Women’s Poverty
Women who work full-time, year-round earn only 71 cents for every dollar earned by men. 20% of women are in low-wage occupations, compared to 10% of men.
Almost half (47%) of people receiving Ontario Works are sole support parents and their children – the vast majority are sole support mothers.
Lone mothers receiving social assistance are not allowed to keep child support payments from the father.
The Ontario government deducts these payments from their social assistance cheque. In Quebec,
parents are allowed to keep $100/month.
Poverty often traps women in abusive relationships. Without access to adequate income, housing,
childcare and decent employment, many women and their children are trapped.
Source: 2010 Ontario Report Card on Child & Family Poverty
Ontario Campaign 2000 and ISAC have launched a campaign to collect Mother’s Day wishes (something that the government could do that would make the life of mothers and their children better) from women across the province. Women can submit their Mother’s Day wish online.
Please note the deadline to receive wishes is MAY 13 (Mother’s Day).
Many Ontario women are living on incomes below the poverty line. Are you one of these women? Their income does not provide them with enough to pay the rent and feed their family. It’s particularly tough for women raising children on their own.
Whether you are on welfare, disability, or working for low wages, women need affordable child care, affordable housing, and training and education to get better jobs.
The Bringing in Women’s Voices project sought to find the best ways to involve women across the province in discussions on policy issues and practices that affect their economic security.
Based on the workshops held throughout the province, and the issues voiced by women who attended these meetings, we put together a Key Messages document that has been shared with decision makers across the province.
Through our online survey of more than 680 women across the province, we learned important new information about what is needed to support the critical involvement of women in the public policy decision-making process. We found that 94% of women respondents wanted to receive information about issues, and 64% definitely want to get involved in discussions. The vast majority (83%) preferred being involved through meetings in their communities. Almost three-quarters (72%) of the women who responded to the survey also prefer the internet as a resource. At least half of these women use social media regularly.
If you would like to stay in touch with the project and learn about our work – please visit our Facebook page and/or join our list serve.
The Ontario government has developed a strategy to reduce poverty. Part of this strategy includes reviewing how social assistance works in Ontario. The Commission for the Review of consultation has come out with two discussion papers and received submissions. Women participants from the Bringing in Women’s Voices project had an opportunity to meet with the Commission as well. The options discussed in the second discussion paper will have an impact on the well-being of sole-support families on social assistance. For further information on the discussion paper and the options presented there in, visit http://sareview.ca/
Over the longer term we are exploring the idea of building a provincial network connecting low and modest income women to express their views and provide input on programs for women’s economic security. If you would like to stay in touch with the project and learn about our work – please visit our Facebook page and/or join our list serve.
Read and share our Key Messages Document.
Join our Facebook page and our list serve.
Follow and contribute to the review of social assistance in Ontario. Learn more at http://www.socialassistancereview.ca/home
To get more info on issues go to our FACT SHEETS page and visit the TAKE ACTION page for more ideas.
Give us your FEEDBACK. Let us know what will it take to have your voice heard.
"Bringing in Women's Voices from the Margins" is a project developed by the Ontario Campaign 2000 and the Income Security Advocacy Centre in collaboration with 11 community partners. During 2011 this project will explore and identify strategies to increase the engagement of low-income women in public discussions on economic security issues so that their interests are better reflected in government policies and programs that impact them and their children.
"Bringing in Women's Voices from the Margins" is funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation - http://www.trilliumfoundation.org - which is an agency of the government of Ontario.
Copyright © Campaign 2000.