The Atlantic Canadian provinces all have a much higher proportion of jobs in the public sector relative to most other provinces in Canada. More concerning is that the percentage of public sector jobs is rising much faster than the percentage of private sector jobs. But what does this mean for the Nova Scotian economy as a whole? In this commentary, AIMS Board Member Don Mills examines the impact that a large public sector has on Nova Scotia. He discusses affordability, sustainability, and the impact this has on the tax payers. Mills also explains that having a higher proportion of public sector jobs places Nova Scotia at a structural disadvantage in terms of being able to grow the economy. He concludes that governments must ask themselves which non-essential services could be more efficiently delivered by the private sector through a competitive outsourcing process.
