The growing backlash against wealth, and the ‘fair share’ debate

Hello, readers! Welcome back to Business Cycle – a look at what The Globe and Mail’s business columnists are talking about this week. In the latest edition, we’re talking about the growing backlash against wealth, the month-long Loblaw boycott and companies bracing for protests.

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How much is too much? The growing backlash against wealth

By Ian Brown

Do wealthy Canadians pay their “fair share” of taxes? The ongoing debate has only intensified since Ottawa announced an increase in capital gains taxes in the federal budget. The new rules are meant to target, as the budget puts it, “the wealthiest.”

Ian Brown examined the widening wealth gap and the global movement to tax the rich in a recent Globe commentary piece. He spoke to a variety of experts recommending a 2-per-cent wealth tax in Canada, and posed the overarching question: How much wealth does anyone really need??

"The wealthy have a lot to answer for. Inequality has been widening for years. This is especially true of wealth (what you own): In Canada, the wealthiest 10 per cent own 56 per cent of the country’s wealth, and the wealthiest 1 per cent own more than a quarter of it. Meanwhile, the bottom half gets to drink less than 5 per cent of the cream and five million Canadians live in poverty. Is that shameful? Or is wealth inequality simply the natural byproduct of capitalistic daring, as investors have long maintained in defence of aggressively trying to pay as few taxes as possible? It depends who you ask.”

What needs to be done to close the wealth gap in Canada and around the world? Check out the full opinion piece here.?

Loblaw’s facade of benevolence has fully cracked

By Robyn Urback

Many Canadians have joined a country-wide campaign to boycott Loblaw-owned grocery stores for the month of May. The aim of the campaign is to protest soaring food prices and, ultimately, hurt the company’s bottom line.?

Columnist Robyn Urback writes that it’s no surprise the grocery empire has become a target for cost-of-living frustrations. It initially tried to brand itself as? “empathetic, assertive and oddly personal” during the pandemic. The tables quickly turned after a series of controversial moves to maximize profits, and now CEO Galen Weston Jr. has become the face of inflation.?

"If Loblaw’s message was merely about convenience and quality, it might not feel like such a betrayal when Galen Weston earns enough to buy a new yacht for 2024. When executives profess to understand, in their cashmere, what it’s like to put something back on the shelf after doing some mental math, Canadians don’t just reject it – they boycott.”

What do you think of the Loblaw boycott? Share your thoughts in the comments and check out the full opinion piece here.

How companies should respond to Israel-Hamas war protests

By Gus Carlson ?

Companies may be bracing for a corporate version of the pro-Palestinians protests that have taken over university campuses over the past few weeks. Google became one of the first high-profile business examples of protests in recent months, with employees staging sit-ins over the company’s US$1.2-billion contract with Israel. The decision was to fire all 50 of the protestors.

As corporate protests become more common, columnist Gus Carlson offers his advice for avoiding a crisis – get ready for it before it happens.?

"There’s an old saying: It’s better to have something you need and not use it than not have it and need it. Company leaders should put in place an action plan in the event they are targeted as this issue heats up and, since dealing with disruptive activism is now the normal course in business, keep it updated for the next one.”

What do you think of the latest move in the U.S. to ban TikTok? Check out the full opinion piece here.

More business columns we’re following this week:?

• Who says the rich don’t pay their fair share of taxes?
• In Canada, we bank where we buy
• For entrepreneurs, staying in Canada comes at a cost

The Globe's business opinion pieces are commissioned and edited by Ethan Lou. If you would like to write in this section, please send pitches to [email protected].?

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