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The proportional size of the Canadian "echo generation"--baby-boomers' children born 1980-95--varies across the provinces and is largest in Ontario and the West. Effects on elementary, secondary, and postsecondary enrollments are discussed, as well as possible interprovincial agreements on provision of postsecondary education. (SV)

An earlier study revealed that conflict over the issue of intergenerational equity (referring to equality in treatment for different generations) was apparent in the US media during the 1980s and early 1990s while attention to this issue was virtually non-existent in Canada. The focus for discussions on this issue is the distribution of the economic costs of an aging population. Specifically, with an aging population, the growth in elderly dependents is a significant concern for countries with pay-as-you-go public pension systems. This research analyzes public discussion of the intergenerational equity issue from 1993 to 1998 through content analysis of print media. The number of articles on this issue grew and peaked in 1996 with a sharp decline in 1997 and 1998. The issue of intergenerational equity surfaced in Canada during the mid-1990s with the fear that the Canada Pension Plan might run dry during the 2010s under then-current contribution rates. The pension issue serves as a flashpoint for recent concerns of intergenerational equity in Canada.

Canada's post-war labour force growth has been unmatched in any other western industrialized economy, due primarily to the entry of the baby boom generation into the labour force in the 1960s and 1970s. The 1980s, however, have signalled the emergence of new trends, such as a lower source population growth and an aging labour force. Instead of focusing on job creation and the absorption of younger workers, the policy focus must shift to the new challenges precipitated by these trends. New flattened organizational structures driven by demographic (and other) external developments are likely to become more common, shifting the focus from linear to spiral career paths. To be successful much greater emphasis must be placed on adult career development. General skills training will have to be emphasized; work schedules may have to be altered; current early retirement trends may need to reversed. The result can only be achieved by changing management styles and practices.

An advanced degree is found to have a positive effect on the earnings of Canadian lawyers in private practice, but a negative effect for lawyers in government service, after controlling for other employment and personal factors. (Author/TE)