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The @CDNEnergyCentre / War Room would like you to think of the oil and gas industry as a jobs engine. As such, they're relying on employment multiplies from StatCan to make claims like this one and indirect and induced employment impacts of oil and gas. This is a bad strategy. 1/
Before I tell you more, remember that the way that multipliers are used in public relations is generally bad, rife with double-counting and other errors. Trevor has a great thread here that you should keep in mind when reading this: https://twitter.com/trevortombe/status/1286335952730968066 2/
But, let's suppose that someone takes this analysis at face value and considers that 5 indirect and induced jobs is not easy to interpret and so, as people are wont to do, wonders how that compares to basically any other industry. Well, dear friend, the news isn't good. 3/
Here's how mining, quarrying, and oil and gas stacks up against other industries using output multipliers: output in almost any other sector of the economy in Alberta is associated with more indirect and induced employment in AB and across Canada. 4/
So, basically, you've got the $30 million #ableg War Room shining a big spotlight on a measure by which the oil and gas scores among the lowest in Canada. This is the equivalent of me proposing a bad takes contest with Moffatt: there's just no way I can compete with him. 5/
Finally, please don't use multipliers to justify investments. If you insist on thinking about job creation in that way, I'll just remind you of the oil bucket brigade, and nobody wants that. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/who-needs-pipelines-the-oil-bucket-brigade-is-ready/article619959/
