--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/the-impact-of-redistribution-on-income-inequality-in-canada-and-the-provinces-1981-2010/" title: "The Impact of Redistribution on Income Inequality in Canada and the Provinces, 1981-2010" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T13:04:05+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T13:04:05+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "after-tax income" - "Canada" - "Gini coefficient" - "income inequality" - "market income" - "provinces" - "redistribution" - "taxes" - "transfers" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "Multi-province" research_theme: - "Economic Well-Being" - "Fiscal Policy" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # The Impact of Redistribution on Income Inequality in Canada and the Provinces, 1981-2010 Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/the-impact-of-redistribution-on-income-inequality-in-canada-and-the-provinces-1981-2010/ # The Impact of Redistribution on Income Inequality in Canada and the Provinces, 1981-2010 [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2012-08-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Sharpe, Andrew, and Evan Capeluck. 2012. “The Impact of Redistribution on Income Inequality in Canada and the Provinces, 1981-2010.” CSLS Research Report 2012-08. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/the-impact-of-redistribution-on-income-inequality-in-canada-and-the-provinces-1981-2010/ ## Authors: - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) - Evan Capeluck Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University ## Report 2012-08 September 2012 50 pages ## Related research [Measuring the Appropriate Outcomes for Better Decision-Making: A Framework to Guide the Analysis of Health Policy Matthew Calver March 2016 | Report 2016-03 | 132 pages](https://csls.ca/research/measuring-the-appropriate-outcomes-for-better-decision-making-a-framework-to-guide-the-analysis-of-health-policy-2016-03/) [Living Standards Domain of the Canadian Index of Wellbeing Andrew Sharpe, Christopher Ross November 2011 | Report 2011-17 | 124 pages](https://csls.ca/research/living-standards-domain-of-the-canadian-index-of-wellbeing-2011-17/) [Productivity: Key to Economic Success Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) March 1998 | Report 1998-01 | 99 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-key-to-economic-success/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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Canada’s after-tax income Gini coefficient was 0.395 in 2010, 23.7 per cent lower than the market income Gini of 0.518, with 70.7 per cent of this reduction due to transfers and 29.3 per cent due to taxes. Between 1981 and 2010, market income inequality rose substantially, but redistribution offset 44 per cent of the increase. Counter to popular perception, after-tax inequality has remained virtually unchanged since 2000. Ce rapport présente un aperçu des tendances de l’inégalité des revenus, mesurée par le coefficient de Gini, au Canada et dans les provinces au cours de la période 1981-2010, et examine l’incidence des politiques de redistribution — impôts et transferts — sur ces tendances. Le coefficient de Gini du revenu après impôt du Canada s’établissait à 0,395 en 2010, soit 23,7 % de moins que le coefficient de Gini du revenu marchand, qui était de 0,518, et 70,7 % de cette réduction était attribuable aux transferts et 29,3 %, aux impôts. Entre 1981 et 2010, l’inégalité du revenu marchand a augmenté de façon importante, mais la redistribution a compensé 44 % de cette hausse. Contrairement à la perception populaire, l’inégalité après impôt est demeurée pratiquement inchangée depuis 2000. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2012-08-1.pdf)