Welfare "reform" in BC has made it more difficult to qualify for welfare, and many of those who have managed to remain on income assistance have multiple barriers to employment, including addiction, mental and physical health problems, learning disabilities, lack of English skills, unstable housing and homelessness. These recipients have not been well served by the “reformed” system, particularly employment training programs.
Inequality and poverty
Two years ago, most Canadians were enjoying the peak of a 10-year economic growth phase that helped rank Canada among the 10 biggest economies on the planet.
Then, in the fall of 2008, the global economic meltdown came crashing down on Canada, knocking hundreds of thousands of workers into unemployment. According to Statistics Canada, child poverty in this country stood at 9 per cent in 2008 — down slightly from 9.4 per cent the previous year but certainly no harbinger of what was to come.
Three weeks ago, a 19-year-old from Winnipeg’s inner city shot two teenagers. Our city government’s response was to send in more police officers. But incarceration and tougher sentences do not tackle the root causes of crime: poverty and inequality. On the other hand, if inner city youth had the kind of access to educational and recreational activities that suburban youth did, they would not be committing these crimes.
Every recession ushers in a rising tide of poverty. As jobless and underemployed people struggle to make ends meet, the nouveau poor swell the ranks of the déjà poor.
The most recent statistical update on incomes in Canada was released last week, telling us that in 2008, as the nation headed into a brutal recession, there were just over 3 million Canadians living in poverty using the standard measure, Statistic Canada’s after-tax low-income cut-off (LICO).
In a study for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA), economist David Green found the gap didn’t grow as much over the 1980s as it did in the 1990s – especially post-1995, following cuts to government transfers and taxes. Both rich and poor families struggled during the 1980s recession, and both pulled out at comparable rates – but in the 1990s, things changed dramatically. The richest of the rich soared out of the 1990s recession but the poorest of the poor fell behind post-1995; they fared considerably worse.”
Imagine a Canada where we all have a roof over our heads, childcare for our children, access to education and a job that pays a decent wage. Imagine a Canada where we all can look forward to retiring without financial worry.
This book examines the social and economic conditions that contribute to health inequities in our province. The purpose of this book is to make the social determinants of health approach better known to Manitobans. The 19 chapters look at a range of social determinants, examine their status in Manitoba, and consider the kinds of policies that could be implemented to improve health outcomes. In addition to contributions from local experts, we include a chapter by Dennis Raphael, the author of several publications on the social determinants of health in Canada.
Of related interest, the CCPA published an issue of its education journal on the topic of racism education. Click to take a look at Our Schools/Our Selves: Anti-Racism in Education: Missing in Action.
TORONTO – Ontarians from racialized backgrounds are far more likely to live in poverty, face barriers to finding a job, and receive less pay for work, says a study of Census data by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
Sexism and racial discrimination pack a double wallop, hampering racialized women’s earning power, says economist Sheila Block, CCPA Research Associate.