$89,000 puts you in the Top 5% of earners

[GreenTeaFrapp]

Originally Posted by jolinar of malkshor

If you work for the government you make the same wage as your co-worker in NewFoundLand or as in Victoria. They don't have different pay levels adjusted for the cost of living.

The difference is in the pay level availability. In smaller cities you won't have the same ratio or amount of higher level classifications. There are TONS of CS's in Ottawa. A CS is basically an IT position and the entry level can have experienced workers making in excess of $60,000. There are 5 levels of CS's and the two highest levels can make over $89k.

And I'm not including the bilingual bonus that workers in the Atlantic and West probably won't qualify for.

[Bertuzzied]

Originally Posted by Dan02

I do alot of work in the more affluent areas, and the type of car they drive seems to be a very poor indicator of how wealthy they are. If i may use my parents as a example. they drive a astrovan and a sebring and yet definately qualify in the top 5%.

Cars are real bad indicator to judge wealth. Unless you can tell the difference between a car that was paid in full or leased/financed.

I have stupid friends that don't mind paying $1200/month in car payments and living at home with their parents! hahahaha

[The Yen Man]

Originally Posted by Kobatuzzied

Cars are real bad indicator to judge wealth. Unless you can tell the difference between a car that was paid in full or leased/financed.

I have stupid friends that don't mind paying $1200/month in car payments and living at home with their parents! hahahaha

Besides, you also have a lot of those foreign students whose parents buy them a fancy car, and they're essentially jobless while going to school here. I know a few of those.

[Slava]

^ Plus there are a lot of people who think that fancy cars are a waste of money...

[jolinar of malkshor]

Originally Posted by GreenTeaFrapp

The difference is in the pay level availability. In smaller cities you won't have the same ratio or amount of higher level classifications. There are TONS of CS's in Ottawa. A CS is basically an IT position and the entry level can have experienced workers making in excess of $60,000. There are 5 levels of CS's and the two highest levels can make over $89k.

And I'm not including the bilingual bonus that workers in the Atlantic and West probably won't qualify for.

You said government salaries are less in smaller cities...I was the one who said the higher paid position are in Ottawa. Your original post made me believe that you thought workers got paid less in smaller cities. You never mentioned anything about different government classifications.

[Ozy_Flame]

Originally Posted by Slava

^ Plus there are a lot of people who think that fancy cars are a waste of money...

I certainly do....


But, I digress.

Yes, cars are not a good measure of wealth, but they can be accurate as to who can and can't afford certain things. Let's face it; you're not going to get a Bentley if you're making 50k a year. And I've seen a fair share of Bentleys and other luxury cars out on Calgary roads.

And to be fair, alot of those cars, from where I can see, are driving in from Springbank and the surrounding area.

[Dan02]

Originally Posted by Ozy_Flame

I certainly do....


But, I digress.

Yes, cars are not a good measure of wealth, but they can be accurate as to who can and can't afford certain things. Let's face it; you're not going to get a Bentley if you're making 50k a year. And I've seen a fair share of Bentleys and other luxury cars out on Calgary roads.

And to be fair, alot of those cars, from where I can see, are driving in from Springbank and the surrounding area.

park at intersection of Glenmore and Sarcee and watch all the cars come in from Elbow Valley

[Devils'Advocate]

Originally Posted by GreenTeaFrapp

The difference is in the pay level availability. In smaller cities you won't have the same ratio or amount of higher level classifications. There are TONS of CS's in Ottawa. A CS is basically an IT position and the entry level can have experienced workers making in excess of $60,000.

It's funny. When I was in Halifax working for Sobeys I was a junior programmer making $26,000 a year. I moved to Ottawa to work for Statistics Canada I bumped that up to $36,000 as a CS-1. It was a real struggle to pay rent, get food, etc on $36,000 in Ottawa, so I was really motivated to get a promotion quickly.

On the other hand, a friend of mine in Halifax got a CS-1 position at Industry and he had no motivation whatsoever to compete for a CS-2. He had been a CS-1 for a number of years so he was making low 40s and he was the richest of the rich compared to folks we graduated with.

[alltherage]

Originally Posted by BlackArcher101

Heck, my company has non-professionals making more than that.

Can I work there?

[rubecube]

I'm sorry, but anybody that's single and making 89k, complaining about their bills is spoiled. My mom raised my sister and I on a teacher's salary. I think one of the funniest ways to find out if someone grew up in an upper class home is to ask them if they've ever worn secondhand clothes.

[alltherage]

Originally Posted by rubecube

I'm sorry, but anybody that's single and making 89k, complaining about their bills is spoiled. My mom raised my sister and I on a teacher's salary. I think one of the funniest ways to find out if someone grew up in an upper class home is to ask them if they've ever worn secondhand clothes.

I've worn clothes that were so brutally out of style, they literally DID come back. I'm not lying. I have 3 older brothers, and my Dad started his actual career later than most people.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Devils'Advocate

It's funny. When I was in Halifax working for Sobeys I was a junior programmer making $26,000 a year. I moved to Ottawa to work for Statistics Canada I bumped that up to $36,000 as a CS-1. It was a real struggle to pay rent, get food, etc on $36,000 in Ottawa, so I was really motivated to get a promotion quickly.

On the other hand, a friend of mine in Halifax got a CS-1 position at Industry and he had no motivation whatsoever to compete for a CS-2. He had been a CS-1 for a number of years so he was making low 40s and he was the richest of the rich compared to folks we graduated with.

Just to verify what you are saying, here is a list of current job openings with the federal government. The vast majority are in the $40,000 range.

https://psjobs-emploisfp.psc-cfp.gc....ionalJob=false

Anyone who thinks that most government workers get paid a great salary are mistaken. It's "good" for most people, but not great.

BTW, I'm pretty impressed by how many wealthy people post here. Who knew...

[BlackArcher101]

I'd like to see a poll on CP with a few salary ranges thrown in. Would give an idea on the distrubution.

Woot, 2-2!

[Devils'Advocate]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Just to verify what you are saying, here is a list of current job openings with the federal government. The vast majority are in the $40,000 range.

I'm not disputing the $40,000. I'm saying that perspective is everything. In many places across Canada $40,000 pays the bills. It wouldn't in Calgary or even here in Ottawa.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Devils'Advocate

I'm not disputing the $40,000. I'm saying that perspective is everything. In many places across Canada $40,000 pays the bills. It wouldn't in Calgary or even here in Ottawa.

Oh, for sure. Vancouver was the same way. I could survive on $40,000 a year, but I was resigned to fact that I would never own a home in that city, or be able to go on holidays and things like that.

It's also about perception. I currently make between 40 and 50 and feel pretty good about it. Growing up in Northern Ontario, our family was "working poor", so $40,000 seems pretty good to me. A salary of $89,000 would seem like winning the lottery.

[Fobby]

So much for 1 in 20.....

[Dan02]

pretty small sample size, besides hockey fans in general are usually more affluent then the average citizen. Which is the only reason that it probably gets on TV in the states at all.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Fobby

So much for 1 in 20.....

I wouldn't consider an anonymous survey with 107 respondants on a messageboard for a team from one of the wealthiest cities in Canada, and in the wealthiest province, as a good cross-section of the country as a whole.

[Sylvanfan]

Originally Posted by Dan02

pretty small sample size, besides hockey fans in general are usually more affluent then the average citizen. Which is the only reason that it probably gets on TV in the states at all.

Also people who make more than 89k are probably more likely to respond to this poll than those who don't type of thing.

Someone mentioned doing a poll to better break down the income brackets. I think it would be interesting to do a breakdown of the above 89k folks and see how they break down. See how many are in the 90-100, than the 100-110 etc.. Than see how many hours a week they work. From what I've seen there aren't many stress free 40 hour a week jobs that pay that type of money. If you want to jump into those higher brackets you pretty much have to take on a fair bit of responsibility and make your job a pretty important part of your life. Right now in Alberta the oppurtunity is there for those who want it to make big money. I admit I'm too lazy to put in that much effort at work. After my dad passed away last year I decided I wanted more time at home and to spend with family and less time spent at work.

[Cowperson]

Amusingly, I'll probably pay a new member of my team more than $89,000 to work for me in the next year . . . . with any luck.

Cowperson