Kaylie Tiessen 
Economist and Researcher | Unifor
Toronto, ON, CANADA
Researching labour markets, social progress and the value of public services.
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Biography
Kaylie Tiessen is an economist and a Researcher at Unifor. She focuses on labour markets, employment quality, social progress and the value of Public Services.
Kaylie is an active member of the Canadian Economics Association, Canadian Women Economists Network and the Progressive Economics Forum. She's also a member of the Young Scholars Initiative at the Institute for New Economic Thinking and a research associate at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
Industry Expertise (3)
Public Policy
Research
Think Tanks
Areas of Expertise (9)
Labour Economics
Labour Markets
Precarious Work
Policy Analysis
Poverty
Income Inequality
Public Services
Fair Wage/Living Wage
Employment Quality
Accomplishments (1)
Top 20 under 35 Young Professionals Changing the World (professional)
2015 Recipient
Education (3)
Dalhousie University: Master of Development Economics, Economics 2012
Thesis Work: Social Return on Investment Analysis: Merging Evaluation Techniques for a Broader Vision of Success
Lakehead University: Honours Business Commerce, International Business 2005
Conestoga College: Management Studies, Business Administration 2003
Affiliations (6)
- Progressive Economics Forum
- Canadian Economics Association
- Young Scholars Initiative, Institute for New Economic Thinking
- Canadian Women Economists Network
- Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, Research Associate
- Toronto Sector Skills Academy, Advisory Committee
Media Appearances (4)
SKilling Up
The Agenda with Steve Paikin tv
2016-02-10
For years, a funny dynamic has been taking place between post-secondary institutions and employers. Employers are calling for higher education to providing more concrete job skills, while on the job training has flatlined. The Agenda looks at how employers' willingness to train on the job impacts employers, employees, and those looking for work.
Ontario the Indebted
The Agenda with Steve Paikin tv
2015-09-20
What does it mean to have the largest sub-national debt in the world? How does owing almost $330 billion affect the average Ontarian? Should the province be spending a record number of taxpayer dollars on infrastructure projects while being committed to balancing the budget by 2017-18? The Agenda discusses Ontario's billions of dollars of debt.
Five lessons from the failing fight against child poverty
Toronto Star print
2015-11-27
The Ontario government has been calling for the federal government to step up to the plate on poverty reduction for years, writes Kaylie Tiessen. With the election of Justin Trudeau (left) as prime minister, Kathleen Wynne may have finally got her wish.
Making the Case for a $15 Minimum Wage in Ontario
Waterloo Record print
2015-10-05
Ontario's minimum wage is increasing by 25 cents this month — from $11 an hour to $11.25 — as part of the provincial government's commitment to index the minimum wage to inflation every October. While raising the minimum wage to reflect the rising cost of living is a win for workers, it isn't a raise that will increase purchasing power for these low-wage workers. It simply absorbs the rising cost of housing, food, transportation and other basics.
Event Appearances (2)
Good Jobs Debate
Good Jobs Summit Toronto, Ontario
2014-10-03
Labour Market Insecurity in Canada
Piecing Together a Paradigm, Institute for New Economic Thinking Young Scholars Initiative Budapest, Hungary
2015-10-15
Articles (2)
Ontario's Social Assistance Poverty Gap
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives2016-05-09
This report drills down on one key but complex policy file that is essential to the province meeting its commitment to reduce poverty and to improve income security for both children and adults: social assistance. The poverty gap for single individuals who qualify for Ontario Works or its equivalent has increased by almost 200% since 1993, and people receiving benefits from Ontario’s social assistance programs are living in a greater depth of poverty now than a generation ago.
Raising the Bar
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives2015-10-01
The Ontario government has also been under steady pressure to raise the minimum wage. It responded to that pressure by striking the Minimum Wage Advisory Panel in June 2013. The panel was tasked with reviewing Ontario’s current approach to setting the minimum wage and providing advice on how it should be set and adjusted moving forward. This paper outlines the panel’s consultation process and final report, and finds that the panel’s recommendations sidestepped a very important question in the minimum wage discussion: What is an appropriate benchmark for setting the minimum wage?
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