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Description: Low income cut-offs (LICOs) are income thresholds, determined by analysing family expenditure data, below which families will devote a larger share of income to the necessities of food, shelter and clothing than the average family would. To reflect differences in the costs of necessities among different community and family sizes, LICOs are defined for five categories of community size and seven of family size.

Low income Measures (LIMs), on the other hand, are strictly relative measures of low income, set at 50% of adjusted median family income. These measures are categorized according to the number of adults and children present in families, reflecting the economies of scale inherent in family size and composition. This publication incorporates a detailed description of the methods used to arrive at both measurements. It also explains how base years are defined and how LICOs are updated using the Consumer Price Index.

Description: The Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) conducts an annual labour and income interview in January. The data are collected using computer-assisted interviewing; thus no paper questionnaire is required for data collection. The questions, responses and interview flow for labour and income are documented in another SLID research paper. This document presents the information for the 2007 entry and exit portions of the labour and income interview (reference year 2006).

The entry exit component consists of five separate modules. The entry module is the first set of data collected. It is information collected to update the place of residence, housing conditions and expenses, as well as the household composition. For each person identified in entry, the demographics module collects (or updates) the person's name, date of birth, sex and marital status. Then the relationships module identifies (or updates) the relationship between each respondent and every other household member. The exit module includes questions on who to contact for the next interview and the names, phone numbers and addresses of two contacts to be used only if future tracing of respondents is required. An overview of the tracing component is also included in this document.

Description: The Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) is a longitudinal survey which collects information related to the standard of living of individuals and their families. By interviewing the same people over a period of six years, changes and the causes of these changes can be monitored.

A preliminary interview of background information is collected for all respondents aged 16 and over, who enter the SLID sample. Preliminary interviews are conducted for new household members during their first labour and income interview after they join the household. A labour and income interview is collected each year for all respondents 16 years of age and over.

The purpose of this document is to present the questions, possible responses and question flows for the 2007 preliminary, labour and income questionnaire (for the 2006 reference year).

Description:

A key family event, the birth of a child also has broader economic implications. If a mother stays home for an extended period after childbirth, her propensity to work in the future may be reduced since a long career interruption can affect job skills and chances of finding a new job. Although the tradition that women withdraw completely from the labour market upon giving birth has long gone, some mothers may still quit their jobs due to work schedule inflexibility, commuting difficulties, or lack of child care services. Although earnings drops were greater for the early 2000s cohorts of mothers than for the mid-1980s cohorts, the earnings recovery process was shorter.

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Since shelter is the biggest expenditure most households make, its affordability can have a big impact on their wellbeing. Measuring affordability involves comparing housing costs with a household's ability to meet them. Up to now, affordability has been measured at a particular time. New information enables a first-ever longitudinal review of housing affordability. This article examines the likelihood of spending 30% or more of household income on shelter, how often this occurs and whether it is occasional or persistent.

Description:

Starting in 1994, the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) will follow individuals and families for at least six years, tracking their labour market experiences, changes in income and family circumstances. An initial proposal for the content of SLID, entitled "Content of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics : Discussion Paper", was distributed in February 1992.

That paper served as a background document for consultation with and a review by interested users. The content underwent significant change during this process. Based upon the revised content, a large-scale test of SLID will be conducted in February and May 1993.

The present document outlines the income and wealth content to be tested in May 1993. This document is really a continuation of SLID Research Paper Series 92-01A, which outlines the demographic and labour content used in the January /February 1993 test.

Description: Shelter is the biggest expenditure most households make and its affordability can have an impact on the wellbeing of household members. For this reason, housing affordability is closely watched by a wide range of stakeholders - from housing advocates to policy analysts - interested in the welfare of Canadians. Measuring affordability involves comparing housing costs to a household's ability to meet them. One common measure is the shelter-cost-to-income-ratio (STIR). The 30% level is commonly accepted as the upper limit for affordable housing. Housing affordability is also a critical input to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's core housing need indicator which is used by governments to help design, deliver, fund and evaluate social housing programs. This report, jointly authored by Statistics Canada and CMHC, focuses purely on the dynamics of housing affordability, not on core housing need. It examines the likelihood of spending 30% or more of household income on shelter, how often this occurs, whether it is occasional or persistent, and contrasts those spending 30% or more to those spending less. Cross-sectional estimates indicate that around 19% of Canadians lived in households spending more than the affordability benchmark in 2002. Longitudinally however, less than 9% lived in households that spent above the benchmark in each year between 2002 and 2004, while another 19% lived in households spending above the benchmark for either one or two years. The attributes associated with the highest probabilities of living in a household spending above the affordability benchmark were: living alone, being a female lone parent, renting, being an immigrant, or living in Vancouver or Toronto. In addition, those living in households experiencing some kind of transition between 2002 and 2004 period had a higher probability of exceeding the benchmark at least once during the period. Such transitions included renters with a change in rent-subsidy status, those who changed from owner to renter or vice versa, those who changed family type (for example, marrying or divorcing), and those who moved between cities. Notably, those experiencing these transitions did not exceed the benchmark persistently.

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Challenges associated with the integration of immigrants often extend beyond the first generation. If children of immigrants experience similar impediments to social and economic assimilation as their parents did, then low socioeconomic status may be transmitted between generations. Such scenarios of second-class disadvantage may not apply to Canada. Even if immigrant earnings deficits relative to the native-born are increasing, it does not necessarily mean that children of immigrants will be worse off than the children of Canadian-born parents.

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Prime-aged couples experienced a moderate decline in RPP coverage over the last two decades, as the substantial growth in wives labour market participation and the slight increase in their RPP coverage only partially offset a substantial decline in husbands coverage. On average, retirement savings of families rose over the last two decades, but the distribution became more unequal. To a large extent, the uneven growth in retirement savings mirrors the sharp increase in family earnings inequality since the early 1980s.

Description: The Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID), introduced in the 1993 reference year, is a longitudinal panel survey of individuals. The purpose of the survey is to measure changes in the economic well-being of individuals and the factors that influence these changes. SLID's sample is divided into two overlapping panels, each six years in length. Longitudinal surveys like SLID are complex due to the dynamic nature of the sample, which in turn is due to the ever-changing composition of households and families over the years. For each reference year, SLID produces two sets of weights: one is representative of the initial population (the longitudinal weights), while the other is representative of the current population (the cross-sectional weights). Since 2002, SLID has been producing a third set of weights which combines two panels that overlap to form a new longitudinal sample. The new weights are referred to as combined longitudinal weights.

For the production of the cross-sectional weights, SLID combines two independent samples and assigns a probability of selection to individuals who joined the sample after the panel was selected. Like cross-sectional weights, longitudinal weights are adjusted for non-response and influential values. In addition, the sample is adjusted to make it representative of the target population. The purpose of this document is to describe SLID's methodology for the longitudinal and cross-sectional weights, as well as to present problems that have been encountered, and solutions that have been proposed. For the purpose of illustration, results for the 2003 reference year are used. The methodology used to produce the combined longitudinal weights will not be presented in this document as there is a complete description in Naud (2004).

Description: Number of persons in low income, low income rate and average gap ratio by age, gender and economic family type, annual.

Description: Low income statistics by age, gender and economic family type, annual.

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Low income measure (LIM) thresholds by household size for market income, total income and after-tax income, in current and constant dollars, annual.

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Distribution of market, total and after-tax income by economic family type, Canada, provinces and selected census metropolitan areas (CMAs), annual.

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Distribution of market, total and after-tax income of individuals, Canada, provinces and selected census metropolitan areas, annual.

Description: Income of individuals by age group, gender and income source, Canada, provinces and selected census metropolitan areas, annual.

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Low income cut-offs (LICOs) before and after tax by community size and family size, in current dollars, annual.

Description: The Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP) draws from a wide variety of data sources to provide information on the school-age population, elementary, secondary and postsecondary education, transitions, and labour market outcomes.

PCEIP products include data tables, fact sheets, an interactive dashboard, a data explorer, and a handbook. They present indicators for all of Canada, the provinces, the territories, and include year over year comparisons.

The PCEIP is an ongoing initiative of the Canadian Education Statistics Council, a partnership between Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada that provides a set of statistical measures on education systems in Canada.

Description: Percentage of the population aged 0 to 24 in low income, by age group and type of living arrangement. This table is included in Section A: A portrait of the school-age population: Low income of the Pan Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP). PCEIP draws from a wide variety of data sources to provide information on the school-age population, elementary, secondary and postsecondary education, transitions, education finance and labour market outcomes. The program presents indicators for all of Canada, the provinces, the territories, as well as selected international comparisons and comparisons over time. PCEIP is an ongoing initiative of the Canadian Education Statistics Council, a partnership between Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada that provides a set of statistical measures on education systems in Canada.

Description: This report is a product of the Pan-Canadian Education Indicators Program (PCEIP). It is intended to facilitate the comparison of educational systems in Canada's provinces and territories with those of countries that belong to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The document presents a series of indicators harmonized to the definitions and methodologies used by the OECD in Education at a Glance. The indicators are designed to serve as a basis for decision making and for development of programs in the field of education.

PCEIP is an ongoing initiative of the Canadian Education Statistics Council: a partnership between Statistics Canada and the Council of Ministers of Education, Canada, that provides a set of statistical measures on education systems.

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This series provides detailed documentation on income developments, including survey design issues, data quality evaluation and exploratory research for the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics in 2010.

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In the aftermath of an economic downturn, young workers may experience difficulty finding their way into career employment. How many young workers are experiencing labour market instability, and why? This study provides a few answers by developing a statistical definition of employment instability, and by identifying which characteristics are most likely to be associated with labour market instability among non-student workers aged 16 to 29.

Description:

The release of the 2010 Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) data coincided with a historical revision of the 2006 to 2009 results. The survey weights were updated to take into account new population estimates based on the 2006 Census rather than the 2001 Census. This paper presents a summary of the impact of this revision on the 2006-2009 survey estimates.

Description: This publication brings together and analyzes a wide range of labour and income data. Topics include youth in the labour market, pensions and retirement, work arrangements, education and training, and trends in family income. One section highlights new products, surveys, research projects and conferences. Another section uses charts and text to describe a variety of subjects related to labour and income. Each winter print issue contains an index of all published articles.

To find the latest updates on labour market and household issues such as gambling, minimum wage, retirement and unionization, please visit: Topics of interest on labour and income.

Description:

In order to provide a holographic or complete picture of low income, Statistics Canada uses three complementary low income lines: the Low Income Cut-offs (LICOs), the Low Income Measures (LIMs) and the Market Basket Measure (MBM). While the first two lines were developed by Statistics Canada, the MBM is based on concepts developed by Human Resources and Skill Development Canada. Though these measures differ from one another, they give a generally consistent picture of low income status over time. None of these measures is the best. Each contributes its own perspective and its own strengths to the study of low income, so that cumulatively, the three provide a better understanding of the phenomenon of low income as a whole. These measures are not measures of poverty, but strictly measures of low income.

Description:

This study examines low income in Canada over a 34-year period from 1976 to 2009 with a multi-line, multi-index approach using data from the Survey of Consumer Finance (1976 to 1995) and Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (1996 to 2009). Three different low income lines are used: the Low Income Cut-offs (LICOs); the Low Income Measure (LIM) and the Market Basket Measure (MBM). In addition, three indexes are used to measure the incidence, depth and severity of low income in the study.

We first examine the evolution of low-income at the national level. This is followed by an investigation of the low income experiences of children, seniors, lone-parents, unattached non-elderly individuals, recent immigrants, off-reserve aboriginals and persons with activity limitations. Next, we compare low incomes across the ten provinces as well as seven Census Metropolitan Areas (CMA). Finally, we study low income mobility in Canada during the 1993-to-2009 period.

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This paper examines how the nature of self-employment may have changed, by comparing the labour market transition rates for males (between non-employment, paid employment, own-account self-employment, and self-employment with paid help) in two panels of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID): the 1993-1998 panel and the 2002-2007 panel. An econometric model is then estimated for the purpose of characterizing the change further.

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About 1 in 6 Canadian workers is self-employed. Does taking on the responsibility of a business result in greater earning potential? More wealth? Affect spending patterns? This paper uses a variety of data sources to examine how the self-employed differ from paid employees in income level and dispersion, wealth, retirement preparation and spending.

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This chapter, entitled Senior Women, provides an overview of the situation of senior women in the population, analyzed from an historical perspective when applicable. We will examine their sociodemographic characteristics, including life expectancy, diversity, and family situation. Various factors are also associated with this population's well-being, such as social life, economic situation and health; we will therefore explore social networks and subjective well-being, volunteering, and the most recent trends in the labour force participation and income of senior women. Finally, we will present the most prevalent chronic health conditions in senior women, their lifestyle habits, the formal and informal care to which they have access, and the causes of death.

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Some households provide money, goods and services directly to help other households: these interhousehold transfers add up to a sizeable flow of economic resources between households. While measured by Statistics Canada surveys, voluntary interhousehold transfers are not included in the recipient household's total income. This article examines the conceptual and measurement issues related to voluntary interhousehold transfers, and provides a profile of voluntary interhousehold transfers in Canada. It uses recent data on interhousehold transfers from income, expenditure and wealth surveys.

Description:

In May 2004 the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) collected data on income from both its third and fourth panels. Panel 3 was in its fifth year of collection and panel 4 was in its second year.

Respondents had the option of answering income questions in an interview, or of giving permission to Statistics Canada to allow SLID to use the information on their income tax return.

The purpose of this document is to present the questions, possible responses and question flows for the 2004 Income questionnaire (for the 2003 reference year).

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This paper describes the changes made to the structure of geography information on SLID from reference year 1999 onwards. It goes into reasons for changing to the 2001 Census-based geography, shows how the overlap between the 1991 and 2001 Census-based concepts are handled, provides detail on how the geographic concepts are implemented, discusses a new imputation procedure and finishes with an illustration of the impact of these changes on selected tables.

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This document presents information about the entry-exit portion of the annual labour and the income interviews of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID).

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This document outlines the structure of the January 2003 labour interview of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID), including question wording, possible responses and flows of questions.

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This paper describes the collection method and content of the 2003 income interview of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID). Respondents also had the option of giving Statistics Canada permission to use the information on their income tax return.

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This document presents the questions, possible responses and question flows for the 2003 preliminary questionnaire of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID).

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This paper presents the information for the Entry Exit portion of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) Income interview.

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This document presents the information for the Entry Exit portion of the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) Labour interview.

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This document presents the questions, question flows and possible responses for the 2002 Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) preliminary questionnaire.

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This document outlines the structure of the January 2002 Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) labour interview. It includes the wording of questions, the flow of questions and possible responses.