Social Stratification

Classes and Castes

Class is a contentious²⁷ issue in Canada, in no small part because the rhetoric of Canadian identity, with its emphasis on equality, unity in diversity, and mutual respect and cooperation, does not match the actual distribution of economic wealth and political power. Indeed, this culture of diversity has had the effect, on the one hand, of disguising class divisions, and on the other, of allowing them to flourish. Combined with ethnic diversity and strong regional disparities²⁸, class in Canada is a complex web of factors, which make easy descriptions of working and upper class, for example, difficult.

Average incomes in the central provinces are closest to the national average, but in eastern provinces average incomes can be as much as 25 percent lower than the national average. This has led to the emergence of low-skill, low-pay service sector jobs being located in the eastern provinces, creating a strong regional class division.

Symbols of Social Stratification

Class symbolism in Canada is mostly modest, again in large part as a result of the rhetoric of identity that prizes diversity and even humility. Signs of class excess, such as massive residences, or conspicuous²⁹ over-consumption, are not common in Canada, except in rare cases. Some symbolic sites of class expression, such as purchasing subscription tickets to and attending local symphony concerts, constitute a dual discourse of class. In one sense, members of a particular class express cultural solidarity, and in another sense, it is an avenue for class mobility, with members of lower classes using these events as a way of marking their movement between classes. Unlike in England, for example, where accent and dress can clearly mark class position, the symbolic expression of stratification in Canada is less obvious and so more difficult to decipher. Dark business suits, jewelry, hairstyles, and types of leisure activities and leisure sites, such as exclusive clubs, can express status, but in the absence of enforced rules concerning admission and even who may or may not employ particular symbols, stratification is not often explicitly expressed.

Social Welfare and Change Programs

Canada is an example of a capitalist welfare state, in that tax-base-funded programs exist to provide some measure of protection to the impoverished and those at risk of impoverishment. These programs, usually administered at the town or city level, but funded from taxes collected at the provincial and federal level, take two main forms. The first is an insurance program designed to provide income support in the event of unemployment. Individual workers pay premiums based on their wages, and the fund is supplemented by general tax revenue as needed. There are strict guidelines for qualification and the income support paid out of the fund represents a percentage of the unemployed person’s previous income. There are also time limits on this support. This is a national program, and while guidelines regarding qualification vary from region to region, it is generally available to all employed persons. The second program, a general welfare program, provides subsistence support for persons and families unable to work or unemployed for longer periods than those covered by the insurance program. Levels of support in this program are often very low, providing incomes to both individuals and families well below the low-income cutoff points used by governments to measure poverty. Recently these programs have been altered to require recipients to perform some labor for the community in order to qualify. This change, along with reductions in levels of actual income support, have been controversial in Canada, with the debate focusing on the role of the state in providing support to the economically disadvantaged, a basic principle of the welfare state.