protest_2

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Unfair Canada

Richest 1 per cent increased their share of total income from 8.1 per cent in 1980 to 13.3 in 2007

Richest 0.1 per cent doubled their share from 2 per cent to 5.3

The 100 best-paid CEOs made an average of $6.6 million, 155 times the average wage of $42,988

Tax rate for richest dropped from 43 per cent in 1981 to 29 per cent in 2010

Cost of corporate tax cuts: more than $10 billion yearly

Unfair Quebec

Richest 10 per cent made 24 per cent more in 2006 than the richest in 1976

Middle earners: 6.4 per cent more

Poorest: 10 per cent less

Stranding students

Average tuition in Quebec: $2,500

Average in rest of Canada: $5,000

Average in Ontario: $6,307

Tuition as a percentage of total university and college revenue has doubled, from 10 per cent to 21

Quebec’s tuition hike: $325 a year for the next five years (amended to seven years), totalling a $1,625 increase

Benefits of low or no tuition

Average student debt in Quebec: $13,000

Average student debt in the rest of Canada: $26,000

Percentage of Canadian youth in post-secondary education: 74

Percentage of Quebec youth in post-secondary education: 83

Cost of free education in Quebec: less than 1 per cent of the government’s budget

For every $1,000 fee hike: proportion of poor students drops by 19 per cent

Youth takes a hit

Total student debt in Canada, including private loans: $20 billion

Youth unemployment: 14 to 20 per cent

Percentage of students defaulting on government loans: 14

Percentage of Canadians 20 to 24 living with parents: 73

Percentage 25 to 29 living with parents: 33 per cent

Just figuring

Cost of F-35 fighter jets over 20 years: $25 billion

Cost of wiping out Canada’s student debt: $20 billion

Sources: Statistics Canada, Institute de Recherche d’Informations Socio-Economiques, Canadian Federation of Students, Canadian Association of University Teachers, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Conference Board of Canada, Escalator To The Bottom

This article was first published in NOW Magazine.