2006 Aboriginal Population Profile for Saskatoon

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by Thomas Anderson

Introduction

This report examines the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the Aboriginal population living in the census metropolitan area (CMA) of Saskatoon.1 Whitecap, also known as Moose Woods, is a First Nations reserve that is part of the Whitecap Dakota/Sioux First Nation and is located within the boundaries of the CMA. 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 141,890 Aboriginal people lived in Saskatchewan, representing 15% of the provincial population.

There were 21,535 Aboriginal people living in the CMA of Saskatoon which represented 9% of the total population. By comparison, the census agglomeration of Prince Albert, with 13,570 Aboriginal people, had a much smaller Aboriginal population in 2006; but those who identified as Aboriginal represented over one third (34%) of that city's total population.

Between 2001 and 2006, the Aboriginal population in Saskatoon grew by 6%, from 20,275 to 21,535 people. The First Nations population grew by 2%, while the Métis grew by 16%.

First Nations and Métis are largest Aboriginal groups in Saskatoon

In 2006, 11,510 persons identified as First Nations, accounting for just over half (53%) of the city's Aboriginal population. Another 9,610 identified as being Métis, accounting for 45% of the Aboriginal population. There were 65 people who identified as Inuit, which accounted for less than 1% of the total Aboriginal population. Those reporting multiple or other Aboriginal responses accounted for 2%.2

Of those who identified as First Nations people in 2006, 89% reported being a Treaty Indian or a registered Indian as defined by the Indian Act of Canada.

About the data sources

The census provides a statistical portrait of Canada and its people. The most recent census was on May 16, 2006.

The 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey (APS) was conducted between October 2006 and March 2007. The survey provides extensive data on Inuit, Métis and off-reserve First Nations children aged 6 to 14 and those aged 15 and over living in urban, rural and northern locations across Canada. The Aboriginal Peoples Survey was designed to provide data on the social and economic conditions of Aboriginal people in Canada (excluding reserves).

It was possible to report both single and multiple responses to the Aboriginal identity questions on the census and the Aboriginal Peoples Survey. Census data used in this article for First Nations people, Métis and Inuit are based on the single responses only. Total Aboriginal identity population counts include people, who reported identifying with at least one Aboriginal group, and/or those who reported being a registered or Treaty Indian, and/or those who reported they were members of an Indian band or First Nation. The Aboriginal Peoples Survey data represent a combination of both the single and multiple Aboriginal identity populations.

Data have been provided for the total Aboriginal identity population and in some cases they have been broken down by Aboriginal group, sex and age group. For Aboriginal groups where the census count of the population aged 15 years and over is 200 or less, only the census count has been provided. No further data are shown due to potential data quality issues that can result from small counts that arise when several variables are cross-tabulated.

A young population

In 2006, the Aboriginal population living in Saskatoon was younger than the non-Aboriginal population. The median age3 of the Aboriginal population in Saskatoon was 23 years, compared to 37 years for the non-Aboriginal population.

Additionally, 55% of Aboriginal people were under the age of 25, compared to 34% of non-Aboriginal people. Furthermore, only 3% of Aboriginal people were 65 years and over, compared to 13% of the non-Aboriginal population. Over one-third (35%) of Aboriginal people in Saskatoon were under the age of 15, while 17% of their non-Aboriginal counterparts were within that age group (chart 1). For more details on the age distribution, see table 1 in the appendix.

Aboriginal children aged 14 years and under represented 17% of the census metropolitan area's children. 38% of the First Nations population was 14 years of age and under, compared to 30% of Métis.

Chart 1 Population pyramids for the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal populations, Saskatoon, 2006

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

In 2006, less than half of the Aboriginal children aged 14 and under (46%) lived with both parents. Compared with their non-Aboriginal peers, Aboriginal children were more likely to live with a lone mother (40% versus 16%), a lone father (6% versus 3%), a grandparent (with no parent present) (4% versus under 1%) or with another relative (4% versus under 1%). (see table 2 in the appendix).

Aboriginal youth equally as likely as non-Aboriginal youth to be attending school

Overall, in 2006, Aboriginal youth aged 15 to 24 living in Saskatoon were equally as likely to be attending school as their non-Aboriginal counterparts (60% versus 63%). Furthermore, Aboriginal people had a slightly greater tendency to return to school later in life than did non-Aboriginal people. For example, 32% of Aboriginal women 25 to 34 years of age attended school in 2006, compared to 21% of non-Aboriginal women in the same age group (see table 3 in the appendix).4

The 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey found that among the Aboriginal population in Saskatchewan (excluding reserves), men and women had different reasons for not completing high school. For young Aboriginal men aged 15 to 34, the most commonly reported reason was 'wanted to work' followed by 'bored with school' while Aboriginal women reported 'pregnancy/taking care of children' followed by 'bored with school'.

About half of Aboriginal people in Saskatoon have completed a postsecondary education

Less than half of Aboriginal men (45%) and half of Aboriginal women (50%) aged 25 to 64 had completed a postsecondary education compared to almost two-thirds (63%) of their non-Aboriginal counterparts. Postsecondary education includes a trades certificate, a college diploma or a university certificate, diploma or degree. Aboriginal adults were less likely to have completed a university degree, as 15% of Aboriginal people aged 25 to 64 had obtained a university degree, compared with 25% of non-Aboriginals (data not shown).

In 2006, 31% of Aboriginal men and 27% of women 25 to 64 years of age had less than a high school education, compared to 14% and 10% of their non-Aboriginal male and female counterparts (see text table 1).

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

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

In Saskatoon, 18% of young Aboriginal women aged 25 to 34 reported having a university degree, in the 2006 Census, compared to 13% of their male counterparts. (This includes all certificates, diplomas or degrees at the bachelor's level or above.) Furthermore, older Aboriginal women (35 to 64 years of age) were also more likely to have a university degree than older Aboriginal men (17% versus 11%) (see chart 2).

Regardless of their age group or sex, Aboriginal people living in Saskatoon 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, Saskatoon, 2006

Higher unemployment rates for Aboriginal people in Saskatoon, particularly for women

In 2006, the unemployment rate5 for the Aboriginal core working age population (aged 25 to 54) in Saskatoon was higher than that of the non-Aboriginal population (13.3% compared to 3.4%). Unemployment rates were higher for Aboriginal women than they were for Aboriginal men (15.8% compared to 11.1%), while among the non-Aboriginal population, the rates were similar among men and women (3.6% compared to 3.3%) (see chart 3).

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

High youth unemployment among First Nations people

Unemployment rates were higher for Saskatoon's young people than those of core working age – particularly among First Nations youth. In 2006, 27.5% of First Nations youth aged 15 to 24 years were unemployed. Among Métis youth it was 13.3% and 9.3% for non-Aboriginal youth (see table 4 in the appendix).

Métis employment rates were comparable to those of the non-Aboriginal population, while those of the First Nations population were much lower

Another measure of labour market performance is the employment rate.6 In 2006, Métis men and women aged 25 to 54 living in Saskatoon had employment rates (82.1% and 72.8%, respectively) that were similar to those of non-Aboriginal men and women (89.3% and 81.5%). First Nations men (58.2%) and women (41.7%) were less likely to be employed than the non-Aboriginal population (see table 5 in the appendix).

Men more likely to work full-time full-year than women among Aboriginal people and non-Aboriginal people

About three in 10 (29%) of Aboriginal people living in Saskatoon were working full time full year7 in 2005, compared to about four in 10 (41%) of non-Aboriginal people.

Men were more likely than women to be full-time full-year workers. About one-third (34%) of Aboriginal men and half (49%) of non-Aboriginal men worked full time full year, compared to close to one-quarter (24%) of Aboriginal women and one-third (34%) of non-Aboriginal women.

In 2005, Métis men (44%) in the Saskatoon labour force were more likely than Métis women (33%) to be working full time full year. First Nations men (24%) were more likely than First Nations women (17%) to be working full time full year (see text table 2).

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

Occupations in 'sales and services', 'trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations' 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 three most common occupational categories9 for both the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal experienced labour forces in Saskatoon were 'sales and service', 'trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations' and 'business, finance and administrative'. However, the kinds of jobs people held differed for men and women. Women were more likely to work in 'sales and service' while their male counterparts were more likely to work in 'trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations'. This comparison between men and women holds true for both the Aboriginal and the non-Aboriginal populations in Saskatoon.

In 2006, Aboriginal women were slightly more likely than non-Aboriginal women to have 'sales and service' jobs (37% versus 30%), but were less likely to work in 'business, finance and administrative' positions (22% versus 26%). Aboriginal men were somewhat more likely than their non-Aboriginal counterparts to work in 'trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations' (32% versus 28%) (see table 6 in the appendix).

Aboriginal people continue to earn less than non-Aboriginal people

In 2000, the median earnings10 of full-time full-year Aboriginal earners in Saskatoon (measured in 2005 dollars) were about $33,600; by 2005, this had decreased slightly to approximately $33,500. Conversely, the median earnings among the non-Aboriginal population increased, from about $38,100 in 2000 to approximately $39,800 in 2005.

In 2000, Aboriginal people in Saskatoon working full time full year earned 88% of what their non-Aboriginal counterparts were earning. By 2005, this percentage had decreased to 84% (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 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, just under two in 10 (18%) Aboriginal people with income in Saskatoon had a total income of $40,000 or over compared to just over three in 10 (31%) of their non-Aboriginal counterparts. In 2005, Aboriginal women had a lower median income ($16,140) than Aboriginal men ($17,130), as well as non-Aboriginal men ($33,839) and women ($21,860) (see table 8 in the appendix).

Additionally, in Saskatoon, 9% of the Aboriginal population aged 15 years and over and 4% of their non-Aboriginal counterparts reported having no income in 2005 (data not shown).

Almost half of Aboriginal people in Saskatoon 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 Saskatoon 45% of Aboriginal people13 were living under the LICO, compared to 13% of non-Aboriginal people. In addition, 56% of Aboriginal children (aged 14 years and under) in Saskatoon were living under the LICO, compared to 14% of non-Aboriginal children (data not shown). These data are based on the before taxLICO.

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

The census counts people where they are living on one particular day. On May 16, 2006 (the date of the 2006 Census) there were 21,535 Aboriginal people living in the census metropolitan area of Saskatoon. This count does not include all of the Aboriginal people who may have lived in Saskatoon at some point during the year, but only those who were living in Saskatoon on that particular day.14

Moreover, census population counts may not reflect the possibility that 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 Saskatoon, in 2006, 33% of the Aboriginal population had lived at the same address five years ago, compared to 57% of the non-Aboriginal population. From 2001 to 2006, 44% of Aboriginal people had moved at least once within Saskatoon, while 24% had moved to Saskatoon from another community. A community may refer to another municipality, or a reserve, or a rural area (see table 9 in the appendix).

When asked on the 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey why they moved to their current city, town or community, most Aboriginal people, aged 15 and over, in Saskatchewan (excluding reserves) reported family-related reasons, followed by work-related reasons.

More than one in 10 Aboriginal people live in homes needing major repairs

In Saskatoon, the share of Aboriginal people living in homes requiring major repairs15 was 13% in both 2006 and 2001. In comparison, the share of Saskatoon's non-Aboriginal population living in dwellings in need of major repairs was 5% in 2006 and 6% in 2001 (see table 10 in the appendix).

The share of Aboriginal people living in crowded16 homes was 9% in 2006 up from 8% 2001. In comparison, the share of Saskatoon's non-Aboriginal population living in crowded homes was 1% in both 2006 and in 2001.

Aboriginal people reported being healthy

In 2006, the Aboriginal Peoples Survey asked respondents (aged 15 years and over) a number of questions related to health and well-being, as well as whether their health was excellent, very good, good, fair or poor. When asked, 55% of the adult First Nations population gave themselves a rating of excellent or very good. Furthermore, 24% of First Nations people reported that their health was good.

Similarly, when asked to rate their health as excellent or very good in 2006, 59% of the adult Métis population gave themselves a rating of excellent or very good. Furthermore, 29% of Métis people reported that their health was good.

Over half live with one or more chronic conditions

The 2006 Aboriginal Peoples Survey also inquired about chronic conditions17 that had been diagnosed by a health professional. Over half of First Nations (52%) adults (aged 15 and over) living in Saskatoon reported that they had been diagnosed with at least one chronic condition. Among the First Nations adult population, the most frequently reported conditions were: arthritis or rheumatism (19%), high blood pressure, heart problems or effects of a stroke (17%), respiratory problems18 (16%) and stomach problems or intestinal ulcers (15%).

Among the Métis adult population (aged 15 and over) living in Saskatoon, 51% had been diagnosed with at least one chronic condition. Arthritis or rheumatism was the most commonly reported condition affecting 18% of adults followed by high blood pressure, heart problems or effects of a stroke (16%) and other long-term health conditions and respiratory problems accounting for 15% and 14% respectively.


Notes:

  1. The geographic area covered in this report is the census metropolitan area (CMA) of Saskatoon. A census metropolitan area must have a 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. A new version of the school attendance question was used in the 2006 Census. Studies on data certification showed important variations with previous censuses and with the Labour Force Survey. It appears that the 2006 Census could have overestimated the school attendance for the population aged 45 years and over. We recommend users of the attendance at school variable interpret the 2006 Census results with caution. For more details on the changes to the questionnaire for the Education module, see: Census questions on education: Some important changes.
  5. 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).
  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, 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 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 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 (survey does not cover Indian reserves, the three territories and residents of institutions or military barracks).
  14. 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.
  15. 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.
  16. 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.
  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.