New views of inequality trends in Canada and the United States (ABSTRACT), Monthly Labor Review Online, Apr. 1998

New views of inequality trends in Canada and the United States

Michael C. Wolfson
Director General, Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Canada

Brian B. Murphy
Economist, Statistics Canada, Ottawa, Canada

Analysis reveals that, from 1974 to 1995, a large portion of Canadian families had absolutely higher purchasing power than their U.S. counterparts. In both countries, individual earnings fell over the past decade. This article addresses the conventional wisdom that U.S. society is both richer and more unequal than Canadian society by focusing on a comparison of income inequality in Canada and the United States over the past two decades. The comparison provides an opportunity to assess the possible impact of globalization on the convergence of income inequality.

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