The Evolution of Hourly Compensation in Canada between 1980 and 2010
We
consider changes in the distribution of hourly compensation in Canada using
confidential census data and the recent National Household Survey over the last
three decades. We find that the coefficient of variation of wages among
full-time workers has almost doubled between 1980 and 2010. The rapid growth of
the 99.9th percentile is the main driver of that increase. Changes in the
composition of the workforce explain less than 25% of the rise in wage
inequality. However, composition changes explain most of the increase in
average hourly compensation over those three decades, while wages stagnate
within skill groups.
[ - ]