2016年2月与1月相比，加拿大共减少2300个职位，失业率升至三年最高，达7.3%，与经济学家此前预测的新增9000个职位，失业率维持不变的说法相去甚远；萨省则减少7800个职位，失业率升至5.9%，是西部唯一减少职位的省份，也是过去一年来失业上升第二快的省份。从政策上来看，如何在经济、能源和移民政策上协调一致，如何与国家政策以及各省的政策互相配合，将值得我们深思。另外，医疗检查的私有化和经济适用房的取消也给反对党一个强有力的攻击理由。
For a steady period Saskatchewan is known as the economic engine of Canada. At such a time with falling prices of oil and gas and potash, the rising US dollar, the cost push inflation, and the United States beginning exporting oil, Saskatchewan can no longer board on the passenger ship of yesterday.
1. What our focus should be
While the national housing price will go up by 8%
this year, this province will experience a drop of 2.4%, though BC and ON will
contribute much to it. However, Saskatchewan can be proud of its exports as
mining and agricultural products have experienced a sharp increase in the past
year with latter increasing by 33%, making Saskatchewan the second largest
exporter in the country.
Saskatchewan's unemployment rate in December 2015
was 5.5%, the country’s lowest for 26 of the past 27 months, and Regina is
still one of the easiest cities to find work, according to data shown in
January 2016. As of January 2016, unemployment rate is found to be the lowest in
Canada at 6.1%, and population growth the second highest of all the provinces
from 2011 to 2015 at 6.3% (Statistics Canada).
Nerveless, in February 2016, while Canada experienced
the unemployment rate of 7.3% (lowest in 3 years), a net increase of 0.1
percentage point monthly, Saskatchewan experienced the unemployment rate of 5.9%,
a net increase of 0.3 percentage point, and the employment rate change has been
the only negative in the western provinces (with BC and MB each gaining 0.3 and
0.2 percentage point). This means that Saskatchewan’s status as a province
enjoying a high employment rate is getting challenged. Though Alberta is also
hit by the oil and gas slump, its employment rate remains unchanged in
February. Therefore our focus should be how to increase employment so as to
create a beneficial business cycle through incentives to small and medium
businesses. Saskatchewan’s investment in such infrastructure projects as
highways, city ring roads, sewage treatment plants and schools and stadiums
have not only increased employment, but also laid a good foundation for the
growth of private enterprises. However, the government should monitor its
deficit carefully so that the future generation will not be paying for the debt
of this generation.
Labor
force characteristics by province (monthly)
(Canada, SK, AB, BC and MB) |
||||||
January
2016
|
February
2016
|
January
2016 to February 2016
|
February
2015 to February 2016
|
January
2016 to February 2016
|
February
2015 to February 2016
|
|
thousands
|
%
|
|||||
Canada
|
||||||
Population
|
29,439.8
|
29,465.4
|
25.6
|
304.7
|
0.1
|
1.0
|
Labour force
|
19,395.5
|
19,413.3
|
17.8
|
212.6
|
0.1
|
1.1
|
Employment
|
18,005.2
|
18,002.9
|
-2.3
|
117.9
|
0.0
|
0.7
|
Unemployment
|
1,390.3
|
1,410.4
|
20.1
|
94.7
|
1.4
|
7.2
|
Participation
rate (%)
|
65.9
|
65.9
|
0.0
|
0.1
|
…
|
…
|
Unemployment
rate (%)
|
7.2
|
7.3
|
0.1
|
0.4
|
…
|
…
|
Employment rate
(%)
|
61.2
|
61.1
|
-0.1
|
-0.2
|
…
|
…
|
Sask.
|
||||||
Population
|
865.2
|
865.8
|
0.6
|
7.4
|
0.1
|
0.9
|
Labour force
|
607.0
|
601.1
|
-5.9
|
4.1
|
-1.0
|
0.7
|
Employment
|
573.3
|
565.5
|
-7.8
|
-1.1
|
-1.4
|
-0.2
|
Unemployment
|
33.7
|
35.6
|
1.9
|
5.2
|
5.6
|
17.1
|
Participation
rate (%)
|
70.2
|
69.4
|
-0.8
|
-0.1
|
…
|
…
|
Unemployment
rate (%)
|
5.6
|
5.9
|
0.3
|
0.8
|
…
|
…
|
Employment rate
(%)
|
66.3
|
65.3
|
-1.0
|
-0.7
|
…
|
…
|
Alta.
|
||||||
Population
|
3,381.7
|
3,385.6
|
3.9
|
57.8
|
0.1
|
1.7
|
Labour force
|
2,457.8
|
2,471.9
|
14.1
|
41.5
|
0.6
|
1.7
|
Employment
|
2,276.1
|
2,277.5
|
1.4
|
-21.2
|
0.1
|
-0.9
|
Unemployment
|
181.7
|
194.3
|
12.6
|
62.6
|
6.9
|
47.5
|
Participation
rate (%)
|
72.7
|
73.0
|
0.3
|
0.0
|
…
|
…
|
Unemployment
rate (%)
|
7.4
|
7.9
|
0.5
|
2.5
|
…
|
…
|
Employment rate
(%)
|
67.3
|
67.3
|
0.0
|
-1.8
|
…
|
…
|
B.C.
|
||||||
Population
|
3,905.9
|
3,910.0
|
4.1
|
54.5
|
0.1
|
1.4
|
Labour force
|
2,503.0
|
2,518.0
|
15.0
|
88.5
|
0.6
|
3.6
|
Employment
|
2,336.9
|
2,351.0
|
14.1
|
68.8
|
0.6
|
3.0
|
Unemployment
|
166.0
|
167.0
|
1.0
|
19.7
|
0.6
|
13.4
|
Participation
rate (%)
|
64.1
|
64.4
|
0.3
|
1.4
|
…
|
…
|
Unemployment
rate (%)
|
6.6
|
6.6
|
0.0
|
0.5
|
…
|
…
|
Employment rate
(%)
|
59.8
|
60.1
|
0.3
|
0.9
|
…
|
…
|
Man.
|
||||||
Population
|
992.8
|
994.0
|
1.2
|
10.9
|
0.1
|
1.1
|
Labour force
|
669.5
|
671.2
|
1.7
|
-0.8
|
0.3
|
-0.1
|
Employment
|
628.7
|
630.7
|
2.0
|
-4.3
|
0.3
|
-0.7
|
Unemployment
|
40.8
|
40.5
|
-0.3
|
3.5
|
-0.7
|
9.5
|
Participation
rate (%)
|
67.4
|
67.5
|
0.1
|
-0.9
|
…
|
…
|
Unemployment
rate (%)
|
6.1
|
6.0
|
-0.1
|
0.5
|
…
|
…
|
Employment rate
(%)
|
63.3
|
63.5
|
0.2
|
-1.1
|
…
|
…
|
Note:Population
15 and over.
Sources: Statistics Canada, CANSIM, table 282-0087 and Catalogue no. 71-001-XIE. Last modified: 2016-03-11. |
||||||
Date modified: 2016-03-11
2. Coordination of policies
Wall advocated federal spending from the stimulus
package of $ 156 million for subsidies to the oil industry. It was pointed out
that if the government long ago put a surcharge on new wells or support the
training of laid-off workers, build roads and hospitals using the money
proposed for the clean-up, taxpayers may come up better off. While the oil
companies may still take up their own responsibility, the federal and
provincial governments should seek a positive role to support the economy.
Ottawa intends to introduce a "carbon
tax" this year, with the price of $15 per ton. Saskatchewan's per capita
carbon emissions are 68 tons, while Canada’s emissions per capita are 19 tons,
far less than the former. It is estimated that a federal "carbon tax"
will result in a drop in agricultural and mining revenues as well as an
increase in the price of oil, gas, electricity, and food. The practice of
British Columbia is a provincial "carbon tax" partially to cut
consumption taxes and income taxes, and partially to invest in cleaner energy
technologies and equipment. This is because that the carbon tax is revenue
neutral, meaning every dollar generated by the tax is returned to residents in
BC through reductions in other taxes, and the Minister of Finance is required
by law to annually prepare a three-year plan for recycling carbon tax revenues
through tax reductions. The writer believe that the practice of BC and the US
approach can be combined, with introduction of carbon emission upper limits or
cap, exceeding which companies need to be purchase from the others who have a
surplus quota, so as to both enhance the flexibility of carbon emissions, and
to encourage cleaner energies, and to put more money in the tax payers’ hands. Since
the early 1980s, this cap-and-trade system has reduced acid rain-forming
emissions in the US by nearly half.
Meanwhile, the government's immigration policy cannot
be a stop-gap measure, which does not solve the problems ultimately. It should
be part of a whole structure together with the government's economic policy and
energy policy. Coordination of the refugees, temporary workers, skilled workers
and enterprise immigrants on the national scale and between the categories is
more and more in demand. The writer suggests a raise in the proportion of the
economic class immigrants (especially enterprise immigrants and skilled
workers) with the aid of the federal government, and an encouragement of private
sponsorship of refugees.
3. Social Programs
In January 2015, the provincial government
announced a plan to overhaul affordable housing programs. The tenants there
will have to either seek social housing or pay a much higher rent, which would
impact the working poor most. While the opposition party argues that
privatization of MRI has given access to rich people to hospital treatment, the
ruling party says there is a condition to provide another service to the
community. The writer suggests issuing an examination card to low income people
so that they can have the same access at the same time, and the standard and
the price of the service should still be kept by the government.
Conclusion: In the economic globalization today,
Saskatchewan cannot be spared, so designing far-sighted strategies and getting
prepared for rain in times of shine is the only correct choice. If we can
implement multi-faceted foreign trade strategy, strengthen the strategic
resource planning and reserves, support the working people, search and utilize
new talents through a proper immigration policy and multiculturalism (by
cultivating the information and culture industry), upgrade the transportation
and the circulation system, flexibly use the Pacific Rim and the North American
free trade framework, cutback on red tape and increase in efficiency of government
services and accountability, Saskatchewan will not only step out of the tunnel,
re-see the dawn, but also experience a new take-off as a phoenix reborn.
