45
when only considering people with employment income. Graduating from high school is clearly
advantageous for Aboriginal Canadians, since this group earns on average 86.6 per cent of the
non-Aboriginal income (or 82.4 per cent when considering only income-earners), whereas those
who did not complete high school earn 74.7 per cent of the non-Aboriginal income for a given
level of educational attainment (76.1 per cent of those with employment income).
Aboriginals with trades certificates or diplomas earn on average 80.5 per cent of the non-
Aboriginal income, but among those with employment income, the percentage is only 71.2 per
cent. College graduation, like high school graduation, helps Aboriginals come closer to the non-
aboriginal wages. Whereas they earn only 75.1 of non-Aboriginal wages with uncompleted
college, this percentage jumps to 83.1 per cent with graduation. The closing of the gap is less
important when considering only those with employment income, but still rises from 76.6 to 79.9
per cent. In contrast, graduating from university, even if it leads to a significant increase in their
absolute income, does not increase it relative to non-Aboriginal income. Aboriginal Canadians
who go to university without completing earn on average 73.6 per cent of non-Aboriginal
income at this level of education, while those who graduate earn 75.5 per cent. Relative income
actually drops between these two categories when considering income-earners only: from 75.5 to
72.7 per cent.
It is also possible to consider only workers who have full-time employment during the
whole year. Among these workers, Aboriginal individuals who did not go to post-secondary
education seem to fare better relative to their Canadian counterparts than those who do. While
wages are around 90 per cent of the non-Aboriginal wages for the first group, they are around 80
per cent for the second one (Chart 10). This fact is probably due to the lack of employment
opportunities that require post-secondary education in remote areas where the reserves are
usually situated.
ii. Change in the 1996 to 2001 Period
There was a large overall improvement in the income of Aboriginal Canadians relative to
non-Aboriginal Canadians between 1996 and 2001. In 1996, Aboriginal Canadians earned on
average 59.0 per cent of non-Aboriginal income, but by 2001 it had increased to 65.2 per cent.
Similarly, the income of Aboriginal persons with employment income relative to their non-
Aboriginal counterpart increased from 65.6 per cent in 1996 to 69.1 per cent in 2001.
Aboriginal individual who frequented college saw the largest improvement. In 1996,
those who did not graduate received only 69.8 per cent of non-Aboriginal income while those
with a certificate or diploma received 74.6 per cent (72.0 and 74.2 per cent among those with
employment income). Persons with low educational attainment also experienced a large
improvement in their relative incomes. Aboriginal Canadians with less than grade 9 earned 82.7
per cent of non-Aboriginal income, those who went to high school without graduating only 66.4
per cent, and those who graduated 79.8 per cent (70.9, 68.9 and 75.0 respectively among those
with employment income).
Aboriginals with trade certificates were actually better off relative to other Canadians
with equivalent educational attainment in 1996 than in 2001. In 1996, they earned 84.9 per cent