DAWN Ontario has posted the comparison of social assistance income for 2002 prepared by the Canadian Council on Social Development. In Ontario, a single parent with one child received $10,210, about $850 a month. B.C. was basically the same. Seven provinces were lower. The rate for a single employable person was $6,240 or $520 a month.

quote:

---

News alerts
Ontario Campaign 2000 - Toronto, 25 Mar 03

Ontario’s poor children getting poorer, study finds

There are more poor children than there were a decade ago and they are deeper in poverty, says a report released today by Campaign 2000. Ontario is home to 390,000 poor children, a 41% increase over the last decade. Forty percent live in families existing on incomes more than $10,000 below the poverty line. “Ontario’s strong economy led to reduced welfare caseloads but welfare numbers only tell half the story,” says Pedro Barata”, author of Child Poverty Persists, Time to Invest in Children and Families. “One in four poor children live in a family with full time, full year earnings. Their situation can be attributed to government policy that scrapped social supports for families with children. The economy just wasn’t strong enough to fill the void.”

Low-income husband-wife families saw their income decline by nearly $900 since 1996 putting them $10,500 below Statistics Canada Low Income Cut-off line. Lone mothers would need, on average, $8,600 to reach the poverty line. A main culprit is Ontario’s minimum wage; at $6.85 it ranks fourth in the country. It would need to double to take an average family out of poverty. The report also points to the removal of rent controls, cuts to subsidized child care and welfare and the lack of transitional health supports for families leaving social assistance.

---

What is interesting is the difference that exists between these figures that our Govt deems acceptable and for those Immigration requires from foreign students wanting to study in Canada

quote:

---

According to Citizenship and Immigration
To receive your student authorization to study in Canada you must prove to the Canadian authorities that you can meet their estimates for living expenses. Exclusive of tuition, and other student fees, each student should show proof of the following in bank statements, registered funds or other sources: $10 000 for twelve months, an additional $4000 for a spouse and $3000 for each dependent (child). These costs include food, accomodation, transportation, medical insurance, books, clothing and sundries. How they have arrived at these figures and whether the differential of location has been considered is not clear, but be certain these figures are an absolute minimum. The figures supplied by each institution will be more accurate guidelines and will be considered instead of this index when available.
And then there's Quebec
As Quebec requires separate authorization for students applying to study in that province, it too has different (and lower) numbers associated with living costs. Again, these are the amounts that you will have to show proof of $9 600 for single students. $12 960 for two people (spouse or other dependent), $16 000 for three and $2240 for each additional dependent.

---

These are guaranteed financial support requirements for students entering Canada, and although they are IMO optomistic at best it is interesting to note they are higher than Social assistance payments. These amounts are calculated to reflect basic shelter and food, over and above the cost of education. Also assumed is that because these are not permanent residents in Canada expenditure for clothing and other items will be minimal over the 12 months residency in Canada.

FYI Here is a site that shows the Average household expenditures, provinces and territories Stats Canada
http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/famil16c.htm

The Acceptable Living Level Report prepared by The Social Planning Council of Winnipeg in March 2001 found that a single mother with two children, one aged 6 and one aged 15 would need an income of $27,374.00 in order to achieve a "standard of living that should be within everyone's reach". Taking into consideration that the above hypothetical family would spend $6096.00 on food in order to meet basic nutritional requirements. a mere $7800.00 on shelter costs, and I think that is rather low compared to the cost of shelter in most cities across Canada.

The cost of public transport is $1832.40.
http://www.spcw.mb.ca/reference/doc_all2000.pdf

I would love to see our fat cat politicians who are asking for a 27% raise in pay live on $10,000.00 a year. That wouldnt even cover their tax free travel allowance, or their bar bills.

Kindred is right, in that it is more important that kids eat and have a safe place to live than that they play sports. However, in Alberta, the government and the non-profits are so intent on churning out good future corporate citizens that they neglect the day-to-day necessities of food and shelter. How else can you explain charities such as Sport Central, which provides free sports equipment for low-income kids, or the race by corporations to get publicity by providing computers for schools in poor neighbourhoods?

You certainly will have a hard time making ends meet on Welfare, especially with two teenagers and it won't be long before the older one is not considered qualified as a dependent anymore. Parents are expected to put their children out to fend for themselves at age 18, whether they have jobs or a place to go or not. The only hope is to keep the children in school so they continue to qualify, but how do they get the marks needed when hunger keeps them from concentrating and learning? This whole idea of "deserving" and "undeserving" poor adds an additional problem. If you aren't able to prove actively looking for work, you can be cut back or cut off. It's impossible to keep filling out the requirement forms to prove job searches in a small town or even in many of the larger ones. Welfare expects you to be out actively searching in spite of lack of funds for transportation, not being able to meet the dress codes for most jobs, etc. Services such as typing and copying of resumes has been cut so how do you get these done?

Went and picked up 2 of the supplements I take to maintain my health. Fibromyalgia can compromise your immune system as well. And it cost me $72.00. And thats just 2 of them. I take about 8 different thingsa day. No one factors those into the income required for disabled people, or poor people, I dont see vitamins etc on the list of neccessities. I spend about $150.00 a month out of my own pocket for supplements.

Disabled people have the added expense of having to hire someone to shovel the snow, mow the lawn, do odd jobs around the house that an able bodied person could do. Most cant use public transit and have to rely on either their own vehicle or taxis.

Someone said being poor is expensive? Case lot sales come around and if the poor could afford to put out a couple of hundred dollars they would be paying 50 cents for a can of soup instead of $1.19 a can, but they cant do it. So they pay more for food and everything else.

quote:

---

Ontario Power Generation
CEO and Director - Ronald W. Osborne
He has a $775,000 salary, a $975,000 annual bonus, and $99,008 in car allowances and benefits.
BC Hydro

CEO Michael Costello - CEO made $466,057 in salary and bonuses in 2001. This is a raise of $86,000 from the previous year. In 1996/97, his first year as head of BC Hydro, Costello earned $127,000.
More than 500 employees at BC Hydro earned $100,000 or more last year. Seven other BC Hydro board members earned more than $200,000 in 2000/01 and bonuses ranged from $45,000 to $92,000

---