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Income Security Advocacy Centre

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

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Media & Policy News: 15 May 2015

May 15, 2015

Top Stories

Ontario employers benefit by keeping people on for years as “temporary” workers:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/10/ontario-employers-cashing-in-on-temporary-workers.html

  • A history of temp agencies, now and then: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/10/ontarios-temp-agencies-then-and-now.html
  • Ontario hosting public consultations on updating labour laws: http://news.ontario.ca/mol/en/2015/05/ontario-holding-public-consultations-to-strengthen-labour-laws.html

San Francisco becomes the first city to legislate predictable schedules for employees:

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/03/san-francisco-becomes-first-us-city-to-end-erratic-scheduling.html

Provincial efforts to boost low wages of home care workers, as promised, stymied by complex rules:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/complex-rules-stymie-efforts-to-boost-home-care-workers-wages-in-ontario/article24360636/

Federal government analysis says it’s cheaper to raise children now than ever:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/raising-kids-getting-more-affordable-government-analysis-suggests-1.3070037?fb_action_ids=10153249563266061&fb_action_types=og.shares

  • The high cost of childcare keeps many families in poverty: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/10/high-cost-of-child-care-keeps-many-toronto-families-in-poverty.html

Calls for proposals for Ontario’s Local Poverty Reduction Fund now open – deadline June 10:
http://news.ontario.ca/tbs/en/2015/05/call-for-proposals-for-local-poverty-reduction-fund-now-open.html

The Mandatory Victim’s Surcharge challenged in court for disproportionate impact on low-income offenders and those with disabilities:
http://www.canadianlawyermag.com/legalfeeds/2695/victim-surcharges-entrench-cyle-of-poverty-lawyer.html

Reports, Events, Campaigns

The ODSP Action Coalition extends Save the Work-Related Benefit campaign – here’s what you can do:
http://us4.campaign-archive1.com/?u=095b12c98935ecaadd327bf90&id=586a900565&e=245c8ebaab

Think tanks seek to reframe Canada’s social safety net as “social architecture”:
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/canadian-politics/reframe-canadas-social-safety-net-as-its-social-architecture-so-we-can-rebuild-it-before-it-crumbles-report

  • Here are the first three papers: http://social-architecture.ca/

CCPA-Ontario economist Kaylie Tiessen’s “Jobs Friday” report from last week:
http://ccpaontario.ca/jobsfriday/

New study shows treating poverty will save costs in health care:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/poverty-linked-to-future-high-health-care-costs-1.3065822

  • Here’s the study report: http://www.ajpmonline.org/article/S0749-3797%2815%2900082-3/fulltext

Around the Province

Northumberland County consulting on poverty, but no one in poverty can attend:
http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/2015/05/13/northumberland-county-looking-at-poverty-issues

Hard for the poor to bury loved ones: Cobourg man still paying expenses related to wife’s death:
http://www.northumberlandtoday.com/2015/05/11/hard-for-poor-to-bury-loved-ones

Nurses in Toronto work to improve health by fighting poverty:
http://www.thestar.com/life/nursing/2015/05/07/for-nurses-improving-health-means-fighting-poverty.html?referrer

Tenants in TCHC buildings in Toronto suffering with heat that’s not being turned off:
http://www.thestar.com/yourtoronto/the_fixer/2015/05/10/tchc-tenants-are-steaming-about-heat-that-wont-quit-fixer.html

Women leaving jail face difficulty finding housing and struggle to move on:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/08/women-leaving-jail-face-housing-problems-in-struggle-to-move-on.html?referrer

Windsor college looks to women to fill their skilled trades spots:
http://blogs.windsorstar.com/news/college-courting-women-for-skilled-trades-careers

York Region finds housing and homelessness savings sufficient to better address local needs:
http://www.yorkregion.com/news-story/5628697-york-region-support-program-for-homeless-cost-61-5-less-in-2014/

Guelph residents on low income share their take on the Sunshine List:
http://www.guelphmercury.com/opinion-story/5614737-low-income-earners-take-on-the-sunshine-list/

Column: Action on poverty required in St. Catherines, not more talk:
http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/2015/05/12/lafleche-action-not-words-needed-to-combat-poverty

Across the Country

Pierre Poilievre says fish plants in New Brunswick must boost wages to attract local workers, not rely on the temporary foreign worker program:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/pierre-poilievre-says-fish-plants-must-boost-wages-1.3069039

BC agencies make Ombudsman complaint that changes to social assistance delivery discriminate against recipients:

  • http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Welfare+system+discriminates+against+those+need+report/11048017/story.html
  • http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/welfare-office-reductions-prompts-complaint-to-bc-ombudsperson-1.3071863 

Nova Scotia promising widespread reform of social assistance:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/nova-scotia-promising-widespread-reform-of-social-assistance-1.3071895

  • Minister says system is broken; advocates say consultation must occur: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/nova-scotia-income-assistance-system-broken-and-needs-reform-1.3073055 

Winnipeg shows how we can make homelessness history:
http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/policyfix/2015/05/winnipeg-shows-how-we-can-make-homelessness-history

National

Canada is failing in its responsibility to refugees:
http://montrealgazette.com/news/national/opinion-canada-is-failing-in-its-responsibilities-to-refugees

Former StatsCan head says NHS data is “so unreliable” that it’s almost “a piece of garbage”:
http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/05/08/canada-national-household_n_7243594.html

  • Globe editorial: Reinstate the mandatory long-form census: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-debate/editorials/that-time-they-tried-to-a-study-but-gave-up-for-lack-of-data/article24320260/ 

Canadian Housing and Renewal Association video on the repercussions of declining federal social housing funding:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxNIM6eyVNA

Moms denied EI while on maternity filing class action lawsuit:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/05/11/sick-moms-denied-ei-to-get-their-day-in-court.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Feds enhance EI compassionate leave benefits:
http://thechronicleherald.ca/novascotia/1286551-compassionate-leave-benefits-increased

International

Stop blaming poor moms. It’s bad policies, not bad parenting, that hurts kids:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/05/08/stop-judging-poor-moms-bad-policies-hurt-their-kids-not-bad-parenting/

Using Lego bricks, an economist demonstrates how the tax system can affect income inequality:
http://www.upworthy.com/using-lego-bricks-an-economist-demonstrates-how-taxes-affect-income-inequality?c=ufb2

Australia cutting $1.6 billion from welfare programs funding over four years:
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-12/federal-government-to-cut-16-billion-from-welfare/6464320

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This site contains general legal information for people in Ontario, Canada. It is not intended to be used as legal advice for a specific legal problem. ISAC is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization. ISAC is funded by Legal Aid Ontario (LAO). The funding for this website is also provided by LAO. The views expressed in any of ISAC’s publications (including written, oral, or visual) are the views of the clinic and do not necessarily reflect those of LAO.