Income Security Advocacy Centre

ISAC works to address issues of income security and poverty in Ontario

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Have your say on Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy / donnez votre avis sur la Stratégie ontarienne de réduction de la pauvreté

** Français ci-dessous ** The provincial government is conducting consultations for a new poverty reduction strategy for Ontario. Have your say! ISAC has provided a . Informed by ongoing consultation with our community partners on issues relevant to our mandate, we make the following recommendations: Connecting people to good jobs: Recommendation #1: Ensure sufficient funding, inter-ministerial collaboration …

Accessing Income Support in the wake of COVID-19 / L’accès au soutien du revenu en raison de la COVID-19 (Updated July 1, 2020)

This document lists several income support programs that may be available to Ontario residents during the COVID-19 pandemic. This information is changing rapidly and we recommend that you check with the relevant government’s website for updated information. – La version française de ce document est disponible en téléchargement ici –   Introduction COVID-19 is a …

OW and ODSP Rates and the OCB March 2020 / Les taux d’OT, du POSPH et de la POE Mars 2020

– la version française suit dessous – Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) rates have not increased this year. However, the Ontario Child Benefit (OCB), for people who have children, has been increased slightly with inflation. The increase to OCB came into effect in July 2019. As in past years, we have …

New data shows Ontario to deny basic needs to approximately 32,000 children

The Ontario government has introduced a law that will cancel the Transition Child Benefit on November 1, 2019. With Ontario’s changes, families living in poverty who are ineligible for child tax benefits will experience a significant loss of up to $230 per month per child. A typical two-parent households with two children, for example, will …

Changes coming to Employment Insurance Appeal Process

The Government of Canada has announced that it is making changes to the way that workers appeal Employment Insurance (EI) decisions. Starting in April 2021, workers will appeal to a new Employment Insurance Boards of Appeal that includes decision-makers that reflect the interests of workers. The announcement is a victory for the workers and advocates …

Benefit for Children To Be Cut from OW/ODSP

We have recently learned that the Ontario government plans on eliminating a benefit that allows some parents on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Program to feed and clothe their children. The Transition Child Benefit provides up to $230 per child per month to parents on OW or ODSP who are not eligible for the …

Take Action! Community Legal Clinic Services Under Threat

The provincial government’s recent budget made cuts to a number of public programs and services, which will hurt low-income people in Ontario. This includes cuts to social assistance, public health, library services, prescription coverage for children and youth, public education, and many others. It also includes a massive 30% cut to legal aid funding. And …

Ontario Budget 2019 Announces $1 Billion in OW and ODSP Cuts

– Massive Cuts to Legal Aid Funding Also Announced – The 2019/2020 Ontario Budget was announced today, and creates even more uncertainty for people who receive benefits from the Ontario Works (OW) and Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP) system. While the Budget is short on details about changes to social assistance, it confirms many of …