Are you sure about that? I'd love to see some numbers/ a link to back up this statement: I'm not trying to call you a liar, I'd just like to see the math laid out because this surprises me. Alberta has paid more per capita in transfer payments to confederation than any other province over the past 2 decades or so but thats also because the average wages were higher and the overall health of the economy was better than most other provinces.
Relating this to hourly paid people where overtime pushes them into a different bracket it can be sort of true: their real per hr income may drop even if their net is higher thus the return on time is less for them thus it is a loss. It can also translate into less income on their paycheque but they should be able to recoup that loss on their refund.
I honestly think (like what Curiosity was alluding to) this is why people talk about flat taxes: just the complication factor. Its obscene that so many members of the public are so intimidated by our taxation systems that we rely on the H&R Blocks of the world to the extent we do... it creates a false industry for bean counters, that really adds no value to our economy.
Here is the link to the various tax rates in Canada. The easiest way to see the qualitative behaviour is to notice that Alberta is flat 10% of income while other provinces are less (some are more). Ontario is one of the most competitive with a rate under 10% right up to about $77k. If you work out the effective tax rate it is well below this. When I remember doing the calculation I remember $150K being where they were equal. The worksheet is on my other computer and I won't be back to Berlin for a couple of weeks, if you are generally interested PM me, we can exchange email's and I can give you the exact calculations.
About the complication factor, I definitely agree with that one.