I appreciate that you recognize that so-called ‘labour productivity’* is primarily a measure of the quality and technological level of the capital that the labour is working with.
Too often, comparative measures of labour productivity and discussion focuses on hours worked, vacation days etc.
These are very much second-order.
Education levels are not second-order but Canadian workers are more literate and better educated across the board than the US manufacturing workers.
So, the real question in manufacturing (as it is in housing construction), “Why is the Canadian private sector so unwilling to invest in ongoing technological upgrading let alone innovation?”
- ‘Labour productivity’ was originally a measure of how much a given number of workers could produce with a fixed piece of land. Crop improvements and technology increased that in the agricultural revolution.
We need to let go of the rule of thumb that Canada is 1/10th the US in population.
It’s not just a nitpick to say that’s off now.
Canada has had a more rapidly growing population such that it’s been 1/9th that of the United States for most of a decade.
A quick calculation on current population estimates puts it as 347.5 / 41.5 million = ~ 8.4.
That said, Canada still has more manufacturing jobs per capita even with the correction.