What is a TOU Meter or Time Of Use Meter (Smart Meter)?

TOU is an electricity billing system that relates the cost of using a kilowatt hour (kwh) dependent on the time of day that kilowatt hour is consumed.  During “peak” periods when the electrical grid is under high demand the electricity consumer will pay more for a kwh than they would during off peak periods when there is less stress on the grid.  Special meters have been developed called “Time of Use Meters” to calculate this increasingly complex method of billing.

Between now and 2025, Ontario must build almost a whole new electricity system. This includes replacing about 80 per cent of our current generating facilities are retired over time, and expanding the system to meet future growth. Building new supply is vital. So is conservation. That’s why the Government of Ontario is introducing new tools like smart meters that will encourage all of us to think more about how and when we use electricity.

Time of Use Meters measure hourly electricity use, so electricity prices can be different at different hours of the day. That better matches the way prices work in the electricity market, and will encourage us to think more about how and when we use electricity. As we move consumption away from the more expensive (peak) times of the day, we can help Ontario reduce its peak demand, which can help limit the building and operation of peak generating facilities.

Why are there Time of Use Meters?

Supplying electricity at peak times (those times when we’re all using a lot of electricity) has a range of impacts:

• It adds to our electricity costs because higher demand often means higher market prices.
• It’s hard on the environment because more of the less attractive forms of generation must be run to meet them.
• It adds to the amount that Ontario needs to invest in the system because meeting the peaks means building even more new generating facilities, and more transmission and distribution infrastructure and that also adds to electricity costs.

High demand peaks affect the power system in three ways:

• They strain the power system. Particularly during sustained heat-waves, power generators work at almost full capacity.
• High demand pushes up the cost to produce electricity. At peak, more expensive types of electricity production are called upon.
• Peak demand forecasts are used by power system planners to determine how much more power production the province will need in the years ahead. The higher the demand peaks, the more investment will be needed in the electricity system – building new generation plants, new transmission and distribution infrastructure.

The real impacts of heavy drain on the grid were displayed in 2006 when a massive heatwave hit North America which sadly resulted in 225 deaths.  As people cranked their air conditioning the grid system could not supply the electricity demand and “brownouts” rolled through cities, provinces and states. The Ontario government believes (is hoping) that by altering how electricity is billed based on the Time of Use Meter, people will adjust their energy usage habits in order to save money on their power bills.  All of this makes logical sense, however, as implemented today it isn’t really working.

What are Smart Readers?

A smart meter tracks how much electricity you use and when you use it, providing key information to help you manage your electricity costs. A smart meter looks like the meter you have now, except the display is digital and there are no dials. It records how much electricity was used and when it was used (typically hourly) and communicates this information automatically via wireless and other technologies. A smart meter electronically tracks how much electricity is used and when it is used, paving the way for time-of-use pricing.

How much will electricity cost?

The TOU will change how Ontarians pay for electricity consumption.  Some centres, like the Greater Toronto Area have already phased Smart and Time of Use Meters into their customers daily lives.  The costs for electricity depend on the season, day of the week and time of day.  The charts below show what a consumer will pay per kwh.  As Ontario is the first province to introduce TOU rates, Premier McGuinty has admitted that the incentives to use off peak times are too low.  In addition, as you will see in the pricing below, the “On Peak” rates are almost double what Ontarians pay (or paid) prior to the TOU rates.

The current pricing for TOU is as follows:

Our Time of Use Situation

As mentioned in Our ecoEnergy Retrofit, we will be changing all of our lightbulbs from incandescent to CFL bulbs.  With TOU it is likely we would probably stand to save even more than the $150 a year we determined a household would save by switching to CFL bulbs.  We also have a sun room that has electric baseboard heat and these HAVE TO GO.  We are hunting for a suitable and cost effective solution but have not landed on it yet.  In addition we will follow many of the tips in the next section.  We will also get rid of our electric hot water heater and replace it with a natural gas model – no electric charges and we won’t be renting any longer.

In our city we received notice that time of use meters will be used in full effect by the end of the month!  The rates we will pay are dependent on the season (summer/winter) as folks use more power in the afternoon in the warm months (cooling) and evening/morning in the winter (heating food, space, water). “Peak” is used to define the high consumption time periods.  The following are our new rates:

• On Peak (6 hrs daily): $0.108/kwh
• Mid Peak (6 hrs daily): $0.092/kwh
• Off Peak (12 hrs daily): $0.062

Strategies to Reduce Electricity Use

• Cut your air conditioning costs. Making wise use of your air conditioner will have the biggest impact on your summer energy bill. Set your air conditioner a few degrees higher than you normally would, and turn it off when no-one is home. You can also help your air conditioner work more efficiently:
  • Replace or clean the filters once a month.
  • Use a ceiling fan to circulate the cold air. This will allow you to raise the thermostat setting by a few degrees without a noticeable difference.
  • Close shades and curtains on the sunny side of the house.
• Clothes dryers consume a lot of energy. Wait until evening or the weekend and you’ll pay a third of the cost.
• Electric water heaters can really make electricity use spike as they refill and heat water. If you reduce the amount of hot water you use during peak periods, you also reduce the amount of electricity you use during these times.  Get the utility company to reduce the heat of the heater. Although some manufacturers set water heater thermostats at 140ºF, most households usually only require them set at 120ºF and by dropping by 20ºF you can save 6-10% in your electrical bill.
• If you have a pool, run your pump and heater during off-peak hours. You may only need to run your pump for six or eight hours a day.
• Your electric stove is also a high energy user – but there are a lot of simple ways you can minimize these costs at peak times:
  • Match the pots to the element size, make sure the bottoms of your pans are flat and put the lids on.
  • Minimize the pre-heating time for your oven. Unless you are baking, you may not even need to pre-heat.
  • Better yet, use a crock pot, toaster oven or a small microwave – you’ll use less energy, and you won’t be creating extra heat in the house on hot days.

• Do laundry on weekends and wash in cold water.
• Turn the dishwasher on after 9 p.m. and select the economy setting and air dry cycle.
• Set the air-conditioning a few degrees warmer during the afternoon.  We don’t have central air so we’ll run the window unit before bed – after 9pm.
• Turn appliances such as the computer, radio and TV off when they’re not in use.
• Most common but sometimes forgotten, turn lights off when not in us.
• Turn your computer monitor off if you are not going to use it for 20 minutes, and turn your computer off if you’re not going to use it in the next two hours.
• Fix water leaks and drafts, clean filters on air conditioners and furnaces and generally keep your appliances in good working order.
• Buy Energy Star rated products for your home. Switching to the most energy-efficient products can save you hundreds of dollars in energy costs.
• The average Canadian home has 25 electronic devices that use standby power which can add up to 10 per cent of household electricity consumption. Plug these devices (TVs, VCRs, etc..) into a power bar, which cuts off the supply of electricity.

TOU Meter Results to Date

The results to date have not been good and are proving to be a political land mine for the Premier. According to data released, 68 per cent of 10,000 tracked Toronto Hydro customers had higher bills in the first year of the new program.  The government will state that this is due to people not changing their energy usage habits but their NDP and Conservative critics are calling the TOU rates an electricity tax grab which has hit Ontarians very hard when considering the HST tax has been added to bills as well.  Bills are going up and the conservation reduction is not occurring.  People are using off peak times and not seeing the savings on their bills.

At this point I would have to agree that the program, which cost Ontarians $2 billion dollars ($500 to install each meter!), is failing in its stated purpose (conservation) and must be altered very soon. People aren’t changing their consumption habits which makes the everyperson less wealthy and does little good for our environment.

Time of Use Meter or “Smart” Meter – What is it? is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Who would’ve known that all this time we have been pouring caffeine-laced devil’s brew down our throats every morning?! If you’re not aware that the latte factor is the reason that we have poor people in the world, and are most likely the major cause of the growing income gap, increased student debt, and foreclosures, then you haven’t been reading many personal finance blogs lately. Seriously though people, what did poor lattes ever do to you? Why choose to single out that frivolous expense as opposed to our other frivolous expenses? I mean, how many people consume sodas, cigarettes, French fries, booze etc. on a daily basis, yet somehow lattes get to become the whipping boy? They are so hated they even get their own trending title of the “The Latte Factor” to make it all dark and mysterious? Now I must admit, I too have succumbed to the “my site needs a coffee article before it is complete” syndrome myself. It is a useful figure for showing how compounded savings can work.

The Latte Factor Prophet Himself

In case you actually have a social life and don’t read many personal finance blogs, the latte factor is an idea generally accredited to David Bach. It shows just how effective daily saving and investment can be. By taking the cost of an over-priced cup of coffee (seriously, why do these scenarios always use like the Starbucks mocha-frappa-double-choc-frothalicious that costs more than a happy meal) and showing how much money you can garner when the black magic of compound investment returns is applied to it, every personal finance blogger in the world believes they have found the path to true happiness. A sort of financial nirvana if you will. The articles usually forget to deduct what the coffee, cream, sugar etc. would have cost at home, and they usually assume extremely high investment returns, but yes, let’s all agree that cutting back on the coffee could help us out to the tune of a couple hundred grand when we are 103. Sweet.

A Venial Sin At Worst

The bottom line is that this is a tough strategy to enact because it advocates an extremely frugal position. People like a small creature comfort, and if a little coffee (by the way, in Canada we have this magic place called Tim Hortons – it’s kind of a cultural icon – and I get a great double-double there for like $1.50, you should try it sometime) prevents someone from going crazy in this insane world they live in, then hey, let ‘em have it.

The key is to limit the luxuries we spend money on to a level that we are comfortable with and have made a conscious choice to spend beforehand. If you figure that you can spend $100 on “token luxuries” in a given two-week stretch, and you don’t smoke, rarely drink, and hate fast food, then knock yourself out and enjoy the caffeinated heaven that is calling your name.

Everyone has different priorities, so to just casually send someone to frugal purgatory because they like a good cup of java makes little sense to me. As long as people are aware of the long-term sacrifice of the occasional cup of coffee (and how could they not be with the staggering amount of anti-coffee propaganda pouring out of keyboards everywhere), then who are we to tell them no?

As financially-enlightened individuals we often give people a free ride, or a mild rebuke for driving luxury vehicles, investing in mutual funds that have ridiculous MERs, or spending money on gifts that will likely be underappreciated anyway. Yet we feel the need to fill the blogosphere with more coffee-bashing articles than there are hipsters in a downtown Starbucks. Come on guys and gals… we can be better, we must be better. Baristas of the world rejoice, hold your coffee up high and say, “I will staff write one post about the evil bean and it will pay for a week’s worth of my sinful ways.”

What are your thoughts on the latte factor?

 Photo credit: @Doug88888

Why “No More Lattes” Rarely Works is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Anyone who has looked after kids knows that they have short attention spans. Moreover babies grow at such a rapid pace in their first year that a toy that was intriguing and difficult to manipulable one month is easy and boring the next. So you go through a lot of toys, keeping them entertained and aiding in their development. You can spend a lot of money on 1st year kids toys.

SPF and I have bought toys both new and used and received others as gifts for lil’ SPF.

I was recently very happy to discover a toy library in town recently. It is part of a government subsidized family resource center which hosts drop in playgroups every week, teen parent support suppers, baby massage and sign language classes among many other great services. Kids can rent 2 toys and 3 books per month. Lil’ SPF and I have taken out a couple of toys now and he seems to enjoy them.

Not every town has such a program but if you don’t you could start one! Either through an existing family center such as ours or a church group. Or perhaps even simpler, set one up with some other parents you know with kids around the same age and trade toys. The kids will be happy with these “new” toys and you won’t have to spend a ton of money.

Added bonus as always with our Green Tips: less resources, production and shipping which helps our environment. Back to the good old days.  Win-win.

Would you think of using or creating a toy co-op?  How about borrowing toys from the library or trading with other Moms?

Check out our 365 Green Tips Series!

If you like our writing and want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter @SustainablePF, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our RSS feed in a reader or via E-Mail

Green Tip #242: Sharing Toys is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

The current economic climate has encouraged many people to become interested in striking out and starting their own businesses. Technology has grown to the point that many people can start businesses, and earn money, with the help of the Internet. For those working from home, costs might be low initially, but expansion might require something more. And, of course, if you are a small business starting out in a different location you need start up cash immediately.

Getting that cash can be difficult if you can’t the angel investment you need, or the venture capital you require. And what if the bank turns you down for a loan? Small business funding isn’t easy. However, with the help of crowdfunding many businesses are starting to get off the ground.

What is Crowdfunding?

Crowdfunding works in much the same way as microloans for the poor. You receive a large number of small cash infusions, rather than one or two large ones. Multiple investors can band together to pledge amounts of money ranging from one dollar to thousands of dollars. Web sites like Kickstarter have really taken off in the United States. In Canada, though, the trend is slow to catch on. Sites like Ideavibes and Startup Fuel are offering crowdfunding services, but the regulatory situation in Canada provides challenges to crowdfunding.

How Does Crowdfunding Work?

In some cases, efforts to fund an enterprise are more like donations. Contributions to the startup are made, and the person giving the money may only be listed as a supporter, and receive no tangible benefits. In other cases, business owners offer finished products, or provide discounts, in return for financial support. So, an “investor” might not own equity in the company, but he or she can expect to be among the first to receive a product, or get some other special perk. (I funded a friend’s comic book at a level that allows me to be a background character and get artwork on top of a free copy of the comic.) This type of crowfunding is popular because securities regulators don’t have to get involved. “Investors” receive “gifts” or recognition, and that is the end of it.

The United States just recently passed a law that eases requirements for crowdfunding that involves an equity model allowing investors to receive an actual interest in the business profits. This is where regulatory agencies come in. The United States just passed a law that helps exempt crowdfunding from some of the more onerous requirements of business and investors involved. In Canada, the snag is that there is no national regulatory agency.

Crowdfunding and the Equity Model in Canada

With the equity model, investors truly are investors, and receive some sort of interest in the company, and receive an on-going benefit. However, in Canada the ability to raise funds for your business with the help of crowdfunding is limited by the fact that you would have to meet requirements in 13 different provinces and territories. Unlike the U.S., one rules change doesn’t solve the issue. There would have to rules changes with each of the Canadian securities regulators. And, if one province/territory changed the rules, the funding could only be raised in that region; no nationwide push for funding.

So, while crowdfunding might help your business, it might take a while for it to really catch on Canada — especially if you want to pursue the equity model.

What is Crowdfunding? is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Surprise! We do not get our juice directly from fruit and a juicer.  We buy frozen orange juice for our morning constitutional.

The directions on the (recyclable) container instructs to put the juice contents into a jug and then add 3 parts water.

The result?  Some pretty potent juice.

If you have kids, especially if the juice you mix contains sugar, you will want to water down the juice or suffer hyped up sugar children until such time they crash and get cranky.  But think about yourself too – do you really need more sugar?

Even if you get pure juice (we do) you likely don’t need such concentrated flavour.  Try adding an extra part of water.  What do you have to lose?

We consume a “can” of OJ every 3 days or about 120 each year.  Each “can” costs about $2 (when we buy it at regular price). Until now I didn’t realize we spend about $240 a year on OJ.  Well, we don’t as we buy frozen orange juice on sale, and quite a bit of it when it is on sale but I am sure some folks buy their juice at full price quite often.

There are a few good reasons to water down your juice.  First, reduced waste.  If we didn’t water down our juice we would be buying an additional 25%, or 30 cans of OJ annually.  These cans are recyclable yes, but it takes resources to recycle anything.  Resources are also used in maintaining and cultivating fruit tree farms. Think about how many people consume a glass or 4 of orange juice every day around the world.  That is a lot of recycling.

Second, $60. Not a monstrous sum of money but $60 here, $100 there, $25 next week – it adds up when you can continue to enjoy your daily rituals but save some money doing so.

Have you ever watered down your juice? Any other beverages you water down?

Check out our 365 Green Tips Series!

If you like our writing and want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter @SustainablePF, like us on Facebook and subscribe to our RSS feed in a reader or via E-Mail

Green Tip #241 – Water Down Your Juice is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

I recently discovered a practice that I’d never heard of before – recession gardening. Instead of heading to the grocery store for your veggies and herbs, you can head out to the back yard!

What is recession gardening?

This is the practice of growing fruit, veggies and herbs in your very own garden. This practice is becoming more and more in vogue, as people are trying to spend less, and are more conscious of how their produce is grown and distributed.

Recession Gardening Benefits

• Delicious, fresh food
• You know exactly what’s going into the food (organically grown, no pesticides, etc)
• Helpful to the environment

Recession Gardening Disadvantages

• Can be time-consuming
• High start-up cost if you don’t yet have equipment and tools
• You need to be green-fingered!

How to get started

To start your own home-grown produce garden, you can either start with seeds, seedlings, or fully grown plants. The latter will be the most expensive for an initial purchase, and seeds tend to be the cheapest. This makes sense, as you are the one going to be doing all the work on growing the plants, and they’re priced accordingly.

You’ll also need some tools (trowel, watering can, shears, fork), if you don’t already have them. You can pick up some basic gardening tools for a few dollars at your local hardware stores.

You may also need things like pots and containers, but that depends on what you’re going to be growing. Plus, you can always start out by growing seedlings in old yoghurt pots, plastic food containers, etc.

What to grow

What produce you can grow may depend on where you live, the climate, the soil type, etc. Do a bit of googling, or ask for advice at your local garden store. Some ideas of things to grow:

• Tomatoes
• Lettuce
• Green beans
• Spinach
• Potatoes
• Peas
• Parsley
• Peppers
• Broccoli
• Asparagus

The list is almost endless, but those items above are a few of the most common items you may find in a home-grown garden.

Gardening tips

You recession garden may take a lot of care and attention. There are books and books dedicated to gardening tips, but here are a few pointers with the recession garden in mind:

• Start out small if you’re new to gardening, learn as you go
• Plan ahead – what goes where, especially if you’re short on space
• Trade – if neighbours are also growing, specialise in certain crops and trade with friends

Conclusion

With this sustainable practice, you’ve got to take a long-term view. You’re not going to get a full crop and a wide range of veggies within the first year. It may take a few years to build up a good stock of produce, and you’ll also be learning as you go along. Costs may be higher in the first year, but over time you will be saving a lot of money, as you no longer have to buy many of these fresh items from the grocery store. Plus, there’s the added pride in being able to eat something delicious that you’ve grown yourself, with the power of your own two hands.

Do you grow your own veg? Got any more tips to share?

Today’s guest article was written by Anna, owner of Bargainmoose.ca. Bargainmoose is a Canadian deals website where you can find the latest shopping bargains and online coupon codes, helping Canadians save lots of loonies every day!

Recession Gardening to Save Money is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Time for our monthly link love once again! Spring is upon us in Canada and the world around us is greening. I have enjoyed seeing wildlife return from the winter slumber – butterflies, a lot of different birds, squirrels and even the local cats are out and about more often. There were also a lot of great posts I enjoyed that touch on all things green and/or sustainable.

The format is the standard I like to do: 12 great reads, 3 editor picks and 1 editor choice (my favourite from the last month).

Here goes!

• Kevin @ Thousandaire attended a heckuva bachelor party recently.  Thing is, Kevin doesn’t drink but he does weigh in on the costs of bachelor party drinking in a recent article.  A while back I covered groomsman wedding expenses so Kevin’s post brought back some fuzzy memories.  One of the groomsmen in my wedding bought a case of beer – thing is, it was $3 per beer so he paid out $75 for a case! Ouch.
• I am always interested in ETF analysis and when a comparison between products is done, even better! Canadian Couch Potato took a look at ING’s Streetwise Fund versus the TD E-Series. Nice to have a great analysis by one of my favourite sites.
• I love the power of blogging. Common Cents Mom was having an awful time getting a health card for her daughter who needed one ASAP. SO CCM wrote about it on her site and the Ministry of Health actually visited her site which ultimately led to the delivery of a health card! Awesome!

• Our friend Miss T looks at how to choose an ethical/green financial planner. While I don’t think we’ll ever use a FP ourselves (disdain for fees) if we were to do so we would investigate those who have some experience, knowledge and passion for socially responsible investing.
• Speaking of SRI, Retire by 40 had a guest post on the topic with a focus on SRI index funds.
• Natural gas is cheap and abundant.  The oil sands can make a big dent in our oil imports. Financial God wonders why environmentalist in North America are against oil and gas produced on this continent. I think the energy industry is making strides to clean up the extraction and refinement of these necessary resources while providing employment and wealth in North America.  As long as improvements continue this “tree hugger” is OK with supporting advances in producing our own energy.

• I found another site that is sooo worth reading: Mr. Money Moustache. He is featured twice this month, the first article is Nearly Free Kids Toys that Keep on Giving. Reminds me of my childhood and a time when imagination trumped all.
• So much useful content at Canadian Doomer. This time CD shares with us some compact and moveable med kits that meet many needs for parents on the go.  Why should you read Canadian Doomer?  With posts like “Chickens Don’t Like Hammers” you have to be intrigued.
• Earth and Money (another new site I really enjoy!) is getting married and is trying to leave a small carbon imprint while also saving money (a green frugal wedding).   The recent posts are about invitations and food. Weddings are expensive!  Mrs. SPF wrote about our Sustainable Wedding last year.

• When lil’ SPF was born we decided that we would help him, if so required, with his post-secondary education costs. Canada has a great program where the government matches contributions up to $2500 with a 20% top up.  Big Cajun Man put a bit of a damper on just how useful the RESP is when he points out that the RESP contributions will likely only cover tuition! For lil’ SPF, who is 17+ years away from college/university it might not even cover tuition. Still, 20% guaranteed return is awesome.
• Want to reduce clutter, move! Money Beagle is dead on with his advice. We got rid of a ton of clutter when we moved in 2010.
• A bit of a sad note, especially for Canadian readers who have been reading PF blogs for a number of years. Thicken My Wallet is hanging it up.  He has been wrapping up the site in grand fashion.  Most recently TMW had a round table of sorts with 2 of Canada’s predominant bloggers in the PF sphere, Preet from www.wheredoesallmymoneygo.com and Ram from www.canadiancapitalist.com. It is a long read loaded with great insight on PF and the blogging world (and how it has changed).

Time for the Editor Picks!  There 3 sites produced some great content that I want to highlight. Enjoy!

EP3: Including Miss T and Earth and Money (see above) there are other awesome Green / Eco PF blogs out there.  Sustainable Life Blog included us (and our pictures – eek!) in a neat post that highlighted sustainability bloggers including the Jabs’ husband and wife duo (Matt and Betsy) who write at Do It Yourself Natural. I had not discovered their post on homemade dishwasher detergent soap until they followed up with a FAQ article.  If you are looking for how-to’s on living a sustainable lifestyle check out DIY Natural.

EP2: When doing my taxes, and in conversations with Miss T, I think I need a business number. On the to-do list. Thankfully Invest It Wisely just posted (as of this writing) a sweet guide on how to register a Canadian corporation.  While this site is a small side business for us I think we would have benefited from incorporating in 2011 as for the first time in my life I paid a tax bill, and it wasn’t a tiny sum as we were taxed based on our marginal tax rate and not the 11% IIW tells us we could have paid! Ugh. But thanks for this resource IIW – this is going to the top of my to-do list.

EP1: Got my socks blown off recently. Financial Uproar wrote about something green! He ponders Why Don’t More People Get a Metal Roof? Asphalt is a petroleum based product that deteriorates very quickly when compared to roofing metals.  30 year shingles last 20-23 years.  A metal room lasts 60+ years – easy.  A metal roof makes so much sense financially with sustainability in mind. In my opinion, the value of your house goes up too.

Editor Choice

Back to Mr. Money Moustache. He had a reader question (not sure we’ve had one yet …).  The answer is epic and so thoughtful.  MMM takes the time to share is opinion, backed up with numbers and insight, to help his reader figure out how to deal with job the reader’s wife has.  Over 200 comments (wow!).  We see a lot of stay at home mom (SAHM) articles, if you read PF or Mom blogs – but I really liked MMM’s approach to the topic.  Refreshing.

Monthly Link Love – Greener Edition is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

The job market looks a little tough right now. If you want to find employment after you graduate from university, you need to stand out. This means that you need to showcase your value — and you might even need to be willing to do a little hard work for little to no money. If you are looking for a job after university, here are some things you can do to improve your chances:

Internship

One of the best things you can do while still at university is to participate in an internship. An internship can provide you with hands-on experience in a career, as well as help you make contacts that could be part of your career network later. An internship can provide you with skills, opportunities, and more. Even doing an internship after college can be helpful. The important thing is that you are gaining experience, and that you are making connections.

Clean Up Your Social Media Profiles

Increasingly, your social media profile is becoming part of your job search. So you have questionable information and images on your profile? While you do want to make sure appropriate privacy settings are observed, you should still be aware of how it’s possible for others to see what is posted. Remember to tone it down on social media. It’s also possible to create a social media profile on sites like LinkedIn that are aimed at professionals.

Realize, too, that what you post on social media can show up in search. So including key words about what you do, and posting about news in your desired industry, can help you get noticed by recruiters. It can also help you stand out if a company decides to search for you online after receiving your resume. Consistent social media profiles that show you as a professional can be helpful.

Part of cleaning up your social media profile is getting a professional email address. Your first and last name, or some variation, is always a safe choice. If you are still using BeerBong69 as your email address, you are likely to find yourself in the reject pile.

Attend Networking Events

Many university career centers hold networking events that can introduce you to alumni in various career fields. Take advantage of these events, and of other opportunities offered through your university career center. You can also attend networking events in your town, such as those put on by the local Chamber of Commerce or other business group, or attend conferences in your industry. These are opportunities to make connections and meet new people.

Another form of networking is to use the Internet. Identify people at companies you would like to work for, and then connect with them online. Start out by following them on social media outlets, and then occasionally re-posting what they say when it makes sense in terms of your industry. You don’t want to be heavy-handed about it, but you can get noticed if you are careful about it. The goal should be relationship-building, though.

Bottom Line

A lot of successful job hunting has to do with building relationships and making connections. If you can start doing that while you’re at university, and make an effort to engage people online and offline, you will have more success in the job hunt.

Any other ideas on how to land a job after university?

Looking for a Job after University is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Earlier this week Teacherman wrote about whether or not public service compensation is the next “bubble” to burst. In the article, which I thought was excellent, TM, a civil servant himself, argues that public service compensation is “racing ahead” and the great gains public servant in Canada are achieving need to be curbed now, not later.  TM makes some valid points, however, there are a few points where we do not see eye to eye.

Full disclosure: Mrs. SPF and I are public servants in the province of Ontario.  Our livelihood, like TM, is intrinsically dependent on the public service compensation our employer provides.  Additionally, elements of our compensation, like health benefits and a defined benefits pension plan are key parts of our future personal financial plan.  Like TM, I will endeavour to not impart personal bias when discussing the subject of public service compensation.

Teacherman sites two studies in his article (CUPE and Treasury Board).  These (typical) studies on this topic leverage statistics which can be selectively adopted based on the driving interests of the organization that produced the analysis while ignoring extremely important comparison considerations. This goes for both sides of the argument. When it comes to statistics I agree with Mark Twain (who attributed 19th century British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli): “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.”.

Treasury Board compares the public service compensation of federal employees to those of the public sector. CUPE is a union that represents workers in health care, education, municipalities, libraries, universities, social services, public utilities, transportation, emergency services and airlines (really?).

CUPE’s take on public service compensation

First, women in the public sector earn 4.5% more than women do in the private sector while men in the public sector earn 5.3% less than private sector counterparts.  In August of 2011 the Federal Office of the Chief Human Resources Officer reported that:

The overall “wage gap” between men and women in the public service, calculated as the difference between the average salary of all men and the average salary of all women regardless of the group or level they belong to, has decreased from 17.7% in 1999-2000 to 10.9% in 2009-2010.

For public servants under the age of 35, where women and men with higher education levels are recruited into higher paying jobs, the gender wage gap is lower at 3.5%.

In the private sector, this report tells us the gap is over 18%. Equal pay for equal work amongst the sexes is important and the private sector has not kept pace with this basic tenet of equality in Canada.  The public service also allows for women to be better compensated for the skills they provide to their employer.

Second, lower paid occupations (cleaning, food preparation, clerks) are paid more than their private sector counterparts while high paid occupations (managers, lawyers, accountants) are paid considerably less than their private sector counterparts. Which brings me to …

Interestingly enough, even the CUPE study revealed that the public sector was better paying (although only by .5% overall). When taking into account all forms of compensation, the gap widens to 4.6%.

A consultant that shares my profession that is brought in (private sector) on contract to work for government receives double my public service compensation.  

When I look at other analysis tools, such as the IT Canada 2012 salary report (this is data collected by voluntary user submission) and enter in my profession and location I am quickly shown that the 2012 average compensation was up 6% last year while the average additional cash compensation to those in my profession saw and additional 6.7% (bonus!).  This bonus is telling as it appears my profession gets a hefty cash bonus each year – but not where I work – so that the average salary with included cash compensation is likely higher in private sector as public service compensation does not allow for cash bonuses as far as I know.

Regardless, the bonus is 11.5% of the average salary. Most public servants I know who do the work I do will not see such a large cash compensation this year or any time soon.  And 11.5% does dwarf 4.6% as reported by CUPE.

The reality is that people in the private sector should make considerable more money on average because their jobs are usually much less secure, and because they operate in a competitive environment.

The clumping of the public service or private sector into one aggregate is problematic.  As CUPE noted, various professions are going to earn differing pay scales.  Some jobs take more education, experience or knowledge than do others.  This is reality.  Where I work food service and cleaning tasks are outsourced privately (via a competitive process).  Other positions that traditionally kept the average public service compensation at a lower number, such as traditional clerk work, are being phased out via service location consolidation, automation and transformed process efficiencies.  

The jobs simply are not the same so I feel there is a comparison of wages from professions across sectors that do not match up.  Our economy has also been reducing the “good” jobs in the private sector at an alarming rate.  The local hardware store is gone (along with the decently paid jobs they provided) and we are served by Canadian Tire or Walmart employees who don’t see similar compensation. The North American economy has a widening gap between “good” and “not-so-good” jobs and the pay gap widens.

Additionally, while Canada does sport numerous resource based jobs the economy is transitioning to service based. Perhaps this is part of the problem – the reduction of producing things to sell while increasing information and service businesses. Usually, those who receive public service compensation are not creating goods and the world economy has dictated that there has been a paradigm shift in the valuation of work.  We are not going to see $30/hour private sector service positions and the days of lucrative manufacturing jobs are gone.  Ian said it as well as I could in his comment in the original public service compensation article.

In the private sector the median wage is crashing compared to GDP as wealth is concentrated to a smaller number of people. I don’t think this trend will reverse itself anytime soon as long as we have free trade and our manufacturers are competing against countries with lower standards for human rights and the environment.

If we want to discuss job security one must take a look at the recent 2012 Canbadian Federal budget and ask the 19,000 or so public servants who were issued pink slips just last week, or will soon.  Their union apparently can’t do anything about these job cuts, so where exactly is the job security?

The next statement I want to examine is the following:

“If public sector jobs continue to become more and more lucrative, it will take away more and more of the top talent that the private sector needs in order to flourish.“

This doesn’t appear to be the case!  The folks who hold occupations like engineers, management, legal, IT and financial experts still flock to higher paying private sector opportunities for employment.  Obviously government needs to streamline, improve, reduce redundancy and trim waste. Who do you prefer work on these objectives?  Folks with solid skills, experience and talent, or, people with lesser skills, experience and talent?  Should the people in the public service striving to improve flock to higher paying jobs? Should tax payers accept marginal talent running services and managing critical information?

How about those teaching our children? Enforcing the laws, criminal and otherwise? Prosecuting crime? Assisting Aboriginal communities? Regulating health care, heck, providing health care! Keeping an eye on industry to ensure compliance that adheres to the will of the public? Overseeing important infrastructure projects? Inspecting food? Monitoring water quality? I can go on and on and on … but I will ask again, do we really need to drive all of the talent solely to the private sector? At what detriment?

Where exactly should the transfer of talent occur?

Lastly,

“The main reason why this is worrisome is that the private sector feeds the public sector and not the other way around.”

“it’s a parasitic relationship, not really a symbiotic one.” (response to a comment)

Where do public sector employees ultimately spend their money? Two places I can think of: first and foremost, the private sector and second, taxes, which effectively contribute to their own salaries.  The public sector not only supports the private sector financially with earned money it enables industry to operate within the confines of the laws of our provinces and nation.

Reduce the public sector and expect slower reactions to much needed economic prosperity. Reduce public service compensation and expect less money to pump into the economy.  Offer less money and watch a skilled worker “brain drain” occur, once again, in medical and IT fields.  And as mentioned, expect less improvement in government process and efficiency which ultimately cost the private sector and the public more money and taxes.  

We can’t have our cake and eat it too.

To sum up (finally!) …

By simplifying aggregated salary numbers into an apples versus oranges discussion the true analysis of the wage “gap” between private and public sectors is diluted, and in my opinion, driven by media and some fear-mongering.  To rile people up.  A closer investigation will show that if you were to take only the professions available in the public sector, looking at the same number of jobs for each profession, I am certain the pendulum would swing back to the side of the private sector.  The professions offered in each sector are not the same across the board to permit a true evaluation of this particular subject.

Sure, 1000 sanitation staff in public sector likely make more money than 1000 of their counterparts in the private sector.  Equally as important, 1000 lawyers in the private sector likely make much more money than 1000 of their public sector brethren.  Since the public sector does not have nearly the proportion of lower paying jobs as does the private sector it is evident that the salaries are now almost equal. The problem however is that there is no study I know of that neutrally looks at the question by analysing all the possible jobs (in equal total number of jobs) in the public sector and compares them to those in the private sector.  This is the study I would like to see, not the partisan government or union reports.

Remember Disraeli … “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.”

Different strokes for different folks.  Please discuss.  I am open to differing opinion and encourage discussion and debate!

Public Service Compensation – Really So Bad? is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.

Since talking about “bubbles” is in vogue these days (ie oil bubble, real estate bubble, post-secondary bubble, etc.) I figured I’d tackle the somewhat thorny issue that appears to be creeping up more and more in this new era of austerity that we have entered in the Western World. The bubble I’m talking about of course is the public service compensation bubble. I want to point out that the views I express are not supported or indicative of those held by the owners of this blog in any way! I should state up front that I am a civil servant (teacher) and I definitely am benefitting from the current labour environment as a public employee.

Taxpayers = Golden Goose

In a recent survey put out in British Columbia, nearly 75% of the 804 people surveyed agreed that legislation that would limit the compensation of provincial and municipal employees to that of the private sector was a good thing. From my anecdotal experience, I would say that this view is held by many Canadians and that it is only going to get worse if many of the trends over the past couple of decades continue. The Globe and Mail also touched on the subject, and reported that in these economic down times, “Public-sector hikes have outstripped increases in the private sector for the past four years, prompting howls of outrage from some who see them as examples of government excess.”

The Seesaw Is Stuck On One Side

The balance that has existed in the past between the compensation levels of private employees, and those of public-sector employees has clearly come undone in the minds of many Canadians. It used to be commonly known that while the public sector offered substantially better benefit packages, including items such as better pensions, more sick time, better holiday considerations etc., the private sector held advantages such as better pay, more opportunity for advancement, and other financial considerations. In doing a little keyboard research for this article I found varying positions supported by slanted research in a variety of ways. The one consistent finding in all of these reports however, was that public workers are simply doing better by pretty much any measure compared to their private counterparts. The real debate is by what degree this is the case and what effect could this have on the labour market in Canada.

Study Study On The Wall… Who’s The Most Accurate of Them All?

At opposite ends of the spectrum were a recent study done by the CUPE and a 2007 study done by Treasury Board of Canada (to me, the arguments are even more relevant now given the gains public sector employees have made relative to the private sphere). This isn’t surprising when you consider it is in the CUPE’s best interests to play down any differences in compensation levels that could be used to leverage their compensation packages down, and the Treasury Board represents the businesses that want to pay lower compensation levels and are sick of competing with the government they pay taxes to.

The Treasury Board released an 800-page study that said in 2003 the average salary of workers in the core public services was $53,000, and this increased to $73,400 when benefits were factored in. They also claimed that in the private sector, the average salary was $38,885. The report goes on to state, “Exceptional bargaining strength derived from the privilege of serving the public should not justify going beyond what is reasonably comparable in equivalent circumstances in the private sector.”

Interestingly enough, even the CUPE study revealed that the public sector was better paying (although only by .5% overall). When taking into account all forms of public service compensation, the gap widens to 4.6%. These numbers are obviously the most beneficial presentation of statistics that the union could put together, and I would argue the real truth is probably somewhere between the two studies. Regardless of what the most accurate numbers would be, the very fact that the union that is in charge of lobbying for better compensation can’t figure out a way to hide the fact that the public-private balance has come unhinged is noteworthy in my mind.

Why You Should Care about Public Service Compensation

So why should anyone care about who makes more in the public vs private sectors? The main reason why this is worrisome is that the private sector feeds the public sector and not the other way around. The innovation and efficiency that comes out of the private sector is what produces wealth in society and this is then taxed to provide services for everyone. If public sector jobs continue to become more and more lucrative, it will take away more and more of the top talent that the private sector needs in order to flourish. It will also encourage a much less competitive overall economy. Also, if you look at what is happening across Canada, whether it is teachers in BC and Ontario, or Air Canada workers, the bigger we allow the wage bubble to grown

I believe one of the main reasons that this bubble has been created is the difference between public unions and private unions. As you’ve probably come to realize, I lean a little right on most financial issues, but I’m actually a supporter of collective bargaining in the private sector. This is because the raw truths of the market force the employer and employee to work together for the betterment of everyone.

The perfect example of this is the history of the United Auto Workers in the USA. For many years this union fought for its share of the profits and their workers were compensated very well for their basic labour. When the auto industry almost collapsed in 2008, the union realized that times had to change, and they worked together with management to reduce compensation packages in order to make the business model effective again and consequently, to allow most people to keep their jobs (albeit at lower wages). When you compare that process to the recent public union showdowns here in Canada, the difference is stark. Public unions do not have to worry about their industry being effective, and the people they are negotiating with are not spending an owner’s money (it is all tax dollars). This has led to a tremendous imbalance in the system overall.

People should be justifiably upset that the public sector is doing so well in these lean economic times. The reality is that people in the private sector should make considerable more money on average because their jobs are usually much less secure, and because they operate in a competitive environment. If the public sector is allowed to keep racing ahead, the economic bubble will only grow. Want to see what happens when a civil servant bubble pops? Google “Greece austerity riots.” I’d much rather gradually suck the air of the bubble now, than watch it pop in panic in a few years, and I think most Canadians would agree (as long as their personal paycheque wasn’t affected of course!).

What are your thoughts about public service compensation?

Public Service Compensation – The Next Bubble? is a post from: Sustainable Personal Finance. If you want to follow us further please follow us on Twitter or follow us on Facebook.