Selected Canadian Social Research Organizations (I)

Groupes de recherche sociale au Canada (I)

Updated May 1, 2008
Page révisée le 1er mai 2008

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[ Go to Canadian Social Research Links Home Page ]

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...and more... [scroll down this page]

Research Resources for the Social Sciences - Craig McKie (Carleton University, Ottawa)
Vast selection of (mainly Canadian) social research links covering a wide range of topics in the social sciences.
On this page, you'll find links to : General Resource Searchers  - Content to Browse - Reference Materials - Aggressive Pattern Searchers - Virtual Library at Coombs - Data Archives - Sociology and Anthropology - News and Journalism - Psychology - Law and Law Enforcement - Demography - Political Science - Economics - Geography - Women's Studies - Security Services - Miscellaneous - Site Information

Related links: Merrill Lynch and Capgemini Release 11th Annual World Wealth Report (PDF file - 55K, 4 pages) Press Release 27 June 2007 New York, June 27 – Driven by a strong global economy, the wealth of the world’s high net worth individuals (HNWIs1) increased 11.4 percent to US$37.2 trillion in 2006, according to the 11th annual World Wealth Report, released today by Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) and Capgemini. World Wealth Report page - incl. links to : * Fast Breaking Headlines * World Wealth Report Overview * State of the World's Wealth * HNWI Asset Allocation * Spotlight - New Service Model for HNW Clients * Regional Facts * About the World Wealth Report * Capgemini Wealth Management Offerings * Merrill Lynch Global Private Client * WWR Press Releases * WWR Archive * more... Complete report: World Wealth Report 2007 (PDF file - 3.9MB, 36 pages) Source: Merrill Lynch Capgemini

Caledon Institute of Social Policy
Canada's Voice for Progressive, Practicable Social Policy

Prudently Progressive : Caledon's First Decade as a Social Policy Think Tank (PDF file - 137K, 5 pages) January 2003 By Michael J. Prince (University of Victoria) Source: Views and News [ Studies in Policy and Practice ] [ University of Victoria ]

Here are just a few samples of the online reports and commentaries you'll find here:

Canadians Need a Medium-Term Sickness/Disability Income Benefit (PDF file - 112K, 36 pages)
By Michael J. Prince
January 2008
This paper focuses upon a serious weakness in Canada’s income security system. There is a major gap in social insurance coverage for millions of Canadians whose work and earnings are interrupted on a temporary or recurring basis because of illness or disability. This paper examines the current relationship between Employment Insurance (EI) sickness benefits and Canada Pension Plan (CPP) disability benefits, and explores possibilities for stronger linkages between these programs. Various options for a medium-term sickness/disability income benefit are considered along with their respective strengths and weaknesses.

A Tale of Two Pension Plans: The Differing Fortunes of the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans (PDF file - 192K, 46 pages)
By Ed Tamagno
January 2008
The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) are headed towards an historical crossroads. The most recent actuarial valuation of the CPP shows that the federal scheme is sound in its financing and should remain financially sound for the foreseeable future, without the need for any increase in its contribution rate over the next 75 years. Not entirely so, however, for the QPP. Although the Quebec plan is in no imminent financial difficulty, its most recent actuarial valuation indicates that changes to the QPP’s financing or benefits must be made well before 2050 or the scheme will be unable to meet its commitments fully after that year. This paper examines the reasons for the divergence in the financial projections of the Canada and the Quebec Pension Plans and proposes ways in which the parallelism of the two schemes, which has been a mainstay of federal and provincial policy for over four decades, can be maintained.

Caledon Response to Liberal
Poverty Strategy (PDF file - 264K, 9 pages)
by Ken Battle, Sherri Torjman,
Michael Mendelson and Ed Tamagno
November 2007
"(...)The renewed focus on poverty is long overdue. Strong and explicit federal leadership, along with cooperation with the provinces and territories in several key areas, are essential to attain significant reductions in poverty. But real progress will not be possible unless sound policy measures are employed to achieve this crucial goal.
Source:
Caledon Institute of Social Policy

Related link:

Liberal Party commitment to reduce the number of those living in poverty

Repairing Canada's Social Safety Net (PDF file - 276K, 14 pages)
Sherri Torjman, May 2007
The Department of Human Resources and Social Development Canada invited departmental representatives and four outside panelists to a roundtable to consider options for repairing Canada’s social safety net. This paper summarizes the highlights from Caledon’s contribution, which made the case for the need to reform Employment Insurance and welfare in concert and in association with labour market changes... (Read the complete abstract)

Other Caledon reports - links to all 500+ reports from May 1993 to date
Search Caledon publications

Tax Fairness According to Canada's New Government (PDF file - 70K, 13 pages)
Ed Tamagno and Ken Battle
November 2006
Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s surprise announcement on October 31, 2006, shutting down income trusts was front page news across Canada. Little media attention, however, was given to other changes to the income tax system announced at the same time. These include two of particular importance to seniors: a proposal to allow couples to split pension income and an increase in the age credit. This commentary analyzes these proposed changes to the tax system and who will benefit if they are implemented. It shows that the splitting of pension income will provide windfall benefits to some of the wealthiest seniors, only modest benefits to middle-income seniors, and nothing at all to the poorest of Canada’s elderly. The commentary goes on to present an alternative approach - involving changes to the age credit and pension income credit - that is fairer and that would cost no more, and probably even a bit less, than the government’s proposals.

Towards a New Architecture for Canada's Adult Benefits (PDF file - 143K, 37 pages)
Ken Battle, Michael Mendelson and Sherri Torjman
June 2006
Since its creation in 1992, the Caledon Institute of Social Policy has worked to modernize Canada’s social security system. We have made the case for major changes not just to individual social programs but to the basic structures and functions – the ‘architecture’, to use the current vogue term – of social policy. This paper advances our work on the modernization agenda in a large area of Canadian social policy that has for the most part defied successful reform – income security programs and supportive services for working-age adults, which Caledon has dubbed ‘adult benefits.’ The first part of the paper explains why current programs – especially welfare and Employment Insurance, the two core adult benefits – fail to meet the needs of working-age Canadians. Fundamental and comprehensive reform is required, through integrated changes to both federal and provincial/territorial programs and a realignment of governments’ roles and responsibilities. The second part offers our thinking on how to build a new architecture for adult benefits.

Finding Common Ground on Child Care (PDF file - 15K, 3 pages)
Ken Battle, Sherri Torjman and Michael Mendelson
February 2006
The proposed $1,200 Choice in Child Care Allowance is a stealth program that will in fact deliver smaller benefits than advertised. Caledon proposes that the federal government instead deliver the $1,200 through the tried and true Canada Child Tax Benefit.

Related Links:

Choice in Child Care Allowance - from the website of the Conservative Party of Canada
- incl. information on the Child Care Allowance, along with links to 20 news videos and articles about the Allowance.
Sample video:
December 12
News Conference, Rona Ambrose
NOTE: This is streaming video that you may not be able to access on a computer that's on a network either at the office or in a university. If you're interested in the area of child care and early learning, I highly recommend that you read the articles on the Conservative website...

Google Web Search Results : "Choice in Child Care Allowance"
Google News search Results : "Choice in Child Care Allowance"
Source:
Google.ca

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The Choice in Child Care Allowance: What you See Is Not What You Get (PDF file - 63K, 7 pages)
Ken Battle, January 2006
The Conservatives’ plan for a “Choice in Child Care Allowance” is seriously flawed. Because the new program will trigger reductions in federal and provincial/territorial income-tested benefits and increases in income taxes, most families will end up with less – for modest-income families in the $30,000-$40,000 range, much less - than the gross $1,200 annual payment for every child under 6. The Child Care Allowance also will favour one-earner couples over single parents and two-earner families. The proposed scheme is really a child benefit, not a child care program. Caledon contends that it would be better to invest in further increases to the existing Canada Child Tax Benefit, a modern and effective social program that suffers from none of the failings of the proposed Choice in Child Care Allowance.

There's Madness to this Method (PDF file - 18K, 4 pages)
Sherri Torjman, January 2006
The November 2003 Report of the Auditor General, released in February 2004, set in motion a chain of events that led to an obsession with accountability. The November 2005 report of the Auditor General, by contrast, barely created any interest – despite several important recommendations that could help the federal government and voluntary organizations do their jobs more effectively. The latest audit looked at federal policies and practices around the creation, coordination and oversight of ‘horizontal initiatives.’ The Auditor General instructed central agencies to provide more explicit guidance for horizontal practice related to common application procedures, funding instruments, data collection, reporting practices and evaluation frameworks.

Evaluation Framework for Federal Investment in the Social Economy: A Discussion Paper (PDF file - 97K, 33 pages)
Eric Leviten-Reid and Sherri Torjman, January 2006
This paper was prepared on behalf of Social Development Canada to support the department and its partners in developing an evaluation framework for potential federal investment in the social economy. It also informed the efforts of government partners in their formulation of a horizontal Results Based Accountability Framework for the social economy initiatives announced in the 2004 federal Budget. The report discusses the nature of the social economy, identifies issues and challenges involved in evaluating its activities and proposes a learning-oriented approach to its evaluation. The paper also presents a logic model for conceptualizing the work of the social economy, including the broad societal objectives it seeks to achieve, major types of investment and support to sustain this activity, and results for households, organizations, communities and the social economy sector as a whole.

Vibrant Communities Calgary: Awareness, Engagement and Policy Change (PDF file - 36K, 9 pages)
Anne Makhoul and Eric Leviten-Reid, January 2006
By educating Calgarians about the complex realities of poverty and influencing the development of responsive public policies, Vibrant Communities Calgary is trying to create a profound shift in thinking. It seeks to move from a climate that sees poverty as a personal problem to one in which systemic change makes it possible for individuals and households to improve their circumstances. This is the second in a series of stories which describe the poverty reduction work of the six Vibrant Communities Trail Builders.

Strategies for Achieving Equity and Prosperity in Saskatchewan (PDF file - 50K, 15 pages)
Rick August, January 2006
This paper focuses on the coexistence of strong labour demand in Saskatchewan, and a chronically underemployed segment of the population that is not achieving full economic citizenship. It argues that these circumstances afford an opportunity to strengthen the province’s labour force and economy, while at the same time increasing the economic inclusion of its disadvantaged citizens. The paper proposes a strategy to reduce economic disadvantage through employment and productivity growth. On a practical level, it argues for a partnership between government and employers that would help potential workers to prepare for entry-level employment, and from this base of employment, to improve their employment security and income through productivity growth. The analysis relies on enabling approaches to public policy that are designed to influence market forces towards more equitable outcomes, and harness human motivations and energies to improve personal and societal outcomes. The paper argues that a fair distribution of wealth is achievable within the context of a competitive market economy, and that an employment inclusion and productivity growth strategy could lead to sustainable gains in both Saskatchewan’s aggregate wealth and its distributional equity.

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NOTE: For links to 400+ Caledon reports, go to the home page of their website and click on "Publications By Date" in the left margin.

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A Working Income Tax Benefit That Works (PDF file - 15K, 3 pages)
Ken Battle and Michael Mendelson, November 2005
Like the National Child Benefit, the Working Income Tax Benefit should be debated and developed as a national – not just federal, nor just provincial/territorial – social policy reform.

Anyone Got a Plan? (PDF file - 19K, 4 pages)
Michael Mendelson, November 2005
Caledon Senior Scholar Michael Mendelson challenges governments to start thinking and talking about – and planning for – an inevitable looming crisis: the next recession.

The Disability Savings Plan: Contribution Estimates and Policy Issues (PDF file - 133K, 47 pages)
Keith Horner, November 2005

The Disability Savings Plan: Policy Milieu and Model Development (PDF file - 86K, 35 pages)
Richard Shillington, November 2005

Intergenerational Dimensions of Canada's Fiscal System (PDF file - 81K, 27 pages)
Joe Ruggerri, Yang Zou and Shannon Garrett, November 2005

real leaders volume 15 - Senator Landon Pearson (PDF file - 29K, 4 pages)
Anne Makhoul, November 2005
Senator Landon Pearson – the Senator for Children and the Children’s Senator – retires from her seat in the Senate in November 2005. This issue of ‘real leaders’ is dedicated to a woman whose life has been devoted to the task of advocating for children and youth.

Measuring child benefits: Measuring child poverty (PDF file - 270K, 73 pages)
February 2005
By Michael Mendelson
"This report addresses two critical questions in social policy: what is child poverty and how much is an adequate child benefit? To answer these questions, the report provides an analytic basis to distinguish between poverty among families with children and that element of their poverty that is properly understood as ‘child poverty.’ It argues that child benefits should cover the incremental cost of raising a child in a family living just above poverty levels. But to estimate an adequate child benefit, we must then define ‘poverty.’ Building upon a critical review of Canadian and international research, the report describes two alternative methodologies that could be adopted to develop a well-grounded Canadian poverty line. The report provides a number of preliminary quantitative estimates of the value of an adequate child benefit according to these methodologies. This report will challenge your understanding of ‘child poverty,’ how it should be measured and the role of child benefits in addressing it."

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Presentation to the Finance Committee Pre-Budget Consultation
November 2004
Sherri Torjman, Ken Battle and Michael Mendelson
"This paper (...) discusses several key principles to help guide the spending of the federal surplus: transparency, balance and purpose. The paper proposes that the surplus not be directed towards debt reduction but rather towards a combination of program and tax reduction measures. With respect to program expenditure, the authors have identified three top priorities from a wide range of proposals they have put forward over the years: child benefits, early childhood care and learning, and community supports for persons with disabilities and the aging population. Possible tax reductions related to employment and education would be directed towards low- and modest-income households."

Presentation (PDF file - 56K, 13 pages)

Related links:
- go to the Canadian Government Budgets Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/budgets.htm

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Transitions Revisited: Implementing the Vision
By John Stapleton
September 2004
"Transitions, the landmark 1988 report of the Social Assistance Review in Ontario, created a new vision for social assistance and related programs that called for a radically redesigned set of child benefits, a new income program for persons with disabilities and a new direction to bring welfare recipients into the mainstream of community life. Although some early investments were made to implement the vision, these reforms were largely dismantled in the mid- to late-1990s. John Stapleton, a former public servant and senior policy advisor to members of the Social Assistance Review Committee from 1986-1988, argues that there has never been a better time to bring some of the key proposals of Transitions up to date and to seriously consider implementing them."
[Abstract]

Complete report (PDF file - 135K, 38 pages)

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Aboriginal People in Canada's Labour Market: Work and Unemployment, Today and Tomorrow
Abstract in English and French + link to the complete report in both official languages (46 pages in English)
[ version française : Les Autochtones sur le marché du travail canadien : travail et chômage, aujourd'hui et demain ]
Michael Mendelson
April 2004
"Has the labour market situation of Aboriginal people in Canada been improving over the last several years? This paper uses data from the 1996 and 2001 censuses to present comprehensive, factual answers to this question."
Related Links: go to the Canadian Social Research Links First Nations page

Learning and Evaluation for Poverty Reduction
Abstract in English and French + link to the complete report in both official languages
L'Apprentissage et l'évaluation dans le cadre d'initiatives de réduction de pauvreté
Sherri Torjman and Eric Leviten-Reid
March 2004
"This is the sixth in a series of papers written in support of the Vibrant Communities project, a four-year national effort to explore promising local solutions to reduce poverty. The paper discusses various aspects of community learning. It describes how the Pan-Canadian Learning Partnership, which comprises the foundation of Vibrant Communities, engages in a process of continual learning to inform and improve local efforts. The paper also explores the challenges involved in evaluating comprehensive community initiatives. It discusses the ‘logic model’ of evaluation. This approach is based on the assumption that there is a sequence of events which must take place, and that build upon each other in a logical fashion, in order to effect any complex change. The intermediary steps along the way can then be identified and assessed."

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Reflections on Vibrant Communities
Eric Leviten-Reid
March 2004
(version française : Reflexion sur le projet collectivité dynamiques)
"This is the seventh in series of papers written in support of the Vibrant Communities project. This paper reflects on the first 18 months of the Vibrant Communities experience and the Face-to-Face Forum in Guelph, Ontario, September 22-24, 2003. This Forum provided an opportunity for participants in Vibrant Communities to reflect on their experience in order to sharpen their focus and refine strategies for the next phases of the work. The aim of this paper is to capture some of the key lessons and observations from the early days of Vibrant Communities."
Complete report (PDF file - 73K, 20 pages)
Document complet en français (fichier PDF - 83Ko., 24 pages)

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Three Choices for the Future of Medicare
Gregory P. Marchildon
April 2004
This paper argues that Canadians are at a crossroads in terms of the future of medicare. Critical directional decisions will be made at the First Ministers Meeting in a few months. Ottawa must decide its role before it negotiates with the provinces the future of a policy that is an integral part of the country’s identity.
Complete report - (PDF file - 88K, 20 pages)
Related Links: go to the Canadian Social Research Links Medicare Debate Links page

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The Repair of Taxation
December 2003
Tom Kent
"...argues that federal taxation has become so unfair and so slack, so undermined by avoidance and evasion, that its repair is now the urgent social reform on which others depend. (...)The paper offers a combination of reforms to increase government revenues in ways both better for the economy and more progressive for society."
Complete report (PDF file - 88K, 26 pages)

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New Ingredients for the Fiscal Pie
Sherri Torjman, December 2003
"...argues the need for exploring possible methods of expanding the ‘fiscal pie.’ It explores one possible model put forward by PLAN (Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network), a group of parents of children with severe disabilities. The group proposes a combination of private savings and public spending to help develop caring communities. (...) The proposal represents one idea in a range of possible savings and investment mechanisms to expand the fiscal pie – a direction which we should be debating seriously as a nation."
Complete report (PDF file - 19K, 3 pages)

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Community Renewal
Sherri Torjman, December 2003

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Why Canada Needs a Federal-Provincial Social Security Review Now
Ken Battle and Michael Mendelson, December 2003

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Accountability versus Conditionality: The Future of the Canada Social Transfer
Michael Mendelson, December 2003

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Student Loans for Refugees: A Success Story in Policy Change
Louise Slobodian and Harry J. Kits, December 2003

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The Values of the Canada-US Safe Third Country Agreement
Audrey Macklin, December 2003

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Innovation and Poverty Reduction
Sherri Torjman and Eric Leviten-Reid, November 2003
[version française :
Innovation et la réduction de la pauvreté
Sherri Torjman et Eric Leviten-Reid, novembre 2003]

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Community-based Poverty Reduction: The Québec Experience
by William Ninacs
September 2003
Abstract
Full report (PDF file - 47K, 17 pages)
Highly recommended!
This is an excellent primer for people who want general information on how Quebec's social protection system works. It contains a brief overview of the evolution of Quebec's social, political cultural and economic fabric, with a special focus on community economic development
- Table of contents : Population and territorial organization - The ‘Quiet Revolution’ (1960 -66) - Culture - Economic development - Health and welfare - Community organizations and related social movements - Evolution of Québec government policies toward poverty reduction - Local and community economic development - Key theoretical constructs - Social development - Social economy

Related Links (five case studies in community economic development):
Incl. links to the following case studies:
- Centraide of Greater Montréal: A Case Study
- The Collective for a Poverty-Free Québec: A Case Study
- CDÉC de Trois-Rivières: A Case Study
- The Lanaudière Table of Partners for Social Development: A Case Study
- Renaissance Montréal: A Case Study
NOTA: ces études sont également disponibles en français

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Sustaining Public Pensions in Canada: A Tale of Two Reforms
Ken Battle, July 2003
- analysis of two recent public pension reform projects in Canada - the Seniors Benefit and the reform of Canada Pension Plan financing.
Complete report (PDF file - 468K 53 pages)

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Child Benefits Levels in 2003 and Beyond: Australia, Canada, the UK and the US
Michael Mendelson
April 2003
Abstract
"Australia, Canada, the UK and the US all have programs providing cash benefits to families with children. This study is a detailed comparison of current child benefit rates in the four countries, for a representative lone parent family with one child and a two-parent family with two children. It also compares Canada’s child benefits in 2007, when all announced increases are implemented, to those in Australia, the UK and the US. The paper calculates the changes that would be needed to replicate UK child benefits in Canada, and analyzes the implications of these changes."
Full Document (PDF file - 75K, 13 pages)

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Canada needs social policy that works, says new Caledon report
Press Release/Abstract
September 25, 2002
"We look to next week’s Speech From the Throne to advance the ideas put forward in our social policy-that-works agenda."
Proposals include:
- increasing the the maximum annual Canada Child Tax Benefit
- boosting federal transfers to the provinces and territories for early childhood development
- improving paid parental leave
- replacing welfare with a Basic Income Support system (Basic Wage + Training Allowance + Basic Support for those who can't work)
- indexing minimum wages and examining minimum wages
- launching a national Employment Skills and Learning Strategy
- developing a policy framework to support community economic development
- offering supplementary health benefits to all low- and modest-income Canadians
- improving targeted tax relief
- creating a Disability Supports Fund; improving tax benefits for Canadians with disabilities; developing a new National Disability Benefit.
- helping to build a strong social foundation for cities
Complete report online:
Social Policy That Works: An Agenda (PDF file - 68K, 22 pages)
by Ken Battle and Sherri Torjman
September 2002

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A New Era in British Columbia: A Profile of Budget Cuts Across Social Programs (PDF file - 36K, 10 pages)
Caledon Institute of Social Policy
July 2002
"This paper is a summary of the wide range of reductions and cuts the BC Liberals have introduced to social programs over the past year. It documents changes in the areas of health care, education, income security, justice, and services for children, women and persons with disabilities."

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Fiscal Imbalances and the Financing of National Programs (PDF file - 23K, 5 pages)
Joe Ruggeri, July 2002
"This paper explores the state of government finances in Canada. It focusses upon the growing fiscal imbalance, commonly known as vertical fiscal imbalance (VFI), between the federal and provincial/territorial levels of government."

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Canada 2015: Globalization and the Future of Canada’s Health and Health Care (PDF file - 114K, 35 pages)
Michael Mendelson and Pamela Divinsky
July 2002
This report describes four scenarios for future global economic and political structures – called Global Club, Shared Governance, Cyberwave and Regional Dominators – and looks at the future of health and health care in Canada within each of these scenarios. The report is part of the ‘Future of Global and Regional Integration’ project, sponsored by the Institute of Intergovernmental Relations at Queen’s University, where the scenarios originally were developed. The report is meant to speculate not so much on what will be, as what could be, in an effort to stimulate consideration of our health system’s relationship to global futures.

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The Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefit
February 2002
"This report presents a policy history of the Canada Pension Plan disability benefit. It discusses the strengths and unique features of this national program, trends in caseload and cost, key issues related to the disability benefit, appeals procedures and options for reform."
Complete Text (PDF file - 150K, 62 pages)

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Medicure
February 2002
"This op ed points out how the loss of the Canada Assistance Plan in 1996 shook the foundation of community supports that help keep people out of hospital and decimated the systems of community care that enable patients to return or remain at home. The lack of community supports has created serious pressures for Canada’s health care system."
Complete Text (PDF file - 15K, 2 pages)

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From Trade-Off to Trade-Up
February 2002
"This paper, presented at the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs, argues that economic competitiveness and social cohesion are not a trade-off, but rather are intrinsically linked. It discusses three key means of advancing an integrated economic and social agenda: through practices, decision-making and trade standards that integrate competitiveness and cohesion."
Complete Text (PDF file - 50K, 17 pages)

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Equalization: Will The Attacks Ever End?
February 2002
"In this commentary, the author contends that a recent misinterpretation regarding the equalization formula not only would undermine the constitutional foundations of the equalization program but also would threaten the existence of social programs, including health care, education and social assistance."
Complete Text (PDF file - 17K, 3 pages)

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Enterprising Non-profits
February 2002
"This story describes the development of a program in British Columbia which supports non-profit organizations in their bid to diversify revenue sources by launching business enterprises. Started as a pilot project in 1997, the Enterprising Non-profits Program (ENP) was initiated by a partnership between VanCity Community Foundation, Vancouver Foundation, United Way of the Lower Mainland and VanCity Credit Union."
Complete Text (PDF file - 30K, 8 pages)

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Reaching Past the Barricades: Conflict Resolution at International Summit Events
February 2002
"World summit events have recently been marked by violence, injury and property destruction. A process for engaging police, media, politicians, activists and the general public has been developed by a team at Saint Paul University in Ottawa in the hope that an inclusive approach to crowd management can direct the planning and implementation of such events."
Complete Text (PDF file - 72K, 8 pages)

Source : Hot Off The Press (Caledon institute of Social Policy)
TIP : Click this link to see another dozen Caledon reports dating back to October 2001

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Relentless Incrementalism: Deconstructing and Reconstructing Canadian Income Security Policy (PDF file - 170K, 59 pages)
by Ken Battle
June 2001
This article was originally published in Keith Banting, Andrew Sharpe and France St-Hilaire (eds.) The Review of Economic Performance and Social Progress. The Longest Decade: Canada in the 1990s (Montreal and Ottawa: Institute for Research on Public Policy and Centre for the Study of Living Standards, 2001)

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Social Programs: Reconstruction Not Restoration
Ken Battle, Sherri Torjman and Michael Mendelson
October 2000
In a brief to the Finance Committee, the Caledon Institute of Social Policy calls for the “reconstruction not restoration” of Canadian social programs. In the emerging post-deficit era, ‘social reinvestment’ cannot mean simply a return to the social programs of the past.
Abstract
Complete report (PDF file, 81K, 22 pages)

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Booming for Whom? People in Ontario Talk About Incomes, Jobs and Social Programs
Kate Bezanson and Susan McMurray, October 2000
Despite the Ontario government's claim that "families are better off," many people in Ontario are worse off and struggling to get by, says
a report released today by the Caledon Institute.
Abstract
Complete report (PDF file, 316K, 44 pages)

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First Ministers' Last Priority (Abstract)
Sherri Torjman
September 2000
Complete report (PDF file, 2 pages, 21K)
- Commentary concerning government services for people with disabilities and the In Unison report

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A Proposed Model Framework for Early Childhood Development Services Within the National Children's Agenda (Abstract)
Ken Battle and Sherri Torjman
September 2000
Complete report (PDF file, 7 pages, 31K)

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Survival-of-the-Fittest Employment Policy
Sherri Torjman
April 2000
The above link takes you to an abstract , ordering information (if you want a paper copy) and a link to the [free] online version of the full report (PDF file - 164K, 65 pages)
"...explores the barriers in the overall policy context: no coordinated approach, no coherent progression, lack of national vision, the 'creaming' effect, lack of stable financing and lack of transitional supports. (...) - describes the policy barriers in the components of the employment system in Ontario: Employment Insurance, federal-provincial labour market agreements, Ontario training, student loans, disability programs and Ontario Works. The paper discusses how the philosophical shifts that underlie major income security programs and their associated employment supports have spawned a 'do-it-yourself' approach to training."

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The Payback Budget of 2000
March 2000

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How to Do a Children's Budget and a Tax Cut Budget in 2000
October 1999

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Poverty Eases Slightly
April 1999
- includes an extensive analysis of poverty over time, the depth of poverty in Canada, poverty numbers by province in 1997, high-risk groups, etc.

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Child Benefit Reform: A Case Study in Tax/Transfer Integration
April 1999
- A comprehensive analysis of child benefits

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The National Child Benefit: Another Hiccup or Fundamental Structural Reform? Ken Battle, October, 1998 (Presentation at the Conference on the State of Living Standards and the Quality of Life in Canada. Held October 30-31, 1998 at the Chateau Laurier, Ottawa)
Child Benefit Reform in Canada: an evaluative framework and future directions
-Ken Battle and Michael Mendelson, November 1997

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Social Policy 2000: An Agenda, by Tom Kent (January 1999) draws inspiration from the author’s influential 1960 tract Towards a Philosophy of Social Security, the blueprint for the phenomenal development of social programs in the 1960s

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Health Care/Caring for Health (September 1998)

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Welfare Warfare, November 1997

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*Workfare: A Poor Law
February 1996

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Can Workfare Work? Reflections from History, February, 1996

Maytree Foundation
Principal funder of the Caledon Institute of Social Policy, the Maytree Foundation is a Canadian charitable foundation established in 1982. Maytree believes that there are three fundamental sets of issues which threaten political and social stability: wealth disparities between and within nations; mass migration of people because of war, oppression and environmental disasters; and the degradation of the environment

Maytree Links - great collection, including links to a number of foundations with similar aims.

Brain Drain, Brain Gain
Session Proceedings
May 25, 2000
Presented by The Maytree Foundation and The St. Lawrence Centre Forum
There is an intense media focus on the brain drain from Canada to the United States. At the same time, Canada is experiencing a largely unrecognized brain gain of skilled and qualified immigrants. This movement of human capital has significant implications for Canada’s values, cultures and institutions. Yet much of the public debate about the issue is based on misperceptions and incomplete information.
- In the interest of separating fact from fiction and encouraging informed discussion, The Maytree Foundation sponsored a public forum on Brain Drain, Brain Gain at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts in Toronto on May 25, 2000. Four expert panelists were asked to address the following key questions:
· Is the brain drain to the US a significant problem?
· How are other countries coping with their brain drain?
· How can we make the best use of the talent that comes to our country?
Complete proceedings - PDF version (33 pages, 169K) - same content as the link above but in Adobe Acrobat format.

Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
"The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives is an independent, non-partisan research institute concerned with issues of social and economic justice. Founded in 1980, the CCPA is one of Canada’s leading progressive voices in public policy debates. By combining solid research with extensive outreach, we work to enrich democratic dialogue and ensure Canadians know there are workable solutions to the issues we face. "

Site map - links to everything on one page

About the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
- includes a brief description of the CCPA and links (in the left margin of the page) to separate pages for the National CCPA Office and each of its provincial offices.
- each CCPA Office page has links to : Contact Us * Publications * Research Associates * Board of Directors; immediately below, you'll find links to the 'home page' for each provincial office and its publications page

British Columbia Office
- Publications

Saskatchewan Office
- Publications

Manitoba Office
- Publications

Ontario Office
- Publications

Nova Scotia Office
- Publications

Alternative Federal Budget
"Our alternative budgets show that governments budgets can be created in a way that is both fiscally and socially responsible. The CCPA has been coordinating the Alternative Federal Budget (AFB) since 1994, and our provincial offices produce alternative provincial budgets.
NOTE: click on the provincial links above for their respective Alternative Budgets

For more Government budget info (incl. federal pre-budget consultations and provincial-territorial budgets): Go to the Canadian Social Research Links Canadian Government Budgets page

Research and Publications
The CCPA publishes research and analysis on a wide range of social and economic issues in many different formats.
- incl. links to CCPA reports and studies (including backgrounders, policy briefs and major research studies) - News releases - Editorials (opinion pieces that provide a quick overview of current issues) - Selected articles from The Monitor (the CCPA’s monthly magazine) - Selected articles from Our Schools / Our Selves (a quarterly journal on education) - Popular primers that provide they key facts on issues in an accessible format - Information on specific research projects

Sample reports from CCPA:

Feeling the debt squeeze?
We highly recommend watching a new documentary, The Debt Trap, on Global TV this Saturday, April 5 at 7 pm EST. The documentary features Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives Senior Economist Armine Yalnizyan, who makes the link between rising household debt and the growing income gap between the rich and the rest of us. The documentary will also be rebroadcast on May 24 at 7 pm EST.
The Debt Trap (Global TV)
[ Synopsis of the program ] (April 5 at 7 pm EST; rebroadcast on May 24 at 7 pm EST)

Related link:

CCPA reports by Armine Yalnizyan

Spooked by the prospect of recession?
Toronto-based social policy analyst John Stapleton teaches us a valuable history lesson with his new piece The ‘Last Recession Spook’: A Very Curable Disease, released by the CCPA as part of its Ontario Alternative Budget technical paper series. This paper looks at the history of public investments during economic downturns and finds the ghost of the last recession (in the 1990s) still haunts Canadians, limiting our thinking of what’s possible to modest terms. Exhorting Canadians to start real change and improvement, he writes, “The last recession was unlike all others and rather than reducing government programs during recessions, we used to increase them.”

The ‘Last Recession Spook’: A Very Curable Disease (PDF File, 157K, 5 pages)
Source:
CCPA Ontario Alternative Budget series

Related link:

Open Policy Ontario
(John Stapleton's personal website, incl. links to more commentaries and presentations)

Want to learn more about the growing gap between the rich and the rest of us?
Check out our Growing Gap website, the ultimate resource on income inequality.

Canada's rich taxed less than in the U.S and should pay more: Study
Press Release
December 12, 2007
OTTAWA—Canada should raise federal personal income tax rates on the rich to close the growing income gap and to bring them more in line with those in the U.S., says a study released today by the Alternative Federal Budget project of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The study, by economist Andrew Jackson, points out that Canada's top federal tax rate is considerably lower than the U.S.: The top U.S. tax rate is 35% on incomes over $326,000 and 33% on incomes over $150,000; Canada's top federal income tax rate is 29% on incomes of over $116,000.

Complete study:

Why Charity Isn’t Enough:
The Case for Raising Taxes on Canada’s Rich (PDF file - 216K, 12 pages)
December 2007
By Andrew Jackson
This Alternative Federal Budget Technical Paper makes a clear and simple case for raising taxes among the richest of Canadians, to fund the kinds of things Canadians say they want and need to continue to be productive citizens: public health care, affordable housing, reasonable university tuition, better public infrastructure, public transit, and affordable child care.
Source:
CCPA Alternative Federal Budget Project

Canada’s rich not contributing fair share in taxes: study
Press Release
November 8, 2007
TORONTO – More than a decade’s worth of tax cuts have disproportionately lined the pockets of Canada’s most affluent families, says a new tax study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The study finds the top 1 percent of families in 2005 paid a lower total tax rate than the bottom 10 percent of families.

Complete report:

Eroding Tax Fairness:
Tax Incidence in Canada, 1990 to 2005 (PDF File - 967K, 44 pages)
November 2007

The Shock Doctrine
Naomi Klein speaks about her new book at CCPA event
September 5, 2007
- includes a brief excerpt from her speech
(Vancouver) Footage of Naomi Klein speaking about her new book, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism, is now available online at www.youtube.com/policyalternatives or www.policyalternatives.ca/naomi_klein_videos. The set of six videos is from a CCPA fundraiser in Vancouver in February 2007.

Panhandling should not be criminalized, says study
Press Release
September 20, 2007
Restrictions on peaceful panhandling—such as City of Winnipeg Bylaw No. 128/2005—constitute an illegitimate use of state power, says a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. The study, by Arthur Schafer, director of the Centre for Professional and Applied Ethics at the University of Manitoba, says there is no moral or legal justification for turning peaceful beggars into criminals.

Complete report:

The Expressive Liberty of Beggars:
Why it matters to them, and to us (PDF file - 282K, 28 pages)

Towards a More Democratic and Credible BC Budget
Submission to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
September 21, 2007

Report on the Manitoba Economy: 2007
September 13, 2007

How Sustainable is Medicare?
A Closer Look at Aging, Technology and Other Cost Drivers in Canada’s Health Care System
September 13, 2007

Canadian workers’ paycheques in 30-year holding pattern : Study
Press Release
June 28, 2007
OTTAWA – Canadians are working harder and smarter, contributing to a growing economy, but their paycheques have been stagnant for the past 30 years, says a new study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.

Complete study:

Rising Profit Shares, Falling Wage Shares - (PDF File, 301K, 16 pages)

Related link:

www.GrowingGap.ca
GrowingGap.ca is a project of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
"(...)What does the growing gap look like? In 2004, the richest 10% of families raising children earned 82 times more than the poorest 10% -- almost triple the ratio of 1976, when they earned 31 times more. In after-tax terms the gap is at a 30-year high"

Canada’s growing gap at new 30-year high
Majority of families working harder, less payoff
Press Release
March 1, 2007
TORONTO – Canadian families are putting in more work time, yet most – 80% of them – are getting a smaller share of Canada’s growing economy, says a study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).The study finds Canada’s income gap between the rich and poor is growing, largely because the lion’s share of Canada’s economic growth is going to the richest 10% of families. It’s not going to the majority, the 80% of families earning under a $100,000.

The Rich and the Rest of Us:
The Changing Face of Canada's Growing Gap - PDF File, 613K, 54 pages)
By Armine Yalnizyan
March 2007

Canadian Drug Prices and Expenditures:
Some statistical observations and policy implications
by Joel Lexchin
January 9, 2007
"Aggressive measures needed to control drug spending"

Timing is Everything:
Comparing the earnings of Canada's highest-paid CEOs and the rest of us
by Hugh Mackenzie
January 2, 2007
"By 12:13 pm on New Year's Day, while many Canadians were still nursing a hangover, Canada"s 100 highest paid CEOs had already pocketed what will take minimum wage workers the rest of 2007 to earn."

Why Are Personal Income Tax Revenues Rising So Fast?
by Andrew Jackson
December 18, 2006

More CCPA Reports and Studies

Taxes are good for a nation’s health and well-being—study
Press Release
December 6, 2006
OTTAWA—Canada is falling behind a number of OECD nations in a wide range of social and economic areas, and a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives points to tax cuts as the culprit. The study, by Neil Brooks and Thaddeus Hwong, compares high-tax Nordic countries and low-tax Anglo-American countries on 50 social and economic measures and finds the high-tax Nordic countries score better in 42 categories.

Complete report:

The Social Benefits and Economic Costs of Taxation:
A Comparison of High- and Low-Tax Countries (PDF File - 512K, 55 pages)

[ More research & Publications by Topic: Taxes & tax cuts ]

Growing Gap, Growing Concerns: Poll
Press Release
November 20, 2006
[version française du communiqué:
Sondage : Écart croissant, préoccupations croissantes]
TORONTO – A record high number of Canadians think Canada’s gap between rich and poor is growing – and it’s causing them concern, according to an Environics Research poll conducted for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA). The poll reveals three-quarters (76%) of Canadians believe Canada’s gap between rich and poor has grown compared to 10 years ago. That number is up from 2003, when 70% thought the gap had grown. In 1990, 68% of Canadians thought the gap had grown.

Complete report:

November 20, 2006
GROWING GAP,
GROWING CONCERNS:
Canadian Attitudes Toward Income Inequality (PDF file - 1MB, 14 pages)
"(...)while many Canadians think that the “rags to riches” story is possible to achieve in Canada, half say that they themselves are only one or two missed pay-cheques away from economic disaster."

Related Link:

The GrowingGap
The growinggap.ca is an initiative of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives’ Inequality Project, a national project to increase public awareness about the alarming spread of income and wealth inequality in Canada.

The Art of the Impossible
Fiscal Federalism and Fiscal Balance in Canada
July 11, 2006
By Hugh Mackenzie
Press Release:
“Fiscal imbalance” caused by interprovincial tax competition--study
Communiqué :
Déséquilibre fiscal—la concurrence fiscale est la cause principale

Complete report:

The Art of the Impossible: Fiscal Federalism and Fiscal Balance in Canada - (PDF file - 1350K, 57 pages)
* Executive Summary - PDF File, 164 Kb
* Résumé - Fichier PDF, 170Ko.

Canada’s high-income earners are not overtaxed—report
Press Release
October 13, 2005
"Despite recent reports to the contrary, Canada’s high-income earners do not pay a disproportionately large share of personal income tax. A new analysis by Prof. Neil Brooks of Osgoode Hall Law School, released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, takes a closer look at the numbers in Statistics Canada’s “Tax Incidence in Canada.” The Stats Can report sparked a series of news stories this spring claiming the top 10% of income earners pay 52% of the total tax bill but Brooks finds these figures both misleading and incomplete in assessing the fairness of the tax system.

The Statistics Canada study showed that the share of federal income taxes paid by the top 10% increased from 46% in 1990 to 52.6% in 2002. Brooks points out, however, that this increase is not a result of the tax system becoming more progressive. Instead, the main reason for the increase was because the share of earned income going to the most affluent among us increased by 12.6% over that same period, while the share going to the bottom 50% of tax-filers declined."

Complete analysis:

The Share of Income Tax Paid by the Rich:
The Business Press Gives another Lesson on How to Deceive with Statistics (PDF file - 115K, 7 pages)

CCPA report to House of Commons Finance Committee predicts large surpluses ahead
News Release
August 22, 2005
"OTTAWA—The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, one of the independent forecasters commissioned by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance, announced today that is once again forecasting surpluses much higher than the official government figures. In her report to the Committee CCPA Senior Economist Ellen Russell is predicting a surplus of $6.8 billion in 2004/05 and $9.5 billion in 2005/06, while the government is projecting surpluses of $3 billion and $4 billion, respectively. The CCPA’s calculations include the additional spending that was negotiated by the NDP and included in Bill C-48."

Complete report:

Federal Fiscal Forecasting Round 3:
Report to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance (PDF file - 208K, 25 pages)

Don’t believe the hype: What’s really behind the Fraser Institute’s “Tax Freedom Day”
News Release
June 16, 2005
"OTTAWA—Each summer the Fraser Institute announces the arrival of 'tax freedom day': the day when Canadians allegedly stop 'working for the government' and start 'working for themselves.' A study by Neil Brooks, released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, takes a closer look at Tax Freedom Day and finds that to arrive at this politically loaded and heavily-reported date the Fraser Institute’s calculations understate the income of Canadians, overstate their taxes and misuse the concept of averages."

Tax Freedom Day: A Flawed, Incoherent, and Pernicious Concept (PDF file - 216 K, 27 pages)
By Neil Brooks
"(...)In the guise of helping Canadians to understand their tax system, the Institute presents information that is deeply flawed and misleading — information that in fact seriously limits the public’s ability to understand and participate
meaningfully in the shaping of tax policy." (Excerpt, p.6)

Canadian Policy Research Networks - CPRN

Réseaux canadiens de recherche en politiques publiques - RCRPP
Canadian Policy Research Networks is a non-profit, charitable policy think tank based in Ottawa with a voluntary board of directors. (...) CPRN's mission is to create knowledge and lead public dialogue and debate on social and economic issues important to the well-being of all Canadians. Our goal is to help make Canada a more just, prosperous and caring society.
- incl. links to : About CPRN * People * Newsroom * Publications * Contact Us

E-Network : CPRN’s New Web Site Welcomes You! (PDF file - 78K, 3 pages)
May 3, 2007

CPRN's research areas comprise:
* Children, Youth and Families
* Cities and Communities
* Citizen Engagement
* Democracy, Governance and Citizenship
* Diversity
* Education and Learning
* Health and Health Human Resources
* Job Quality
* Labour Market/ Vulnerable Workers
* Social Protection
Click on a research area link to see a description of CPRNs research in that area along with links to related sub-areas and publications.

Publications - links to 1500+ research reports, briefs, presentations and more, going right back to 1993
News Releases - links to 150+ releases back to 1996 --- includes links to related publications and themes
What's New - links to the latest 20 or so items posted to the CPRN site

Sample content from the CPRN website:

A Safer Haven: Innovations for Improving Social Housing in Canada
December 6, 2007
In 2007, CPRN partnered with the Social Housing Services Corporation of Ontario, the Knowledge Mobilization Unit of York University, and the City of Ottawa (for Infrastructure Canada's Knowledge Building, Outreach and Awareness Program) to support research on social housing by social policy interns.

Complete report:

A Safer Haven: Innovations
for Improving Social Housing in Canada (PDF file - 244K, 33 pages)
- this report is a synthesis of key findings from six research papers produced by CPRN research interns

Social Housing in Canada
- includes links to all six research reports in the collection:
* A Safer Haven: Innovations for Improving Social Housing in Canada
* City-Regions and the Provision of Affordable Rental Housing
* Fostering Better Integration and Partnerships for Housing in Canada: Lessons for Creating a Stronger Policy Model of Governmental and Community Collaboration
* Inclusion and Social Housing Practice in Canadian Cities: Following the Path from Good Intentions to Sustainable Projects
* Moving Towards Sustainability: City-Regions and Their Infrastructure
* Social Lives in Social Housing: Resident Connections to Social Services
* Sustaining Ontario's Subsidized Housing by Supporting Non-Profit Organizations

The Feds Are Widening, Not Closing, the Prosperity Gap (PDF file - 32K, 2 pages)
by David Hay
May 31, 2007
A recent Statistics Canada report revealed a growing gap between the rich and poor in this country. The report on income inequality and redistribution suggests that the labour market and specifically high-earning couples are the reason behind this. "A key driver of this is the rising earning power of the two-earner family, especially when both earners are highly educated" says the report. David Hay, CPRN's Director, Social Development, in his commentary on the Globe and Mail's Web site, has found an additional explanation for this growing divide between rich and poor. He writes that further examination of the report's tables reveals "…some other potential contributors to rising after-tax inequality, and these have more to do with governments than the labour market."

 

Related links from Statistics Canada: Income Inequality and Redistribution in Canada: 1976 to 2004 May 11, 2007 By Andrew Heisz StatCan's The Daily release Executive summary Complete study (PDF file - 395K, 58 pages) Previous issues in this series Income Inequality and Low Income in Canada: An International Perspective February 2005 by Garnett Picot and John Myles StatCan's The Daily release Complete study (PDF file - 841K, 31 pages) Other StatCan reports on Low income and inequality Source: Update on Analytical Studies Research - click on a category in the left margin of the research update page to access the links to relevant studies and reports

National Council of Welfare
The mandate of the National Council of Welfare is to advise the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development in respect of any matters relating to social development that the Minister may refer to the Council for its consideration or that the Council considers appropriate.

Research & Publications
The Council publishes reports and communicates with the Minister on a wide range of issues involving poverty and social policy.
Research Projects: National Anti-Poverty Strategy * Welfare Incomes * Poverty Profile
Fact Sheets: Poverty lines and measures * Poverty statistics * Welfare statistics
Complete List of Publications - links to over three dozen reports available online; these are the most recent reports in a list of over 125 publications going back to 1971. Many of the older reports in the list are still available in paper form.

The Council is a citizen's advisory body whose existence is enshrined in federal legislation since 1969.
Department of Social Development Act - (see the link under Part I to "National Council of Welfare")

New members appointed to
the National Council of Welfare
February 2008
This is the list of the new members of the National Council of Welfare,
whose appointments were announced in two separate news releases on February 1 and February 20:
- Rev. Larry Gregan of Manitoba
- Mr. David S. Pankratz of Manitoba
- Colonel Glen Shepherd of Quebec
- Mr. Calvin D. Helin of British Columbia
- Ms. Brenda Hall of the Northwest Territories
- Mr. John Guyon Richards of British Columbia*
- Mr. Mark Chamberlain of Ontario
- Ms. Mildred A. Dover of Prince Edward Island
- Reverend Richard Bragdon of New Brunswick
- Mr. Zulfikarali R. Kassamali of Ontario
Sources:
Feb. 1/08 news release
Feb. 20/08 news release

*NOTE:
Yes, that is the same John Richards who wrote the commentary entitled Reducing Poverty: What has Worked, and What Should Come Next (PDF file , 592K, 32 pages) , released by the right-of-centre C.D. Howe Institute in October of 2007. In this commentary, Mr. Richards points to the “tough love” welfare reforms of Ralph Klein in Alberta and Mike Harris in Ontario during the early- to mid-1990s as the desirable path to follow in the rest of Canada.

I disagree fundamentally with the tough-love spur-of-poverty approach to welfare reform, and
so does Andrew Jackson of the Canadian Labour Congress.

Sounds like somebody's putting the fox in charge of the henhouse -- then again, this should make for some lively discussion and debate in National Council of Welfare meetings!

Sample reports:

Solving Poverty - It Can Be Done!
Press release
January 25, 2007
"In a report to the federal government made public today, the National Council of Welfare (NCW) advises Canadian governments that a workable solution to poverty is within their reach and that Canada can have the kind of success that other countries are achieving."

Complete report:

Solving Poverty: Four cornerstones of a workable national strategy for Canada (PDF file - 1MB, 29 pages)
Winter 2007
"(...) When the National Council of Welfare started looking into anti-poverty strategies, it became quickly apparent to us that if there is no long-term vision, no plan, no one accountable for carrying out the plan, no resources assigned and no accepted measure of results, we will continue to be mired in poverty for generations.

The four cornerstones:
1) creating a national anti-poverty strategy with targets and timelines;
2) developing a coordinated plan of action;
3) ensuring accountability; and
4) establishing official poverty indicators.

Related Link:

Report on responses to the
Poverty and Income Security Questionnaire (PDF file - 1.1MB, 36 pages)
Prepared by MiroMetrica Inc.
January 2007

Google Search Results Links - always current results!
Using the following search terms (without the quote marks):
"National Council of Welfare, Solving poverty report"
Web search results page
News search results page
Blog Search Results page
Source:
Google.ca

RECHERCHISTES FRANCOPHONES:
Vous pouvez accéder à la version française de ces textes en vous rendant
sur le site Web du Conseil national du bien-être social

Homeless to Have a Say:
National Council of Welfare Partners with Shelters across Canada
December 4, 2006
Press Release
In a one-day event at homeless shelters from all regions of Canada, homeless women and men will give their opinions about solutions to poverty in this country by filling out the National Council of Welfare’s questionnaire on poverty and income security. Nine homeless shelters in Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Montreal, Halifax and Iqaluit will take part in the event on Tuesday, December 5. James Hughes, a member of the Council and director of a Montreal shelter, says, “The purpose of our questionnaire is to find out what Canadians think about solutions to poverty in this country. It is important that people living in poverty participate, including homeless people who live in extreme poverty.”

Anti-Poverty Strategy
Poverty advisory council launches Canada-wide forum
Press Release
October 16, 2006
The National Council of Welfare today, on the eve of the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, is launching an on-line questionnaire at www.ncwcnbes.net to find out what Canadians think about solutions to poverty and insecurity in Canada. For over 25 years the NCW has published detailed statistics on poverty, with its most recent reports released in July and August this year. During the past quarter century, poverty rates among seniors have improved dramatically. For all other age groups, including children, poverty is as widespread as ever and for some people, poverty is deeper as well. (..) The questionnaire will run until mid-December and the results will be made public. They will also guide the advice the NCW provides to the federal government.
[NOTE: the final date for completing this questionnaire was December 20, 2006.]

Poverty Profile, 2002 and 2003
Summer 2006
"This report shows that in spite of progress made in the fight against poverty among seniors, poverty rates for children and working-age adults are about the same as they were almost a quarter-century ago. The report calls for a national anti-poverty plan for Canada to ensure a successful future for our country. This is the latest report on poverty by the National Council of Welfare. The report examines the incidence, depth and duration of poverty. It also looks at sources of income, the relationship between poverty and paid work, and income inequality."

Complete report:
Poverty Profile, 2002 and 2003 (PDF file - 3.5MB, 165 pages)

Press Release:
Report calls for a national effort to defeat poverty (PDF file - 534K, 2 pages)
July 20, 2006
"Canada needs a national anti-poverty plan to ensure a successful future for our country, the National Council of Welfare (NCW) said in a report published today. The report, Poverty Profile, 2002 and 2003, shows that in spite of progress made in the fight against poverty among seniors, poverty rates for children and working-age adults are about the same as they were almost a quarter century ago. Income inequality is growing and many groups of Canadians continue to have unacceptably high poverty rates. For those in need today, however, Canada’s social safety net offers less protection against poverty than ever before."

Related Fact Sheets

Google Web Search Results:
"poverty profile, 2003, council of welfare"
Google News search Results:
"poverty profile, 2003, council of welfare "
Source:
Google.ca

---------------------------------
Related Links:
- go to the Poverty Measures Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/poverty.htm
---------------------------------

Welfare Incomes 2005 (PDF file - 1.4MB, 116 pages)
August 2006
"Welfare Incomes 2005 estimates total welfare incomes for four types of households in each province and territory, for a total of 52 scenarios. The four household types we use are a single employable person, a single person with a disability, a lone-parent with a 2-year-old child, and a two-parent family with two children aged 10 and 15. The National Council of Welfare has published similar estimates since 1986."

Staggering losses in welfare incomes (PDF file - 24K, 2 pages)
Press release
August 24, 2006
"In Alberta, the income in real dollars of a single person on welfare has decreased by almost 50 percent since 1986. Since 1992 in Ontario, the welfare income of a lone parent with one child has decreased by almost $6,600 and a couple with two children has lost just over $8,700. The National Council of Welfare’s report, Welfare Incomes 2005, paints a dismal picture, and one that is getting worse. When adjusted for inflation, many 2005 welfare incomes were lower than they were in 1986. Most welfare incomes peaked in 1994 or earlier...."

FACT SHEETS from Welfare Incomes 2005
# Welfare Incomes by Province and Territory, Peak Year and 2005
# Welfare Incomes by Household Type: Losses, Peak Year to 2005
# Welfare Incomes Over Time: 1986 to 2005 by Province and Territory
# Welfare Incomes 2005 by Province and Territory and Type of Household
# Welfare Incomes 2005 by Type of Household and Province/Territory (graph)
# Adequacy of 2005 Welfare Incomes by Province
# The Clawback of the National Child Benefit Supplement
# Changes in Welfare Incomes for Families with Children, 1997 to 2005 (graph)
# Methodology Used for Welfare Incomes
# Number of People on Welfare, March 1995 to March 2005 (PDF file - 133K, 1 page)

Google.ca Web Search : "welfare incomes report, canada"
Google.ca News Search : "welfare incomes report, canada"
Source:
Google.ca

Related links:

NDP launches campaign to end poverty in Canada
Thu 1 Jun 2006
"OTTAWA - The NDP today launched a national "End Poverty in Canada" campaign vowing to engage Canadians and their politicians in deciding what the fairest way forward is for all Canadians. "Our social safety net has become an incoherent, inefficient mess that must be repaired," said NDP Social Policy Critic Tony Martin (Sault Ste. Marie).
Source:
New Democratic Party of Canada

************************
Bouquets to CBC Radio, who covered the release of this welfare incomes report right across the country starting at six a.m. in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

You can find links to CBC radio coverage of this story, in the form of written articles or an audio file as in the example below, adapted for each region's audience, with local reaction for each jurisdiction in Canada, by doing a Google.ca search using the search terms "welfare incomes, 2006, Ontario".
Remember to remove the quotation marks from your search terms and replace Ontario with the name of your province or territory, and be sure to try both the Web Search and the News Search buttons in Google.ca

Here's a sampling of coverage concerning the release of this report from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador:

CBC Radio - St. John's Morning Show (7-minute Real Audio file - requires speakers and RealPlayer)
Newfoundland and Labrador
Thursday, August 24
NOTE - if you're behind a corporate firewall in your government office or university, this audio stream probably won't work, for security reasons.

Welfare payments called 'morally disgraceful' - August 24 article from the CBC Newfoundland and Labrador

-----

Brickbats to the Citizen in my home town of Ottawa, who didn't even mention the release of the welfare incomes report. I'm not sure what people in the media call it (scoop? oversight? stoopid editorial board decision to take a pass on the story?), but the Citizen editorial board richly deserves the egg that's on their collective faces for having missed the boat on a report that's as significant as this one. Judging by the significant media coverage and public feedback in forums and letters to the editor - elsewhere in Canada - since the release, "this story's got legs" --- it'll be in the public consciousness for awhile longer.
No thanks to the Citizen, though...
************************

More editorializing:

If you've read the Top Ten Reasons I Created This Site, you already know (#8) that I think there's too much of a slant from organizations like the Fraser Institute and Prime Minister Steve's earlier gig, the National Citizens' Coalition, in the mainstream media, and not enough from progressive non-governmental organizations like the Canadian Council on Social Development and Campaign 2000.

Another such organization that's actually part of government in an arm's-length kind of way is the National Council of Welfare. The Council came to life in the late sixties via an integral part of the statute that defined the activities of the Department of National Health and Welfare. After a few departmental restructuring initiatives and name changes over the years, the Council is currently the government advisory body to the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development in matters pertaining to social development, i.e., well-being in Canada.

I have the highest regard for the Council as an advisory body, because it advocates on behalf of people, not corporations. The excellent reports produced by the Council's secretariat - especially the time series like Welfare Incomes and Poverty Profiles - offer up to twenty years' worth of cross-Canada information for use by both federal and provincial-territorial policy-makers to support their work. The reports are also for use by the social advocacy sector, to keep governments' feet to the fire --- fits right in with the concept of Accountability as one of the New Canadian Government's five priorities, doesn't it?

For about 25 of my 30 years as a welfare program information specialist with the federal government, I supported the work of the Council on the subject of welfare program information and welfare rates, and I think that their collection of historical, cross-Canada information on Canadian welfare programs is second to none. I spent a year on secondment with the Council secretariat starting in the summer of 1996, and I updated the numbers in Welfare Incomes 1995 as part of my work there. Now, ten years later, we find that after inflation, welfare incomes in '96 were more generous than they were in 2005 by several thousand dollars a year. And that includes thousands of families with kids...

For links to Canadian welfare program information, go to the Key Provincial/Territorial Welfare Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/welfare.htm

----------------------------------------------------------------

Full Time Workers Still in Poverty
Press Release
May 3, 2004
"Many Canadians in full-time jobs did not make it to the poverty line in 2000, said the National Council of Welfare in a report released today. Full-time, full-year jobs at minimum wages left workers in poverty. The National Council of Welfare found take-home incomes were consistently below the most commonly-used poverty line, the Low Income Cut-offs or LICOs from Statistics Canada. But the situation looked just as bad using the new Market Basket Measure (MBM) of poverty – even though this new poverty line sets the bar a little lower. There were a few exceptions to the rule, mostly in Quebec where minimum-wage workers made it over the MBM line."

Income for Living?
(complete report)
Spring 2004
HTML version
PDF version (417K, 96 pages)
Executive Summary (HTML)

Profiles of Welfare: Myths and Realities
Spring 1998
LARGE statistical collection covering twenty years of data, examining variables like family types, reasons for assistance, age, education, duration of spells on assistance, housing and more.

Another Look at Welfare Reform (Autumn 1997) - an in-depth analysis by the National Council of Welfare of changes in Canadian welfare programs in the 1990s. The report focuses on the provincial and territorial reforms that preceded the repeal of the Canada Assistance Plan and those that followed the implementation of the Canada Health and Social Transfer.  Complete report online - large file (300K+) but well worth the wait for detailed information on welfare reforms in the 1990s in each Canadian jurisdiction, as well as a national overview of the broad issues of welfare reform and the setting for welfare reform in Canada Source : National Council of Welfare

Canadian Council on Social Development
"The Canadian Council on Social Development (CCSD) is one of Canada's most authoritative voices promoting better social and economic security for all Canadians. A national, self-supporting, non-profit organization, the CCSD's main product is information and its main activity is research, focussing on concerns such as income security, employment, poverty, child welfare, pensions and government social policies."
Put an "X" on this one - it will be on the final exam. You must visit this site if you're looking for anything to do with poverty, welfare, income, health, family, social indicators, etc.
What's New on the CCSD site --- all new material is on the home page link (above)...
About the CCSD
Research
CCSD Publications
Free Statistics
Policy Initiatives
Key Events
CCSD Links
CCSD Subsites
- The Disability Research Information Page
- Crime Prevention Through Social Development
- The Cultural Diversity Page
- The Social Indicators Site
- The Social Inclusion Conference
- Community Social Data Strategy

Sample site content:

2006 Low-Income Cut-offs
[March 27, 2008]
("... more commonly known as Canada's unofficial poverty lines")

Stats & Facts fact sheets: A Profile of the Labour Market in Canada
[March 12, 2008]
- links to three fact sheets containing an abundance of national and provincial data about employment, earnings and labour force rates.

Attention, fans of the
Canadian Social Welfare Policy Conference!

Canadian Social Forum (PDF file - 58K, 1 page)
February 28, 2008
Mark Your Calendars!
The Canadian Council on Social Development is in the process of planning the first Canadian Social Forum which will take place in Calgary, Alberta, May 19-22, 2009.

NOTE: the Canadian Social Forum will replace the Social Welfare Policy Conference, a biennial event going back to 1982, but "will integrate the best of that 25-year tradition", according to the CCSD.

Related link:

Canadian Social Welfare Policy Conference
This is a link is to a page on the CCSD website that contains links to the 11th and 12th CSWP conferences in this mostly-biennial series that started way back in 1982. If you click each of the two conference links and check out the "Papers" link for each event, you'll find a list of presenters and the topics they covered; this will give you a good sense of the broad scope of this conference series.

Based on my own experience (I've attended all but one of the 12 events so far), CSWP is a four-day multi-sectoral gathering of several hundred people from academia, government and the NGO sector around social policy themes --- in brief, the perfect place to learn, to exchange ideas and to expand your list of social policy contacts.
I highly recommend this conference/forum. (Tell 'em Gilles sent you - I might get a discount on my registration fees...)

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November 15, 2007
Stats & Facts: Economic Security
Chock full of information about income, spending habits and poverty among Canadian families, the Economic Security Fact Sheets are the latest in our Stats & Facts series. Along with the earlier fact sheets on demographics, health, education and families, these latest fact sheets provide a wealth of useful statistical data and analysis about the realities of life in Canada.

Jason Mogus on the Web
Jason Mogus was the keynote speaker at the CCSD Annual General Meeting last month. He spoke about the ways in which the web is changing, and how non-profits can benefit from that change, providing they’re prepared to change with it. His speaking notes and an audio recording of his presentation are available on our website.

CCSD’s annual report for 2006-2007 is now available.

Jord