Archive for the ‘Social Security Policy Context’ Category
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Bill Morneau’s clever Canada Pension Plan deal
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2016
It mollifies recalcitrant provinces, such as Saskatchewan, by postponing the full cost of CPP improvements for almost a decade. It appeals to business groups because it kills Ontario’s plan to go it alone on the pension front. It wins kudos from labour because it substantively increases the payout to retirees… no one will be getting rich on the CPP. The new scheme does, however, promise to make it somewhat easier for those currently in their 20s and 30s to eventually stop working when they get old.
Tags: economy, featured, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, pensions
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Social Policy and Social Rights in Canada: Historical Reflections
Tuesday, June 21st, 2016
This article traces Canada’s legislative progress following the federal government’s ratification of the two Covenants that codified the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 40 years ago – the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The author urges the new federal government to restore its commitment to these two Covenants and the re-integration of social rights within legislation and programs
Tags: budget, featured, globalization, homelessness, ideology, poverty, rights, standard of living
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Federal government, provinces agree to new deal on CPP reform
Tuesday, June 21st, 2016
The agreement-in-principle, which only Quebec and Manitoba neglected to endorse, will see an increase in monthly premiums phased in starting at $7 a month in 2019 for a typical worker earning about $55,000. Once the plan is fully implemented, the maximum annual benefits will increase by about one-third to $17,478. Mandatory matching contributions will also mean a jump in payroll expenses for employers.
Tags: economy, featured, ideology, jurisdiction, pensions, standard of living
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Expanding CPP will help all Canadians
Saturday, June 18th, 2016
Historically, CPP benefits were set low on the assumption that most Canadians would have another pension plan through work. But… only two in five Canadian employees (and one in four private-sector employees) have a pension at work. Even for those who do, workplace pension coverage has been declining for years… As a result, millions of Canadians are on track to retire with more debt and low or significantly lower incomes… businesses, and local economies will bear the consequences.
Tags: economy, featured, ideology, participation, pensions, standard of living
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Re-framing poverty as a matter of rights
Thursday, April 21st, 2016
The changes we are seeing are not the result of a system that protects people from poverty, nor are they the product of a human rights approach to poverty. None of these strategies explicitly state that they will be accountable for meeting the needs of people living in poverty by addressing and protecting their social and economic rights… By insisting that human rights are inalienable and universal, we affirm the minimum standard of dignity for people in Canada. And it is not only government, but also business, civil society and individuals that share in the responsibility for promoting and protecting human rights…
Tags: featured, Health, housing, ideology, mental Health, participation, poverty, rights, standard of living
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The Canada Child Benefit needs to be fully indexed to inflation
Friday, April 15th, 2016
… an Achilles heel in the Canada Child Benefit: It won’t be indexed to the rate of inflation until 2020… There are basically two components to adequacy. The first is the current value of any given benefit. The second is the relative value of the measure – its real value over time. Indexing social benefits respects this second component of adequacy by protecting benefits from inflation… steps should be taken immediately to protect its value.
Tags: budget, child care, featured, ideology, standard of living
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Rising life expectancy of the rich should not threaten pensions for the poor
Wednesday, April 13th, 2016
… an increase in the eligibility age for retirement programs is likely to have a disproportionate impact upon lower-income earners who are most likely to be in poor health and to have worked for a lifetime in physically demanding jobs. Such a change would force them to work longer given a lack of other sources of income, such as employer pensions and investments… the relationship is quite linear, meaning that life expectancy rises steadily as income rises.
Tags: disabilities, economy, Health, ideology, participation, standard of living
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Re-framing poverty as a matter of rights
Tuesday, April 5th, 2016
At the core of a rights-based approach is the ability to claim economic and social rights. Among rights advocates, the critical challenge in the Canadian context is the position taken by the courts that economic and social rights are non-justiciable. This means an individual in Canada cannot make a claim for her or his right to adequate housing in the courts. Rather, it is left to legislatures and local councils to decide.
A key role for civil society and individuals in this approach is to build a culture of human rights that can support the political will to deliver on decisions that fulfill the commitments of international promises
Tags: featured, Health, homelessness, ideology, poverty, rights
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Ahead of Trudeau’s Budget, a Glimpse of Seniors’ Poorer Future
Wednesday, February 24th, 2016
Roughly half (47 per cent) of Canadian families aged 55 to 64 have no accrued employer pension benefits in Canada. The vast majority of these Canadians retiring without an employer pension plan have totally inadequate retirement savings… they rely almost totally on OAS/GIS and CPP… To keep the situation from getting even worse, the federal government must again recalibrate public supports in the face of falling employer pension coverage and inadequate savings.
Tags: economy, ideology, pensions, poverty, standard of living
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The stage is now set for a basic income for all
Thursday, February 11th, 2016
This kind of income support enables seniors in Canada to live better lives and keep contributing to society and the economy. It has also improved the lives of working-age families with children for many years. It is now time to cover those left out — the working-age adults… in the communities where our children and grandchildren are growing up… having a basic income for all is no different — and no less important — than when we established universal health care more than 50 years ago.
Tags: disabilities, economy, featured, globalization, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living, tax
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