Why Canadian job growth does not mean economic turnaround

Canadian economic growth has been sluggish since 2009, and the problem is demographic

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It’s the stupid economy. August’s job growth was encouraging—26,000 new positions—but it does not indicate a turnaround in the nation’s economy. Canada is currently experiencing by far the slowest post-recession period of growth of any time over the past 60 years. Is it lingering shock from commodity price collapse or the Fort McMurray wildfires? Unfortunately not. The real problem, as described here with excellent interactive graphs, defies a short-term recovery: demographics. (Macleans)

Wage hike still doesn’t help the poor, according to critics of the B.C. government’s decision last week to raise the minimum wage to $10.85 per hour. According to BC Federation of Labour president Irene Lanzinger, one out of every four workers in the province earns poverty wages below $15 an hour. B.C. Jobs Minister Shirley Bond says the increase strikes the right balance by supporting workers and ensuring investment continues and job creation remains strong. (Globe and Mail)
 
More good jobs has been a key phrase in the platforms of U.S. presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. But do low-wage earners also deserve a good life? An emerging consensus of policy experts in universities and think tanks is quite different than the line offered by the politicians. Slowly, Americans have been moving away from a system in which a good job with a generous employer was the key to having a good life to a new system in which even people with low-wage jobs can have access to the basic goods and services that define a decent life. (New York Times)
 
From its fresh-faced Genius Bar workers to its user-friendly design, Apple projects an extremely agreeable corporate image. But behind the scenes might be a different story. A report from Mic.com, detailing leaked internal Apple emails, depicts a male-dominated sexist office environment. (Mic.com) 

Do you get your best ideas in the shower? How about when you took up the lyre? Followed a hunch? Well good for you. These are all research-based activities that stimulate your creativity. A new book called Wired to Create: Unraveling the Mysteries of the Creative Mind by Scott Barry Kaufman and Carolyn Gregoire outlines the latest science about creative thinking. Many findings (the death of a close friend, for example, can lead to an artistic outpouring) are counterintuitive. (Fast Company)