be me, canadian wagey
work hard all year
night shifts, extra hours, extra time off work away from family and dedicated to study and perfect professional skills
get an "exceeded expectations" mark from my manager, entitling me for the highest annual bonus rate
if I choose to cash out my bonus, canadian government collects 50% in "capital gains" right there and then
they still get to tax me on the other half since it will add up to my annual salary and put me in a higher my tax bracket
they don't allow me to use the money to reinvest it in stocks or other financial instruments
only "investment" they allow me to make with the money is to put it in an RRSP account, which essentially is giving it to the government in exchange for a very small return
can only cash it out when I retire and they will again tax the hell of it
what's even the point of having a work ethic in a place like this?
if I just slacked and did the bare minimum I'd basically get the same net compensation after taxes