Canadians dealing with less income mobility: study

In a new report, StatsCan finds that Canadian families are increasingly likely to remain stuck in their existing income bracket.

Back in the ’80s, the data show that 25.5% of families remained in their current income bracket over a five-year period. That was up to 32.6% in the period from 2011 to 2016.

The study segmented families into deciles — 10% slices — based on after-tax family income. The highest and lowest-income families, as well as seniors, are the most entrenched in their current income situation, it found.

“Taxfilers from all income deciles experienced rising immobility over time, but the reduced income mobility was most prominent for taxfilers in the lower part of the income distribution,” StatsCan said.

“Against the backdrop of rising immobility, taxfilers in lower deciles became less likely to move up,” SattsCan reports. “In contrast, taxfilers in the top deciles became less likely to move down.”

The decrease in income mobility stems from both a decline in upward mobility, and a reduction in downward mobility, the study said.

Back in the early ’80s, 40.5% of families moved up the income ladder, whereas from 2011 to 2016, just 35.0% of families found themselves moving up.

StatsCan noted that immigrants are more likely to enjoy upward mobility. From 2011 to 2016, 44.7% of immigrant families moved up an income category, compared with just 32.8% of Canadian-born families.

At the same time, downward mobility has also declined a bit.

In the ’80s, 34.0% of families overall moved down the income ladder over a five-year period — that was down to 32.5% in the 2011 to 2016 period.

Immigrants outperformed Canadian-born families in this area too, with just 26.0% of immigrant families sliding down the income ladder in the 2011-2016 period, compared with 33.9% of Canadian-born families.

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.