Nova Scotia has been dead last in Canada for most of the last 20 years in terms of economic growth as measured by GDP. At least part of the reason for low economic growth is related to a much less urbanized population and a continuing reliance on seasonal work. In this commentary, AIMS Board Member, Don Mills, outlines the consequences of a large rural population. He looks at the challenges of generating long-term jobs, the cost to deliver public services in rural regions, and the higher dependence on seasonal work. He argues that the urbanization of Atlantic Canada has been artificially held back by government policies over the last 40 years.
Addressing critics of the Federal Government’s recent EI reforms, Mills argues seasonal jobs are not the way forward. He supports urbanization as a better path; leading to fewer seasonal jobs, more permanent employment and economic growth.
