Living in Calgary showed me Albertans don't realize how good they have it, but their grievances are real
As an engineer from Saskatchewan, Chris Regier was taken aback by some of the opulence he saw in Alberta's oil and gas sector. He says his decade of experience in the province showed him two things can be true at the same time: Alberta is better off than other provinces and yet there are legitimate concerns about equalization.
The voice of my home province, Saskatchewan, matters even less in Ottawa but separation is not the answer
Chris Regier · for CBC First Person
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This First Person is the experience of Chris Regier, who lives in Saskatoon. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ. Also, check out our series on the Alberta referendum here and learn how we selected the writers.
The private jet sitting on the tarmac of the Calgary airport was a sight to behold. The inside was even more opulent that I could have imagined. A small but ornate bar; ultra-wide leather seats.
This jet had been hired by a company to fly our group to Estevan, Sask., for a four-hour Christmas party before returning to Calgary that same night.
For a guy who grew up in rural Saskatchewan, it was astounding. I was just an ordinary engineer. Was this normal for Albertans?
At another Christmas party in the early 2000s, the small Calgary oil company hosting covered the cost of the banquet, dance and drinks and, to my surprise, had also purchased a room at the Fairmont Banff Springs — one of the oldest and most well-known luxury hotels in the Rockies — for each guest. From my experience, these luxuries were not unusual for the corporate culture of Alberta's oil and gas industry.
But as I watched the other guests at that Christmas party, I thought about hard-working people from my hometown in Laird, Sask., who worked just as hard as these Albertans but never experienced things like this. I realized that while Albertans worked hard and deserved a lifestyle that reflected their efforts, many had lost sight of how much better they had it than most other parts of Canada.
I know many really good Albertans, but I dislike the entitlement coming from some in Wild Rose Country. At times it feels to the rest of Canada as particularly selfish and illogical, like your wealthy neighbour complaining about how high insurance costs are for his Porsche. Alberta has the lowest tax burden in Canada — there is no provincial sales tax, relatively low personal and corporate income taxes.
But that doesn't mean that Albertans don't have valid reasons to feel frustrated. Alberta has gone through major boom and bust cycles and the perks now may not be what they were. Prairie people also feel stuck in a system and helpless to impact it because the prairies don’t have the votes or seats to change a government.
Like Alberta, we have frustrations in Saskatchewan getting oil to market, and with equalization sending our money east.
WATCH | Canada's equalization payments, explained:
Is Alberta really getting a raw deal on equalization? It’s complicated
April 18|
Duration
7:45
Equalization is often a dirty word in Alberta, but much of what is being said online and by politicians mischaracterizes a complex calculation. For The National, CBC’s Lyndsay Duncombe cuts through the spin to explain how the federal transfer program really works and where the frustrations come from.Federal elections being decided before our polls even close is an annoyance we share too.
I lived in Calgary from 1999 to 2009, during which time I got my graduate degree and worked as an engineer for three different companies. Those 10 years made Alberta my second home. It also gave me an Albertan perspective on many issues.
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I'm not alone in this. A large number of Canadians have moved to Alberta for work at one time or another, which makes the separation issue just as personal to many others outside the province as it is to me.
Regier, right, with his son, Hanley, at a Calgary Flames game in the Saddledome in Calgary in 2023. (Submitted by Chris Regier)
Calgary is an amazing city and it’s nice being close to the mountains. I enjoyed my time in the city, but eventually I tired of the oil corporate culture in Alberta and moved back to Saskatchewan to be closer to family.
In 2018, I was living in Saskatoon and I recalled watching the news about Alberta and B.C. being at odds over constructing pipelines to get Alberta oil to tidewater. B.C.’s premier at the time, John Horgan, said the federal government and Alberta government were not going to decide what was done with B.C.’s coast.
That made me think about equalization.
Video
Would Alberta be wealthier if it didn't have to pay into equalization?
Should Alberta separate? Here's why these Canadians feel the way they do
The point of equalization is that the oil in Alberta belongs to Canada, not just to the province of Alberta. Equalization is a way to help distribute the wealth that belongs to Canada to the entire country. It’s not perfect, but it is what we have right now.
But by that same token, the coastline of B.C. is then also “Canada’s coast.” The coast is not part of the equalization formula but is effectively a resource that B.C. has and that Alberta should also benefit from. To be fair, this works both ways. In the event of an oil spill on the coast, it is not B.C.’s responsibility to go at the cleanup alone.
While I don’t approve of separation, my experience in both Alberta and Saskatchewan means I feel first-hand where the sentiment comes from. The grievances of Albertans are real — even if they're not always aware of what it's like for the rest of the country — and are serious issues that Canada needs to address. While I am proud of my country, I would be even prouder to see us all work together despite our differences for the benefit of all Canadians.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Chris Regier is an engineer and organic farmer living in Saskatoon. Though he grew up in the Saskatoon area, he spent a decade living, working and going to school in Calgary.
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