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Recent Developments in Self-Employment in Canada

Author

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  • Nadja Kamhi
  • Danny Leung

Abstract

The authors document the recent evolution of the self-employment rate in Canada. Between 1987 and 1998, the self-employment rate rose 3.5 percentage points from 13.8 per cent to 17.3 per cent. In contrast, over the 1999 to 2002 period, the self-employment rate fell by 1.9 percentage points, returning the self-employment rate in 2002 to a level only 0.2 percentage points higher than in 1992. The authors explore the possible explanations for this reversal. They describe trends in self-employment by age, gender, and types of self-employment, and then decompose the changes in the self-employment rate into the fraction due to shifts in the industrial structure and the proportion due to changes within each industry. The authors also examine the role of the business cycle and other macroeconomic factors, such as tax rates.

Suggested Citation

  • Nadja Kamhi & Danny Leung, 2005. "Recent Developments in Self-Employment in Canada," Staff Working Papers 05-8, Bank of Canada.
    • Handle: RePEc:bca:bocawp:05-8
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Roy, R. & Gauthier, J., 1997. "Diverging Trends in Self-Employment in Canada," Papers r-97-13, Gouvernement du Canada - Human Resources Development.
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    Cited by:

    1. Sarah Burkinshaw & Yaz Terajima & Carolyn A. Wilkins, 2022. "Income Inequality in Canada," Discussion Papers 2022-16, Bank of Canada.
    2. F. van Es & D. J. van Vuuren, 2011. "A decomposition of the growth in self-employment," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(17), pages 1665-1669.
    3. Ahmet Akyol & Kartik Athreya, 2009. "Self-employment rates and business size: the roles of occupational choice and credit market frictions," Annals of Finance, Springer, vol. 5(3), pages 495-519, June.
    4. Ergete Ferede, 2013. "Tax progressivity and self-employment: evidence from Canadian provinces," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 40(1), pages 141-153, January.
    5. Marco Lugo Rodriguez, 2014. "Tax policy effects on entrepreneurship in canada, 1984-2009: A dynamic panel provincial data approach," CIRANO Working Papers 2014s-46, CIRANO.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Labour markets;

    JEL classification:

    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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