--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/research/the-paradox-of-market-oriented-public-policy-and-poor-productivity-growth-in-canada/" title: "The Paradox of Market Oriented Public Policy and Poor Productivity Growth in Canada" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-02T13:29:55+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-02T13:29:55+00:00" post_type: "research" summary: "" post_tag: - "Canada" - "economic freedom" - "labour productivity" - "market-oriented policy" - "paradox" - "productivity" - "United States" country_focus: - "Canada" province_region: - "National" research_theme: - "Fiscal Policy" - "Productivity and Economic Measurement" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/old-reports_hero_banner_bg.webp" status: "publish" --- # The Paradox of Market Oriented Public Policy and Poor Productivity Growth in Canada Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/research/the-paradox-of-market-oriented-public-policy-and-poor-productivity-growth-in-canada/ # The Paradox of Market Oriented Public Policy and Poor Productivity Growth in Canada [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2010-01-1.pdf) Cite this report × Cite this report as: Sharpe, Andrew. 2010. “The Paradox of Market Oriented Public Policy and Poor Productivity Growth in Canada.” CSLS Research Report 2010-01. Ottawa: Centre for the Study of Living Standards. https://csls.ca/research/the-paradox-of-market-oriented-public-policy-and-poor-productivity-growth-in-canada/ ## Author: - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## Report 2010-01 February 2010 69 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/) [Productivity Trends: A Canada-U.S. Comparison Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) January 1999 | Report 1999-01 | 6 pages](https://csls.ca/research/productivity-trends-a-canada-u-s-comparison/) [New Estimates of Manufacturing Productivity Growth for Canada and the United States Andrew Sharpe March 1999 | Report 1999-02 | 21 pages](https://csls.ca/research/new-estimates-of-manufacturing-productivity-growth-for-canada-and-the-united-states/) [Apprenticeship in Canada: A Training System Under Siege? 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Economists believe that such policies should foster productivity growth. Since 2000, however, productivity growth in Canada has been dismal, much below that in the United States and below Canada’s historical trend. The objective of this report is to attempt to explain the paradox of productivity-enhancing public policies and the continuation of poor productivity performance. The report finds that the high degree of market orientation of public policy that already exists in Canada suggests that the productivity-enhancing effects of further liberalization may be quite small. Au cours des dernières décennies, les gouvernements canadiens ont mis en œuvre des politiques axées sur le marché, tant à l’échelle macroéconomique que microéconomique. Les économistes estiment que de telles politiques devraient favoriser la croissance de la productivité. Depuis 2000, toutefois, la croissance de la productivité au Canada a été désastreuse, bien en deçà de celle des États-Unis et de la tendance historique du Canada. L’objectif de ce rapport est de tenter d’expliquer le paradoxe entre des politiques publiques favorables à la productivité et la persistance d’une faible performance en matière de productivité. Le rapport constate que le degré déjà élevé d’orientation vers le marché des politiques publiques au Canada suggère que les effets d’une libéralisation accrue sur la productivité pourraient être plutôt faibles. [Download full PDF report](https://csls.ca/pdf/csls2010-01-1.pdf)