Canada should welcome any women fleeing the U.S.

We have all heard of the approaching “demographic time bomb” facing societies including in Canada. The population is aging and not being replaced by children. Fewer young people are choosing to have children and those who do are having fewer children.

This trend will cause huge problems as it means there are fewer people paying taxes that fund our social programs and infrastructure. One particular concern is the Canada Pension Plan (CPP.) When it was designed in the mid-1960s, the politicians of the day decided on a “pay as you go” system as opposed to a fully funded pension plan.

What that means is the premiums you and your employer pay today on your behalf are not being put into an individual account and set aside for your retirement. Those premiums are paying for the benefits of people currently receiving CPP benefits. When you retire, your CPP benefits will be funded by people who are working at that time. Fewer people working means fewer people paying for CPP benefits for an increased number of retirees.

This calls into question the long-term viability of such programs.

Adding to this is the huge labour shortage. Employers are struggling to fill job vacancies in all categories such as general labour, skilled trades and/or the professions.

The recent draft decision leaked from the United States Supreme Court that looks to overturn Roe vs. Wade may offer at least a partial solution to this if we look to our past for inspiration.

In the late 1960s and into the 1970s, Canada admitted thousands of Americans opposed to the Vietnam War. These included young men avoiding the draft, members of the American armed forces who were deserting rather than fight in Vietnam, and their immediate families.

The benefit to Canada was immense.

We had a large group of healthy young people, many of whom were college and/or university educated, enter our workforce and begin supporting Canadian society. Many of these people, such as former CBC radio personality Andy Barrie, musician Jesse Winchester and Montreal Gazette writer Jack Todd, just to name a few, became prominent members of Canadian society.

What if Canada looked to that example today and opened our doors to young American women?

It appears clear that society in many American states is going to become most unpleasant and indeed hostile toward women of child bearing age. Karina Gould, minister of Families, Children and Social Development, has already announced Canada will allow American women to enter our nation to obtain abortions. We cannot turn our backs on these women. However, why not take this a step further and offer young American women and their immediate families admittance into Canada? Just as we did young American men of military age in the late 1960s? Proper security screening would have to be in place, of course.

Imagine the benefits for our nation. We would have a large influx of young people, many of whom would be well educated and many with important job skills immediately enter our workforce. They would be paying taxes that support all areas of Canadian society such as CPP, health care, education, etc. It would clearly be a “win-win” situation for women and Canada.

Women make up over half the population of Canada. As a compassionate nation, we must step up and provide a safe society for women and their children. And our experience from the 1960s shows this can work to everyone’s benefit.