report. Incredibly no jobs were created inopposite occurs.
Canada during July. If the same happened in the US,One reason why Europeans and Canadians work less
the media would be full of tales of US economicthan Americans is the punitive level of taxation. The
weakness and empire decline. The US is creatingUS is certainly not a free market nirvana of low tax
190.000 jobs per month with its economy growing atrates and unfettered trade. Far from it. The US
3.5-4.0 % per annum. Combined with productivity rateseconomy is over-taxed, over-regulated and
of 2.5 % per annum - double and in some years tripleover-protected. In fact the U.S. has the highest per
the Canadian average - the US will experience highercapita taxes of any developed country. But importantly
incomes, higher standards of living and more taxthe Americans also have lower marginal tax rates.
revenues as the economy expands, and these moniesThis difference occurs because Americans work and
can be reinvested in health, education andconsume more, and so have higher tax bases and
infrastructure furthering US economic advantage.therefore pay in total higher per capita taxes.
This difference in job creationism is massive. InWhy do Americans work more? Well living in the US is
Canada in 2004 225.000 jobs were created and inexpensive with housing, education and health care
2005 the estimates are that about 130.000 new jobscosting small fortunes. So Americans must work more.
will be generated. The trend to lower economic andThe propensity to greater work and higher productivity
job growth in Canada is self-evident. Indeed in Canadain the US coincided however, with its marginal tax
thus far in 2005, less than 8.000 jobs per month haverates decreases. As the US lowered its marginal tax
been created. Such a job creation growth translated torates, the economy grew, and hours of work and
the US would mean a US job creation rate of 80.000wages per hour increased. The cycle of economic
per month or about 1 million per annum. In fact the USgrowth was stimulated by marginal tax and investment
job creation level is 2.2 million per annum. Thereductions, further enhanced by the $1.3 Trillion Bush
difference in US job creationism and its impact ontax cuts.
society and employment levels cannot be downplayed.Similarly, Europe's change to shorter hours coincides
The lack of real job creation in Canada and in Europewith its marginal tax increases. Three completely
underscores the weakness of the big governmentindependent recent studies reach the same
society model. In both locales, there are fewer jobsconclusions: The Federal Reserve of Minneapolis
produced on a per capita basis, than in the US andconcludes that twenty years ago, Europeans worked
crucially both Canada and Europe have less full timejust as long as hard as the rest of the developed
and non-governmental job creation than the US. Inworld. The Federal Reserve's report said that when
Europe in the past 15 years according to the OECD,European tax levels were comparable to those in the
fully 90 % of jobs have been government based. InU.S., work hours were similar. As Europe's taxes
Canada it is 50 % with about ½ of the remainderincreased, workers responded by working less and
in part-time positions. The exact opposite has occurredthose that do find jobs, find them in government. The
in the US where 90 % or more of jobs are full timeonly exception to Europe's poor job and tax
and non-government based and indeed until recentperformance has of course been Ireland and the UK.
months one of the biggest job losers in the US wasIreland currently has the lowest European marginal tax
the government sector [along with manufacturing andrate, even lower than the U.S and UK.
transportation].The recent Timbro study cited above concludes that
The US has a labor force participation rate of 66 %marginal tax rates have a material impact on explaining
trending to 70 %, which is higher than the Europeanthe difference in economic performance. In
average of 60% and the Canadian average of 62%,approximately the last 30 years, taxes in the U.S (as
both of which are trending lower. This largewell as in Ireland) have increased by 1.5 percent. In
discrepancy in the % employed leads to burdensomecontrast, European country tax rates (except in Ireland)
taxation in both Canada and Europe as less peoplehave increased much more - closer to 4 %. The sum
work fewer hours. The lack of labor force participationof ruinous taxation is evinced in the low per capita
is exacerbated by declining birth rates in Canada andGDP rates in Canada and Europe. Canada GDP per
the EU which are lower than in the US and by lesscapita (at purchasing power parity) is $29,800 [2003
dynamic labor, industry and services sectors whichest. CIA Factbook] and the EU's is $25,326, versus the
militate against ease of labor and capital mobility. BigUS GDP per capita (at purchasing power parity) of
government ensures lower rates of employment,$37,800. Even if Americans must buy health care and
higher unemployment with EU levels double that of theguns, they are far better off then they would be in
US [10 vs. 5 %] and Canadian rates 2 % above USCanada or the EU.
levels [7% vs. 5 %], and market rigidity leading to lowerImportantly Americans produce private sector jobs,
wages and lower living standards.eschewing the big government-union alliance that
Not only are workforce rates lower in Canada and theimpedes productivity growth in Canada and the EU. A
EU but both Europeans and Canadians workrecent OECD study concludes that practically all (97
significantly less hours than Americans at far lowerpercent) of all European civilian job creation has been
productivity rates. In Canada the average workerin the government sector. Europe's higher taxes fuel
productivity is at about 80 % of a US worker's ratepublic sector growth, while its social welfare programs
[see this article on the factors involved in lowereliminate some of the penalties for not working. The
Canadian productivity Productivity problems in Canada].OECD blames European's unwillingness to work as the
Though Canadians work more hours than Europeansprincipal reason for lower output per worker and the
they work 10 % less hours than Americans. With lowerresulting lower standard of living compared to
outputs and less hours Canadians are assured ofAmericans. According to OECD, "Research has clearly
being poorer than their US counterparts.established a remarkable fact: namely that the sizable
Similar gaps exist between Europe and the US.U.S. advantage in real GDP per capita ... is largely due
Alarmingly the number of hours worked in Europe isto differences in total hours worked per capita." This
now 25 % below US levels [about 2100 hours perunwillingness to work is compounded by the political
year in the US vs. 1600 in the EU], falling from parity inand economic leverage of big unions. Union rates in
the 1970s [OECD data]. Around six weeks of paid timeCanada more than double US rates [32 % vs. 14 %],
off is now the annual norm across Europe. This is 2 tothough lower than in Western Europe [34 %, ranging
3 times as many paid days off per year thanfrom 12% in France to 45 % in Sweden]. Unionism
Americans. Vacation time has nearly doubled since theincreases costs, reduces flexibility and reduces
1970s in Italy, Spain and the Netherlands. Franceproductivity. The higher a society's union membership
recently extended its three-year law reducing therate, the worse off its economy.
workweek to 35 hours from 39. The law now includesWe see the media bias in not reporting the above
companies with fewer than 20 employees. The trendfacts. Lower job creationism, higher tax rates and
in Europe is towards 30-hour work weeks whichover-spending in Canada and the EU doom these
would mean 1400 hours per year of work, or fully 33societies to be also-rans in the world economy. The
% below US levels. Indeed in Canada and EuropeCanadians given their proximity and dependence on
workers not only work less but as well take off morethe US market where 40 % of GDP is tied to US
'sick' time further reducing the number of workingtrade are becoming uncompetitive. Yet such proximity
hours.also allows the Canadians to muddle through with bad
In 2002 Timbro Institute of Sweden conducted a studypolicy choice in their socialist obsession with being
found that the average European worker took moredifferent than the USA since they can count more or
than 30 days of sick time per year. According to aless, on US market access. The EU is in of course
New York Times report, on an average day inworse shape than Canada and will experience even
Norway, 25 percent of Norway's workers call in sick.graver economic and political dislocation as big
Shorter work-weeks in both Europe and Canada andgovernment and militant Islam change the EU
increased 'sick' time, have done nothing to reducepolitical-economy.
higher unemployment. Both Europe and Canada haveIn the race to the top in international economic
destroyed the fallacy of a fixed division of labor, whichcompetition it is clear that both Canada and the EU
is a favorite of socialists and big governmentneed job growth and far reaching economic reforms.
supporters. Supposedly under this inane idea, theBut don't bet on the media covering that story.