2006 Aboriginal Population Profile for Montréal

by Lori Hohban

Introduction

This report examines the demographic and socio-economic characteristics of the Aboriginal population living in census metropolitan area (CMA) of Montréal.¹ The census metropolitan area of Montréal includes Kahnawake and Kanesatake reserves. In 2006, these two Indian reserves were incompletely enumerated and the data are not included in the census counts. The 2006 Census and 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey (APS), which provide an extensive set of data about Aboriginal people, are the data sources.

The report focuses on the Aboriginal identity population, which refers to those people who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, that is, North American Indian, Métis or Inuit, and/or those who reported being a Treaty Indian or a registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada, and/or those who reported they were members of an Indian band or First Nation.

The term ‘First Nations’ is used throughout the report to refer to people who identified as North American Indian. The term ‘Aboriginal population’ is used to refer to the Aboriginal identity population.

Setting the context

There were 1,172,790 Aboriginal people in Canada in 2006, accounting for 3.8% of Canada’s total population.

In 2006, a total of 108,430 Aboriginal people lived in the province of Quebec representing about 1% of the provincial population.

There were 17,870 Aboriginal people living in Montréal in 2006, making up 0.5% of its total population. Between 2001 and 2006, the Aboriginal population in Montréal grew by 60%, from 11,160 to 17,870 people. The First Nations population grew by 65%, the Métis by 62% and the Inuit by 31%.

First Nations - largest Aboriginal group in Montréal

In 2006, 10,130 persons identified as First Nations people accounting for over half (57%) of the CMA’s Aboriginal population. Another 6,010 identified as Métis and 570 as Inuit. The Métis accounted for just over a third (34%) of the Aboriginal population while Inuit accounted for 3%. Another 6% reported multiple or other Aboriginal responses.²

Of those who identified as First Nations people in 2006, over a third (38%) reported being a Treaty Indian or a registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada.

A young population

The Aboriginal population living in Montréal is slightly younger than the non-Aboriginal population. In 2006, the median age³ of the Aboriginal population in Montréal was 37 years, compared to 39 years for the non-Aboriginal population.

In 2006, a third (33%) of Aboriginal people were under the age of 25, compared to 30% of non-Aboriginal people. One in 10 (10%) Aboriginal people were 65 years and over, compared to 13% of the non-Aboriginal population. Almost one-fifth (19%) of Aboriginal people in Montréal were under the age of 15, slightly higher compared to 17% of their non-Aboriginal counterparts (chart 1). For more details on the age distribution (see table 1 in the appendix).

Aboriginal children aged 14 years and under represented less then 1% of the CMA’s children. Almost a quarter (24%) of the Inuit population were 14 years of age and under, as were 18% of the First Nations population and 21% of Métis.

Chart 1 Population pyramid for the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations, Montréal, 2006

Aboriginal children more likely than non-Aboriginal children to live with a lone parent

In 2006, almost two-thirds of Aboriginal children aged 14 and under (61%) lived with both parents. Compared with their non-Aboriginal peers, Aboriginal children were more likely to live with a lone mother (31% versus 16%) or a lone father (6% versus 3%) (see table 2 in the appendix).

Aboriginal youth less likely to be attending school

Overall, in 2006, Aboriginal youth aged 15 to 24 living in Montréal had lower school attendance rates than their non-Aboriginal counterparts (62% versus 71%). This was true for Aboriginal youth of both sexes although the difference between Aboriginal women (68%) and non-Aboriginal women (74%) was less than the difference between males in both populations (54% versus 68%).

The school attendance rate of Aboriginal people aged 25 to 34 was slightly lower than that of their non-Aboriginal counterparts (22% versus 24%). However, Aboriginal people aged 35 to 44 years were as likely as non-Aboriginal people in this age group to be at school, just over one in eight (12%) attended school in 2006 (see table 3 in the appendix).

Over half have completed postsecondary education

In 2006, over half of Aboriginal men (58%) and women (56%) aged 25 to 64 living in Montréal had completed postsecondary education, compared to 66% and 64% of their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Postsecondary education includes a trades certificate, a college diploma or a university certificate, diploma or degree. Aboriginal people were more likely to have completed their postsecondary schooling with a trades credential or with a college diploma whereas the non-Aboriginal population was more likely to have obtained a university certificate, diploma or degree (see text table 1).

In 2006, a quarter (25%) Aboriginal men and 20% Aboriginal women 25 to 64 years of age had less than a high school education, compared to 14% of their non-Aboriginal male and female counterparts.

Text table 1 Highest level of educational attainment of people aged 25 to 64 years, by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal identity and sex, Montréal, 2006

Young Aboriginal women in Montréal more likely to obtain a university degree than their male counterparts

In Montréal, almost a quarter (24%) of Aboriginal women aged 25 to 34 reported having a university degree, compared to 17% of their male counterparts. (This includes all certificates, diplomas or degrees at the bachelor’s level or above.) Furthermore, young Aboriginal women (25 to 34 years of age) were more likely to have a university degree than older Aboriginal women 35 to 64 years of age (24% versus 11%). Aboriginal men aged 25 to 34 years were also more likely to obtain a university degree compared to Aboriginal men aged 35 to 64 (17% versus 9%) (see chart 2).

Regardless of their age group or sex, Aboriginal people living in Montréal in 2006 were less likely than their non-Aboriginal counterparts to have a university degree.

Chart 2 Percentage of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people 25 to 34 and 35 to 64 years of age with a university degree, Montréal, 2006

Higher unemployment rates

In 2006, the unemployment rate⁴ for the Aboriginal core working age population (aged 25 to 54) was slightly higher than that of the non-Aboriginal population (7.5% compared to 6.1%). The unemployment rate for Métis women and Métis men are similar at 10.1% and 9.1% respectively. First Nations women had an unemployment rate of 5.5%, compared to 7.0% for First Nations men. Métis men had the highest unemployment rate for their gender at 9.1%, compared to their non-Aboriginal counterparts (6.2%) (see chart 3).

Chart 3 Unemployment rates for people aged 25 to 54 years, by Aboriginal identity group and sex, Montréal, 2006

Unemployment rates were higher for Montréal’s young people. In 2006, 14.5% of First Nations youth aged 15 to 24 years were unemployed, as were 16.4% of Métis youth and 11.9% of non-Aboriginal youth⁵ (see table 4 in the appendix).

Employment rate of Métis women lower than that of non-Aboriginal women

Another measure of labour market performance is the employment rate.⁶ In 2006, the employment rate of Métis women (64.5%) aged 25 to 54 living in Montréal was over twelve percentage points lower than that of non-Aboriginal women (76.6%). In 2006, Métis men aged 25 to 54 had an employment rate of 76.2% compared to non-Aboriginal men at 85.0%. First Nations men had an employment rate of 83.7% compared to 71.1% of First Nations women (see table 5 in the appendix).

Aboriginal people less likely than their non-Aboriginal counterparts to be working full time full year

A third (33%) of Aboriginal people living in Montréal were working full time full year⁷ in 2005. This percentage is lower than that of the non-Aboriginal population (37%).

Men were more likely than women to be full-time full-year workers in 2005. Slightly over four in 10 of Aboriginal men (40%) and non-Aboriginal men (43%) worked full time full year compared to 27% of Aboriginal women and 31% of non-Aboriginal women.

Non-aboriginal women (31%) in the Montréal labour force were more likely than First Nations women (28%) and Métis women (27%) to be working full time full year in 2005. The percentages for First Nations, Métis and non-Aboriginal men working full time full year were 42%, 41%, and 43% respectively (see text table 2).

Text table 2 Percentage of full-time full-year workers, by Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal identity and sex, Montréal, 2005

Occupations in ‘sales and services’ and ‘business, finance and administrative’ most prevalent

In studying the labour market of a given area, it is helpful to examine its occupational⁸ make-up. In 2006, the two most common occupational categories⁹ for both the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal experienced labour forces in Montréal were ‘sales and service’ and ‘business, finance and administrative’. However, the kinds of jobs people hold differ for men and women. Men were much more likely than women to work in ‘trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations’. Women were more likely than men to work in ‘sales and service’ occupations. This holds true for both the Aboriginal and the non-Aboriginal populations in Montréal.

In 2006, Aboriginal men were more likely than their non-Aboriginal counterparts to work in ‘trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations’ (29% versus 22%). Aboriginal women (31%) were more likely than non-Aboriginal women (26%) to have ‘sales and service’ jobs (see table 6 in the appendix).

Earnings gap closing

In 2000, the median earnings¹⁰ of full-time full-year Aboriginal earners in Montréal (measured in 2005 dollars) were about $32,300. By 2005, this had increased to approximately $32,900. Aboriginal people who worked full time full year in 2005 continued to earn less than their non-Aboriginal counterparts; however, in Montréal this gap is closing, although very slightly. In 2000, Aboriginal people in Montréal working full time full year earned 82% of what their non-Aboriginal counterparts were earning. By 2005, this percentage had increased to 83% (see table 7 in the appendix).

Total income lower for Aboriginal people

The census collects a number of measures of income that help in understanding the economic situation of a population. Earnings data have been provided above for the population working full time full year in 2005. It is also useful to look at total income¹¹ as sources of income go beyond that of employment. In 2005, 21% of Aboriginal people with income in Montréal had a total income of $40,000 or over, compared to 29% of their non-Aboriginal counterparts. In 2005, Aboriginal women had the lowest median income ($17,200), whether compared to Aboriginal men ($25,600) or to non-Aboriginal men ($30,400) or non-Aboriginal women ($21,000) (see table 8 in the appendix).

Additionally, it is important to note that, in Montréal, 5% of the Aboriginal population 15 and over and their non-Aboriginal counterparts reported having no income in 2005 (data not shown).

Three in 10 Aboriginal people in Montréal living below the low income cut-off

Statistics Canada uses the concept of low income cut-off (LICO)¹² to indicate an income threshold below which a family will likely devote a larger share of its income on the necessities of food, shelter and clothing than the average family. In 2005, in Montréal almost a third (31%) of Aboriginal people were living under the LICO, compared to 21% of non-Aboriginal people. In addition, over a third (36%) of Aboriginal children (aged 14 years and under) in Montréal were living under the LICO, compared to 23% of non-Aboriginal children (data not shown). These data are based on the before-tax LICO.

Chart 4 Proportion of persons living below the before-tax low income cut-off (LICO) by Aboriginal identity group and sex, Montréal, 2005

More than half of Montréal’s Aboriginal population moved at least once between 2001 and 2006

The Census counts people where they are living on one particular day. On May 16, 2006 (the date of the 2006 Census) there were 17,870 Aboriginal people living in Montréal. This count does not include all of the Aboriginal people who may have lived in Montréal at some point during the year, but only those who were living in Montréal on that particular day.¹³

Moreover, it is important to remember that many people move between communities - for example, someone might move from a reserve community to a large city and back again within the same year. In Montréal, in 2006, 51% of the Aboriginal population had lived at the same address five years ago, compared to 59% of the non-Aboriginal population. From 2001 to 2006, more than a quarter (27%) of Aboriginal people had moved at least once within Montréal, and the rest (22%) had moved to Montréal from another community. A community may refer to another municipality, or a reserve, or a rural area (see table 9 in the appendix).

One in seven live in homes needing major repairs

In Montréal, about one in seven (14%) Aboriginal people lived in homes requiring major repairs¹⁴ in 2006, compared to 15% in 2001. In comparison, the share of Montréal's non-Aboriginal population living in dwellings in need of major repairs was 8% in 2006 and in 2001.

The share of Aboriginal people living in crowded¹⁵ homes was 3% in 2006 and 2% in 2001. The comparable rates for the non-Aboriginal population were 3% in 2006 and in 2001 (see table 10 in the appendix).

Notes:

1. The geographic area covered in this report is the census metropolitan area of Montréal. A census metropolitan area (CMA) is a large urban centre. Census metropolitan areas are formed by one or more adjacent municipalities centered on a large urban area (known as the urban core). A census metropolitan area must have a total population of at least 100,000 of which 50,000 or more must live in the urban core. For maps, see: Map.
2. Includes people who reported more than one Aboriginal identity group and those who reported being a registered or Treaty Indian and/or member of an Indian band or First Nation without reporting an Aboriginal identity.
3. The median age is the point where exactly one-half of the population is older and the other half is younger.
4. The unemployment rate for a particular group is the unemployed in that group, expressed as a percentage of the labour force in that group, in the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to Census Day (May 16, 2006).
5. Unemployment data for Inuit youth are not shown due to potential data quality issues that can result from small counts that arise when several variables are cross-tabulated.
6. The employment rate refers to the number of employed people, in a given group, as a percentage of the total population in that group.
7. The term 'full-time full-year workers' refers to persons 15 years of age and over who worked 49 to 52 weeks (mostly full time) in 2005 for pay or in self-employment.
8. Occupation refers to the kind of work persons were doing during the reference week, as determined by their kind of work and the description of the main activities in their job. If the person did not have a job during the week (Sunday to Saturday) prior to enumeration,(May 16, 2006) the data relate to the job of longest duration since January 1, 2005. Persons with two or more jobs were to report the information for the job at which they worked the most hours.
9. Occupations contained within the categories can cover a broad range of skill levels. For example, the business and finance occupation category includes professional occupations requiring a university degree, as well as clerical occupations that require a high school diploma or equivalent.
10. Median earnings are earnings levels that divide the population into two halves, i.e., half of the population receiving less than this amount, and half, more. Earnings or employment income refers to the income received by persons 15 years of age and over during calendar year 2005 as wages and salaries, net income from a non-farm unincorporated business and/or professional practice, and/or net farm self-employment income.
11. Total income refers to the total money income received from the following sources during calendar year 2005 by persons 15 years of age and over: wages and salaries (total), net farm income, net non-farm income from unincorporated business and/or professional practice, child benefits, Old Age Security Pension and Guaranteed Income Supplement, benefits from Canada or Quebec Pension Plan, benefits from Employment Insurance, other income from government sources, dividends, interest on bonds, deposits and savings certificates, and other investment income, retirement pensions, superannuation and annuities, including those from registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) and registered retirement income funds (RRIFs), other money income.
12. The low income cut-off is a statistical measure of the income threshold level below which Canadians are estimated to devote at least one-fifth more of their income than the average family to the necessities of food, shelter and clothing. For the purposes of low income statistics, certain populations, including persons living on Indian reserves, are excluded. This is because the low income cut-offs are based on certain expenditure-income patterns from survey data which are not available for the entire population (the survey does not cover Indian reserves, the three territories and residents of institutions or military barracks). For the 2005 matrix of low income before-tax cut-offs and additional information, please refer to the 2006 Census Dictionary, Catalogue no. 92-566-X.
13. For example, students who return to live with their parents during the year are included at their parents’ address, even if they lived elsewhere while attending school or working at a summer job.
14. Dwellings in need of major repairs are those that, in the judgment of the respondent, require major repairs to such things as defective plumbing or electrical wiring, and/or structural repairs to walls, floors or ceilings, etc.
15. Crowding is defined as more than one person per room. Not counted as rooms are bathrooms, halls, vestibules and rooms used solely for business purposes.
16. Data on health is not available for Montréal so provincial level data has been provided.
17. Chronic conditions were those that had lasted or were expected to last six months or more and had been diagnosed by a health professional.
18. Respiratory problems include asthma, chronic bronchitis and emphysema.