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Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Historically there has always been a gap between rich and poor
Most sociologists held that this inequality exists in all societies
and it must be part of human structure
By the 1970s this gap became larger due to increased gas prices and
the rise of unemployment due to globalization and free trade
Sociologist discovered that there are some groups that
are consistently at a disadvantage
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Defining Poverty in Canada
-Low-income cut off line (LICO)
-On average Canadians spend 36% of their after tax income on basic
necessities such as food, shelter and clothing
-Statistics Canada adds 20% more to that figure making 56%
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Meaning that if you are spending more than 56% of your
income on basic necessities than you are below the poverty
line
There are more groups that are more likely to experience
poverty such as lone parent households, unattached
individuals, people over 65. Females experience a high
incidence of living below the LICO than men do in all
categories, Why?
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Gap between Men and Women
-number of single earner families headed by women with low incomes is high
-unattached employed women earned on average $31 388 compared to men
at $47 077 in 1998
-There is not one answer for this gap but could be due to work experience,
education, major of study, occupation, being promoted etc
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Reducing the Inequalities
-Programs have been developed to reduce inequalities such as
employment and training programs to affirmative action hiring
practices.
Are these programs fair? What is an alternative to breaking the
income gap?
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Reducing the Inequalities
-What about groups that are not able to earn money such as mentally ill,
physically incapable, woman with a large family responsibility with no support
(husband)?
What should society do regarding these groups that are unable to earn money or
very little?
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Welfare in Ontario
In 1995 the government reduced welfare payments by 21.6% believing
that payments were too high and that they were creating a
disincentive: that discourages some recipients from finding
employment. What do you think? Is it that simple?
Some people may believe that welfare recipients (the more powerless
in society) were often the target of cuts even if they didn’t make sense
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Pluralism in Canada
Pluralism/inclusiveness: Widespread acceptance of differences in
culture, religion, values and lifestyle
Singularity: Believe that everyone should act and think the same way.
Example Iran was pluralistic in the 70s now singular
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Making Gains
-Discrimination in the workplace often results from systemic discrimination:
whereby a system exists that favours one or some groups over others in terms
of hiring, benefits, promotions and pay increases. Usually racial minorities,
Aboriginal people, physically or mentally challenged people continue to
encounter barriers
-Women workplace participation has climbed from 38% (1970) to 57.6%
(1992) due to higher education, shifting attitudes, smaller families, higher
divorce rates etc
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Employment Equity Act – 1986
All employers at the federal level (armed forces, health care, postal service)
must tackle systemic discrimination. The four groups are women, Aboriginal
people, members of visible minorities and people with mental or physical
disabilities
-This Act requires employers to develop policies to provide the target group with
workplace equity by setting hiring goals for each target group
Poverty and Affluence in Canada
Employment Equity Act – 1986
-Another part of the EEE was Equal pay for work of equal value: job
classifications must be compared for the skills they require and the
responsibilities they involve, their working conditions and the effort
required, these must be paid at the same rates.
-For example secretaries (mainly women) versus warehouse workers
(mainly men), warehouse workers would get paid more but both jobs are
equally valued. This is hard to prove and sometimes the government will
pay out workers to avoid legal fees.
Poverty and Affluence in Canada