The Missing Middle with Mike Moffatt and Sabrina Maddeaux

Unpacking the Growing Wage Gap Between American and Canadian Workers

Mar 12, 2025

A deep dive into the widening wage gap between American and Canadian workers reveals alarming trends for young Canadians. The hosts discuss the surge in emigration, particularly among tech talent, and analyze how high housing costs impact wages. They highlight the role of productivity and propose policy changes to address these economic imbalances. Concerns about brain drain are discussed, with a focus on attracting skilled professionals to ensure future growth. Remote work's influence on salary trends also makes for an intriguing conversation.

21:36

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Episode notes

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

The significant wage gap between Canadian and American workers, particularly in tech, raises concerns about economic opportunities for Canadians.

Increasing emigration from Canada to the U.S. highlights the pursuit of better financial conditions, driven by higher wages and housing affordability.

Deep dives

Wage Disparities between Canada and the U.S.

There is a substantial wage gap between Canadian tech workers and their American counterparts, with Canadian salaries averaging around $106,000 while similar roles in San Francisco can command about $260,000. This disparity raises concerns about economic opportunities for Canadians, as individuals in the U.S. appear to have better job prospects and quicker paths to home ownership. The growing wage differences have led to discussions about potential brain drain, with increased emigration from Canada to the U.S. as individuals seek better financial situations. The issue results from a mix of economic factors and differing governmental growth models in the two countries, which look very different when comparing median wages and opportunities for advancement.

Intro

2min

Wage Disparities: Canada vs. U.S.

9min

Exploring the Wage Gap and Talent Migration in Tech

5min

Exploring the Wage Gap: Immigration, Investment, and Housing Solutions

5min

Strategies for Enhancing Worker Competitiveness

2min

In this episode, conservative pundit Sabrina Maddeaux and economist Mike Moffatt explore the growing wage gap between American and Canadian workers, discussing the implications for young Canadians and the factors contributing to this disparity. They delve into the data on emigration, the impact of housing costs, and the need for policy changes to boost productivity and wages in Canada. The conversation also touches on the potential for brain drain and the importance of attracting talent to maintain economic growth. (Full transparency, we recorded this episode before the most recent round of Trump tariffs were imposed on Canada. The content would not have changed in any way although the tone of the discussion around tariffs, emigration and the demographics of Canadian patriotism may have been expressed more emphatically if we had recorded it this week.)

Chapters

00:00 Introduction

01:51 Have you ever lived in the USA?

02:54 How many Canadians move to the US every year?

06:05 Understanding the wage gap: Canada vs. USA

08:17 Yes Canada should be concerned about the gap

09:15 The productivity gap

10:39 Is the cost of living a factor?

12:50 The role of remote work

13:35 Mike is a two handed economist

15:20 Sabrina is worried about losing talent to theUS

17:25 Increasing productivity and future solutions