Poverty Issue in Canada - Case Study Example

INTRODUCTION This paper is about the issue of poverty in Canada. The paper analyzes the issue from a variety of angles that range from the historical basis for poverty to the effect of governmental policies on reducing the incidence of poverty. Further, the macro and the micro factors that cause poverty in Canada are also discussed. For many readers in the non-western world, the mention of an issue like Poverty is normal when it concerns their countries. The issue of poverty in western nations like Canada is bound to evoke surprise and puzzlement because of the higher standards of living enjoyed by the residents in the western world. However, the issue of poverty in Canada is very much alive and as the paper analyzes, there are several dimensions to the incidence of poverty in Canada. To quote the preeminent expert on Canadian poverty, Christopher Sarlo, “Poverty is not a MAJOR problem in Canada. This is not to say that there is no poverty, but, to underscore the fact that the issue is multi-dimensional, meaning that there is no one reason for poverty in Canada nor there is widespread poverty like in the developing world” (Sarlo, 1996). The point here is that like in other countries in the developed world, poverty in Canada affects some sections more than the others and hence it remains “hidden” from public view. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND TO POVERTY IN CANADA Historically, the issue of Poverty in Canada was very much like that of the countries under British occupation and there were landed gentry and huge numbers of people who were struggling to make ends meet. The country was divided into concentrations of people who were living in conditions that could be described as appalling whereas there were huge swathes of land owned by a few who could be described as living pleasantly and were well-off. The history of poverty in Canada goes back to the 18th century where the British-North American lands were experiencing the industrial revolution that saw a high proportion of people being lifted out of poverty whereas the others continued to suffer under deprived conditions. In the 20th century, the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930’s witnessed the hitherto well-off slipping into lower income categories because of the losses suffered by them on account of the economic crisis. In the same way that the current economic crisis has pushed many middle class families into lower income brackets, the Great Depression affected Canada by reducing the middle class to a state of penury. After that the history of poverty has matched the cyclical processes of growth and recession in the ensuing decades following the Second World War. The incidence of poverty was relatively manageable in the 1950’s and 60’s and began to be a significant factor in the 1970’s and 80’s accelerating in the 1990’s. These trends indicate that poverty in Canada has followed the onset of neo-liberal policies adopted by the government and which have contributed to a rising income inequality and incidence of poverty in specific ethnic and cultural groups. MACRO AND MICRO CAUSES OF POVERTY IN CANADA This section identifies the macro and micro factors that cause poverty in Canada. According to official statistics, “14% of Canadians are living in poverty, with much higher rates for single-parent mother families, unattached female seniors, urban Aboriginals, and recent immigrants” (National Council of Welfare, 2009) These figures indicate that the incidence of poverty is indeed high in Canada. The fact that the above quote contains references to specific sociological groups is indicative of gender based and ethnic based groups having higher incidence of poverty. This gives an idea about the macro factors causing poverty that include structural factors focusing on economic factors and social conditions (e.g., low wages, job scarcity, discrimination). If we examine the macro factors closely, it can be found that the overall economic conditions remain depressed in Canada leading to job scarcity and low wages for the employed. Although the overall rate of poverty has decreased somewhat in the last five years, the depth of poverty has actually increased for many people (Curry-Stevens, 2004). Income inequality is also increasing (National Council of Welfare, 2009), with an accompanying concentration of poverty in certain cities and neighborhoods. According to the OECD, the level of social spending in Canada is far lower than in other comparable countries, and there is a very strong correlation between social spending and low poverty rates. We must not forget that high employment per se does not correlate with low poverty Inequality among Canadians, as measured by the Gini coefficient, is increasing rapidly. The conclusions for me are clear: we must redistribute more, put more money into social programs, and develop better programs. This is indicative of the need for the Canadian government to undertake measures that promote social spending and though the concept of a “welfare” state is not the objective, nonetheless, it is a fact that the government can do more when it concerns the issue of poverty in Canada. However, the fact that Health Care is socialized means that the poor in Canada were better off than their counterparts in the US (before the passage of the recent Health Care Reform) as far as this issue is concerned. Upon surveying the literature for the micro factors that cause poverty in Canada, it is found that the “Individual attributions emphasize the role of individuals in causing their own poverty and stereotypical characteristics (e.g., lack of thrift, laziness). Fatalistic attributions emphasize bad luck, illness, and other unfortunate circumstances. Recently, researchers have also identified "cultural attribution" as a distinct factor, which reflects the perception that people are trapped in a subculture of poverty over which they have little control. The above paragraph is illustrative of the cultural and ethnic causes of poverty in a country like Canada that is multicultural though not to the extent of its neighbor, the US. This aspect of selective discrimination has been identified by many researchers as well as anecdotal evidence. Further, there are many who feel that individual attributes like lack of thrift and laziness (for particular ethnic and sociological groups) do play a role in making the poor “stay poor” LAWS AND POLICIES TO DEAL WITH POVERTY IN CANADA There are several laws and policies followed by the Canadian government to deal with the issue of poverty in Canada. Some of these include the minimum wage act, social programs like old age security and employment insurance program, publicly funded programs like Medicare, Subsidized education and laws that mandate child credits as well as those aimed at reducing the tax burden by the progressive system of taxation that taxes the rich more than the poor. However, not all of these policies have been effective in dealing with the issue of poverty (as discussed later in this section) Some of the laws that were passed include: The Canada and Quebec Pension Plans that were introduced in 1967 to provide a public pension based on contributions related to earnings throughout one’s life time. These efforts later resulted in significant decline in poverty rates for seniors. As pointed in the previous sections, governmental policies have not been entirely effective in reducing the incidence of poverty in Canada. For instance, social spending can go up by a few percentage points (relative to the GDP) in areas like welfare benefits and creation of safety nets. The main criticism of the governmental policies comes from the left that decry the unwillingness of the government to “do more” for the disadvantaged. The right, on the other hand, warns against the dangers of “dependency” when it concerns the issue of doling out sops to the low-income families. Further, the minimum-wage act has proved to be unattractive to many low-income workers as businesses tend to cut down on hiring because of the stipulations of the act, which they feel would hurt their bottom-line. ANTI-POVERTY ORGANIZATIONS IN CANADA There are many organizations that deal with the issue of poverty in Canada. The preceding section focused on some governmental organizations setup to tackle the issue of poverty in Canada. This section concentrates on the non-governmental organizations that focus on the issue of poverty in Canada. Among the advocacy groups and organizations that deal with poverty in Canada, the following are some of the prominent ones: PovNet.org: This is primarily an internet driven advocacy groups that brings together all the activists concerned about poverty and provides real-time information and statistics about the rising inequality in Canada to interested parties. Apart from serving a source of valuable information, this site also helps in networking of the advocacy groups and rallying them around specific causes. British Columbia Public Interest Advocacy Center (BCPIAC): This group represents specific marginalized sociological groups that are under-represented in the discourse in the mainstream. As such, this group has a narrow focus in so far as highlighting the issue of poverty is concerned. This is because of the group’s focus on minorities and gender specific targets of poverty as opposed to the broader canvas that the other groups have. Charter Committee on Poverty Issues (CCPI): As the name of the group implies, this advocacy initiative focuses on providing legal assistance to the low-income groups and makes them aware of the rights under the various “charters”. This group is an excellent source for those low-income individuals in need of legal assistance with filing claims and fighting discrimination or other policies contributing to their poverty. The Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA): This group helps low-income households to access public housing. The aims of this group are to ensure that disadvantaged groups access affordable housing and more importantly, retain access to the housing that they have. The relevance of this group to the poverty rights activism has increased in the wake of the current crisis in the housing market. If one were to analyze the efficacy of these groups in bringing about “change”, it would appear that many of these networks have been moderately successful in highlighting the needs of the low-income groups. However, as with any NGO (Non Governmental Organizations) based initiatives, their role is limited to highlighting and providing assistance and the government is the ultimate provider of relief and succor to the disadvantaged by its policies and aid. Having said that, the role of these groups cannot be written off and they have succeeded to some extent in raising awareness about the issues faced by the poor in Canada. THE CURRENT ECONOMIC CRISIS AND ITS IMPACT ON CANADA With the advent of the current economic crisis that is spreading across the world, the issue of poverty in Canada has taken on an entirely new dimension. The number of people who are being pushed into poverty in Canada has reached alarming levels thanks to layoffs and a depressed job market that makes it difficult for the people who have been laid off to seek work. It is estimated that nearly a million people have been left jobless because of the current economic slowdown. The analysis in this paper has so far been on how the issue of poverty in Canada has so far remained in the sidelines. However, it is the case that the current economic downturn may make the plight of the poor worse and hence, this crisis is indeed a wake-up call to the policy makers to take the issue of poverty in Canada seriously and promote policies that do not favor a “few” at the expense of the many. CONCLUSION This paper has considered the issue of poverty from various perspectives. What is clear is that developed countries like Canada risk falling into the poverty trap if they do not act in time. As mentioned in the introduction, poverty in Canada may not be a major problem that occupies the time of the policymakers. However, with unemployment rates hovering over 10% and the incidence of poverty touching 15%, it is time for the government to act decisively to address the issue of poverty. It is evident that the current economic crisis is contributing to the “disappearance” of the middle class and this holds ominous signs for the way in which the members of this class might fall below the income threshold that defines who is poor and who is middle class. References Canada., M. o. (2008). Income for Living? Ottawa: National Council of Welfare. Canada., M. o. (2009). Poverty Profile 2009. Ottawa: National Council of Welfare. Canadian Poverty Law. (2010, Feb 14). Retrieved July 19, 2010, from CanadianLawSite: http://www.canadianlawsite.ca/poverty-law.htm Curry-Stevens, A. (2004). ‘Income and income distribution’. Social Determinants of Health: Canadian Perspectives. D. Raphael (Ed.). Toronto: Canadian Scholars Press, pp. 21-38. Development, C. C. (2008). The Canadian Fact Book on Poverty. Vancouver: Canadian Council on Social Development. Kazemipur, A., & Halli, S. S. (Volume: 38. Issue: 2. Publication Year: 2001). The Changing Colour of Poverty in Canada. The Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology , 217. Milner, A. (2002, Issue:11). Poverty in Canada. Inroads , 170-185. Reutter, L. I. (Volume: 43. Issue: 1. Publication Year: 2006). Public Attributions for Poverty in Canada. The Canadian Review of Sociology and Anthropology , 1-45. Sarlo, C. A. (1996). Poverty in Canada (2nd Edition) . Vancouver: The Fraser Institute. Read More