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Earnings and Incomes of Canadians Over the Past Quarter Century, 2006 Census: Earnings

High earners: More than half a million individuals earned $100,000 or more

The more rapid growth at the top of the earnings distribution has led to an increase in the proportion of high earners over the past quarter century.

In 1980, 3.4% of full-time full-year earners received $100,000 or more (in 2005 constant dollars). By 2005, this proportion had almost doubled to 6.5%.

Likewise, about 2.2% of full-time full-year earners received $150,000 or more in 2005, up from 1.0% in 1980.

According to the 2006 Census, 601,510 individuals worked full time on a full year basis and earned $100,000 or more in 2005, a 25.7% increase from 2000.

This 25.7% growth in the number of high earners exceeded by far the 6.8% increase in the number of full-time full year earners observed between 2000 and 2005.

The number of full-time full-year earners who earned $150,000 or more increased at an even faster pace. At 206,160 in 2005, their numbers were up 29.8% from 2000.

For both earnings thresholds, the increase in the number of high earners between 2000 and 2005 was concentrated among specific groups and provinces and territories.

The proportion of full-time full-year earners receiving at least $100,000 increased at the fastest pace in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Alberta.

In the Northwest Territories, 12.1% of full-time full-year earners received at least $100,000, the highest proportion in Canada. This was an increase from 7.5% in 2000.

In Nunavut, 11.9% of full-time full-year earners received at least $100,000 in 2005, up from 7.9% in 2000. In Alberta, the proportion rose from 6.8% to 9.4%.

As a result, the number of full-time full-year earners paid at least $100,000 in 2005 amounted to 1,675 in the Northwest Territories, 775 in Nunavut and 100,775 in Alberta.

The proportions for 2005 in the remaining provinces varied between 2.4% in Prince Edward Island to 7.8% in Ontario.

The majority of these high earners were highly educated. Even though they represented no more than a quarter of full-time full-year earners, individuals with a university degree accounted for 57.0% of those who received at least $100,000 in 2005, and 65.3% of those who earned at least $150,000.

Employees, that is, individuals with no self-employment income, accounted for about two-thirds of the 122,965 increase—observed between 2000 and 2005—in the number of full-time full-year earners receiving $100,000 or more.

On the other hand, self-employed individuals accounted for slightly more than half of the 47,360 gain in the number of those receiving $150,000 or more. In 2005, self-employed individuals represented 14.0% of all full-time full-year earners.

Men aged 45 to 64 accounted for roughly two—thirds of the increase in both high-earner groups. Two provinces—Ontario and Alberta—also accounted for close to two-thirds of the increase in both groups.

The growth in the number of individuals earning at least $150,000 was concentrated in relatively few occupations. Many of these were related to management, finance, oil extraction, health and law.

Along with several groups of managers, Canadians employed as financial auditors, accountants and other financial officers, petroleum engineers, geologists, geochemists and geophysicists, specialist physicians, pharmacists as well as lawyers and Quebec notaries collectively accounted for almost two-thirds of the 47,360 increase in the number of full-time full-year earners paid at least $150,000. However, they represented no more than 10.5% of all full-time full-year earners in 2005.

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