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Realizing the right to an adequate standard of living
Monday, September 4th, 2023
Everyone in Canada has a right to an adequate standard of living… having adequate food, clothing, and housing, and the continuous improvement of living conditions. [ICESCR – 1976] Maytree’s submission to the 2024 budget calls on the federal government to help people realize this right by strengthening income supports, investing in more affordable housing, and embedding human rights into social policies and programs.
Tags: disabilities, housing, poverty, rights, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »
The Canada Disability Benefit Act is progress worth celebrating
Monday, July 31st, 2023
First, it is a measure to prevent poverty that is protected by law. It adds to our system of legal protections, which include laws such as the National Housing Strategy Act (2019) and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (2005). These laws are important symbolically, as they codify our society’s commitment to uphold our economic and social rights. They are also important practically, as they require governments to set out rules about how they will put that commitment into action.
Tags: disabilities, ideology, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Inclusion Policy Context | No Comments »
Welfare in Canada, 2022 is now available
Thursday, July 27th, 2023
This annual report… provides the welfare incomes of four example households receiving social assistance in a calendar year for each province and territory… Included are: The components of welfare incomes and their amounts; How adequate welfare incomes are relative to measures of poverty; How benefit amounts and adequacy have changed over time… The majority of households (29 of 53) saw below-inflation increases to their incomes, and so were not able to keep up with the rising cost of living.
Tags: jurisdiction, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Delivery System | No Comments »
Social Assistance Summaries [Ontario]
Thursday, April 27th, 2023
For Ontario Works, single parent households had the highest proportion of beneficiaries, on average, with over 48 per cent, followed by unattached singles, with 34 per cent. Unattached singles comprised the majority of ODSP beneficiaries, with more than 58 per cent, followed by single parent households, with over 17 per cent. Females made up the majority of Ontario Works beneficiaries, on average, in 2021-22, with 65 per cent.
Tags: disabilities, jurisdiction, poverty
Posted in Social Security Delivery System | No Comments »
Interpreting the data: Key takeaways from Welfare in Canada, 2021
Friday, March 24th, 2023
Welfare incomes were deeply inadequate across Canada: – All households in every province lived in poverty, and the large majority lived in deep poverty… Most jurisdictions did not make substantive increases to already inadequate social assistance benefits… Total welfare incomes increased in a limited number of cases. In most instances, higher inflation in 2021 negated their positive impact.
Tags: jurisdiction, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
Reducing poverty among minimum wage workers in Ontario: The potential impact of the Canada Working-Age Supplement
Thursday, February 16th, 2023
To reduce the deep poverty unattached working-age single adults experience, Maytree and Community Food Centres of Canada have proposed the development of the Canada Working-Age Supplement (CWAS) by enhancing the existing Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) for unattached single adults… Overall, the CWAS would meaningfully reduce the depth of poverty and improve the quality of life of all unattached single adults earning the minimum wage in Ontario.
Tags: budget, economy, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
Interpreting the data: Key takeaways from Welfare in Canada, 2021
Friday, December 16th, 2022
The data in Welfare in Canada, 2021 reveal five main findings: Welfare incomes were deeply inadequate across Canada: – All households in every province lived in poverty, and the large majority lived in deep poverty… Most jurisdictions did not make substantive increases to already inadequate social assistance benefits… Total welfare incomes increased in a limited number of cases. In most instances, higher inflation in 2021 negated their positive impact.
Tags: budget, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Delivery System | No Comments »
Strengthening the social safety net for people in greatest need
Saturday, October 15th, 2022
Maytree recommends that the federal government: 1. Transform part of the Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) into the proposed Canada Working-Age Supplement (CWAS)… 2. Enhance the Canada Housing Benefit so that it provides more consistent support to renters with lower incomes… 3. Work with provincial and territorial governments to ensure alignment with federal initiatives…
Tags: budget, disabilities, featured, housing, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
How to reduce the depth of single adult poverty in Canada: Proposal for a Canada Working-Age Supplement
Wednesday, September 14th, 2022
The CWAS would not only complement Canada’s existing social safety net, it would be transformative in advancing the idea that working-age single adults should be eligible for income support not because they’ve earned it as workers, but because they need it as people. The CWAS needs to be introduced and implemented without delay.
Tags: budget, economy, featured, ideology, poverty, rights, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
When it comes to poverty and single adults, solutions need to be both principled and practical
Friday, September 2nd, 2022
… single adults with no children make up half of people living in deep poverty in Canada. Many of these adults have paid jobs and still live in poverty. Our current labour laws allow employers to pay workers poverty wages without benefits, subject them to unpredictable schedules, or misclassify employees as independent contractors – all of which mean that being employed is no guarantee of a decent income… Our systems collaborate to create poverty in many different ways.
Tags: ideology, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, rights, standard of living
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »
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