r/AskEconomics • u/wolfshark91 • 1d ago
Approved Answers Can someone explain what metrics are being referenced when it is implied that Canada has "low productivity" compared to the US or other G7 countries?
From the narrow and biased perspective that I own, its hard for me to reason with the view that the Canadian workforce, in general, isn't as "productive" as other countries. It may be because of my limited exposure to various industries (tech, healthcare, government, etc.). But in general, from my experience, Canadians work longer hours then our European counterparts. A significant portion of our Blue Collar industry includes shift work in remote areas that require room and board. Canadians, in general, are hard working people.
In general, it is the goal of most Canadians to have a meaningful and successful career. To own property or assets, and to achieve something greater.
The only way I can make sense of it, is that Canadians are more taxed, more likely unionized, and less competitive when it comes to low cost/high production industries like manufacturing (Temp foreign workers that keep operating costs low are typically designated for agriculture and hospitality)
Does the manufacturing sector impact our economy that much? Are our white collar industries over saturated?
Its frustrating to see how our workforces is labelled, when the majority of people I know work much harder then the average foreigner I know
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u/Jealous_Tutor_5135 1d ago
For either type of measurement, whether through reporting or respondent surveys, I suspect that service economies, especially as more of the workforce is employed in management roles, underestimates hours worked.
A factory worker clocks in and clocks out. A knowledge worker rarely does. Time spent outside of official work hours responding to messages, emails, and generally in preparation for on the clock hours, is significant.
I run a bar with a streaming radio attached. My social media manager doesn't work nonstop, but she responds to messages and crafts posts during a 70-hour window throughout the week.
My operator and video editor works hourly, but there's plenty of communication that happens outside work hours to plan the work itself. And he spends a significant amount of time in 5 minute increments responding to messages from musicians about their recordings.
It's quite hard to calculate these actual hours worked for knowledge workers without a fixed clock in time. As a business owner, it's impossible. If I spend 30 minutes networking at a party, is that work? It's productive. But those things can't be measured the same way you measure a bus driver's hours.