OCASI Comments on Ontario Budget 2007
March 23, 2007
The 2007 Ontario Budget announcement showed signs that the call by organized Ontarian civil society for a strategy to counter poverty has started to inform the government agenda of the province.
Click here for the Ontario 2007 Budget documents.
Overview
OCASI notes that there are several measures in the 2007 budget that constitute first steps in the right direction, including specific investments to support access and equity for immigrants. Meanwhile, major barriers to access for everyone to humane living conditions remain unaddressed by the government plan.
Positive measures announced in Ontario Budget 2007 include the new Ontario Child Benefit, which will be available to all low-income families regardless of whether they are receiving social assistance. Yet the proposed budget as an ensemble, including the plan to raise the minimum wage to $10.25 per hour over the next three years, falls short of a solid strategy to counter poverty in an in-depth manner.
Racialized immigrants, refugees and people with less than full status, and particularly women amongst them are disproportionately pushed down to the bottom levels of socioeconomic participation in Ontario, even as they contribute their hard work and the best of their recognized skills to the creation of wealth and well-being in our society. This over-representation of newcomers among the poor has been amply shown by research regarding the increasing racialization of poverty cited in a recent analysis of the 2001 Census by Michael Ornstein; about barriers to labour market integration because of race and immigration status in a 2005 report by Galabuzi and Teelucksingh; and the recent report by Statistics Canada about the "chronic low income situation" affecting recent immigrants; as well as other reports depicting the situation of workers in contingent, precarious employment.
Click here for Study: Low-income rates among immigrants entering Canada, Statistics Canada. 2007.
Immigration and Settlement
In the area of immigration and settlement, the provincial government restated its commitment to the implementation of the Fair Access to Regulated Professions Act, among several other measures.
The Ontario government mentioned again the budgetary implications over the next few years of the recently signed Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement (COIA). Like the 2006 Budget, the 2007 budget features government plans to implement a Provincial Nominee Program and its negotiations with the federal government in view of a Temporary Foreign Workers annex. OCASI, together with other organizations, has been insisting for some time now that, such measures should be accompanied by a regularization program crafted for those who live and work among us and who do not have a full immigration status. Such an approach would recognize the contribution made by people with less than full status, and it would benefit from the fact that those newcomers have attachments to and knowledge of communities across Ontario.
Budget 2007 declares that there will be "a 29 percent increase in funding, reaching $5.3 million...administered through 81 community settlement agencies" for the Newcomer Settlement Program (NSP). Meanwhile, the provincial government stated in last year's budget that it would be "increasing annual funding to the Newcomer Settlement Program by $1.2 million, or over 25 percent, to $5.3 million in 2006-2007." Needless to say, this requires clarification by the Ontario government.
Funds for English as a Second Language (ESL) and French as a Second Language (FSL) for adults went from $51 million last year to $53 million for the 2007-2008. The immigrant- and refugee-serving sector, together with the education and other human services sectors have been deeply concerned by the fact that some school boards have used funds earmarked for ESL in schools for other purposes. OCASI expects the Ontario government to ensure ESL funds are used for their intended purpose. OCASI also urges the government to fund school boards adequately so that they do not resort to meeting budget shortfalls by drawing on ESL and other essential funds.
Labour Market Integration
The 2007 budget highlights the Ontario government commitment to credentials recognition for Internationally Trained Professionals (ITPs) through the implementation of Bill 124, the Fair Access to Regulated Professions Act, namely the establishment of the Office of the Fairness Commissioner. Ongoing initiatives such as bridging programs and initiatives to connect employers with newcomers will be supplemented by a new six-month internship program in Ontario Public Service and Crown agencies, plus loans of up to $5,000 to cover training, assessment, textbooks and exam costs.
As much as some of these measures are designed to help ITPs gain accreditation in their field of expertise, they will not necessarily lead to employment in that field. Many of the costs (financial and other) are still being put on the shoulders of newcomers whose skills had already been evaluated via the immigration points system. What the 2007 budget lacks is an investment in a coherent strategy to address and revert systemic mechanisms that discriminate against newcomers in the hiring process, wage scale, job retention and advancement in the private and public sectors.
The budget also fails to acknowledge the highly problematic aspects of labour market experiences lived by those newcomers who are not university-trained. In any case, as mentioned above, research shows that racialized newcomers that fall within a broad range formal education levels, and particularly women, are over-represented in the categories of under-employment and all forms of contingent and precarious employment.
The Ontario government announced in the 2007 budget an additional $3.6 annually to tackle the backlog of complaints under the Employment Standards Act (ESA). Yet this fails to acknowledge and address the fact that many jobs where employers abuse employees do not meet the outdated parameters in the Act. Temporary employment agencies, for instance, are not operating under clear regulations, and those that do exist such as the ESA do not provide adequate recourse for workers.
An important question in this context is how many jobs that fall within non-standard work categories are part of the statistics optimistically brandished by the Minister of Finance yesterday: 327,000 new jobs since 2003, and 270,000 expected in the next three years. How would the government measure the extent of the contribution made by such workers to progress of the Ontario economy? Given that those in non-standard work arrangements are over-exploited, how would the government ensure that their rights are protected?
The 2007 budget mentions efforts put into upgrading workers' skills via measures under the Canada-Ontario labour market agreements. Training programs under the Labour Market Development Agreement are available only to those workers that can demonstrate they have a labour market attachment as per the provisions in the Employment Insurance Act. For their part, most recent immigrants and those who have been working in the contingent, non-standard sector are not eligible to these training programs. The Labour Market Partnership Agreement, which names immigrants as a priority target population, has not entered into force yet as there are reportedly no funds assigned to its implementation. It should be said, however, that the recent call for proposals by Human Resources and Skills Development (HRSDC) includes immigrants as a priority
Poverty and Living Conditions
Two main announcements have been at the centre of public discussions leading to and after the 2007 budget announcement: the increase in the minimum wage, and the new Ontario Child Benefit. OCASI has been an active participant in the campaign for a minimum wage of $10 per hour, an increase that would bring the minimum wage to the current poverty level, had it not been subject to the freeze imposed by the previous government and kept pace with cost of living increases. The 2007 budget proposes to reach a minimum wage of $10.25 over the next three years. While this measure appears to address the concerns of the anti-poverty campaigners in Ontario, it neglects the fact that inflation will continue its march in the next three years too. Establishing a base minimum wage at the current poverty levels and indexing it to the cost of living is the only way to ensure fairness in the way the minimum wage is determined. That means Ontario needs a $10 an hour minimum wage in this budget.
Click here for the Minimum Wage Campaign.
Contrary to what the government has been arguing, research and lived experience can demonstrate the benefits of raising the minimum wage immediately to individuals, communities and the overall economy - counter to the apocalyptic predictions of negative impact on businesses.
The Ontario Child Benefit will reportedly benefit 1.3 million children in the province, regardless of whether or not their parents are working. These funds will be introduced progressively over the next 4 years. The full amount promised to Ontarians as an ideal benefit for each child ($1,100 per year, i.e. less than $100 per month) won't be reaching the pockets of low-income families until 2011. During his budget speech the Minister of Finance misleadingly suggested that this new program is tantamount to the end of the clawback of the federal National Child Benefit Supplement (NCBS) from families on social assistance. At present, these families are only allowed to retain any increases to the NCBS. The Ontario government continues to clawback a portion of the NCBS, a practice that has been in place for several years.
The newly announced measure would simply indicate that families are finally going to be given again what belonged to them in the first place. But in reality, the Ontario Child Benefit is a provincial program, different from the federal one - and there has been no announcement by the Ontario government that parents on social assistance will be allowed to retain the full NCBS amount. Low-income parents who are working will thus get both the federal and provincial benefits, while the clawback is still in place for those on social assistance.
A provincial child-care strategy is urgently needed. There is no reason to delay this important measure, or wait for the federal government to take the initiative. Quebec already has a functioning childcare strategy. Ontario can learn from that experience and act on it while building on current investments in early childhood learning.
OCASI welcomes the news that social assistance payments were increased by 2%, and that the Budget included an increase to benefits under the Ontario Disability Support Program.
Education
Budget 2007 includes an investment of over $10 billion by 2010 for infrastructure (schools and postsecondary institutions), a welcome measure. Meanwhile, there is still no cap on tuition fees for postsecondary education, despite the fact that public opinion polling data released recently by the Canadian Federation of Students (CFS) showed that a solid majority of Ontarians oppose increases to tuition fees.
Click here for polling data from CFS.
Ontario is one of two Canadian provinces where post-secondary education is the most expensive. Budget 2007 announces more supports to students by way of loans, yet this would mean that students will acquire a larger student debt load at graduation and will continue to face severe challenges in debt repayment. Youth from immigrant families and racialized communities are particularly affected, since on average, immigrant, refugee and racialized families are poorer than the Canadian average.
Access to Human Rights Protection and Reparation
Bill 107 introduced significant changes to the Human Rights System in Ontario, with a number of negative consequences for residents of this province. The Ontario government shut down the public consultation process around this legislation piece and voted to approve it before OCASI and many other community organizations were allowed to appear at Standing Committee consultation on the Bill. The 2007 budget announces funding for the new Human Rights Resources Centre, but not for the Human Rights Commission nor for the Human Rights Tribunal. The Tribunal will now directly receive and process complaints by members of the public. The number of complaints to be dealt with by the Tribunal is expected to increase dramatically since Human Rights Commission resources will no longer be assigned to deal with the first stage. How can the Tribunal render timely decisions without the resources to support the expected additional load?
There is tremendous concern among community organizations working on equity issues in Ontario that the Commission may be targeted for future budget cuts in order to channel funds to the Tribunal to deal with the increased load.
Click here for analysis from Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act Alliance (AODA).
Complainants will no longer receive free legal representation from the Human Rights Commission. Instead additional funds have been provided to Legal Aid Ontario so that complainants can access legal representation by applying for a legal aid certificate. Yet there is concern that these funds would not be adequate to meet the need, and further that many complainants who are just above the threshold for legal aid and do not have sufficient income to retain a lawyer will be left without legal representation in trying to access justice under the Human Rights Code.
Legal Aid
The budget announces new $51 million over three years for Legal Aid Ontario and declares such funds will enhance access to family law services and legal assistance. They will also ensure an increase to the hourly legal aid tariff rate (to about $94.50 per hour) and to increase frontline services in the area of family law. It is not clear whether any of these additional dollars are destined to fund community-based legal clinics. Adequately funding community-based legal clinics, especially those that provide services to members of racialized communities, is an ongoing priority for OCASI. The Council calls upon the government to ensure that there is funding for ethno-specific community-based legal clinics, including the South-Asian Legal Clinic of Ontario (SALCO).
SALCO plays an important role in addressing the gap in legal service needs in South Asian communities, one of the fastest growing in Ontario. These communities include a significant recent immigrant and refugee population and continue to grapple with escalating levels of discrimination, racism and racial profiling that impact on mobility rights, access to employment and access to legal immigration status among other issues. The clinic's survival is currently jeopardized as its funding from Legal Aid Ontario will end in September 2007. OCASI urges Legal Aid Ontario to consider funding SALCO a priority.
Click here for more information about SALCO.
Conclusion
Budget 2007 proposes a number of measures to address concerns raised over the years by Ontario civil society groups and community-based organizations regarding poverty across the province. While some of these proposed measures can be expected to have a positive impact in combating poverty, there is a lack of depth in the government understanding of the challenges involved.
Two of the main initiatives announced by the Ontario government, the minimum wage increase and the creation of the Ontario Child Benefit, will be implemented in a manner that falls short of effectively addressing poverty. These budgetary measures will do little to dismantle many of the well-entrenched barriers that racialized immigrants, refugees and people without full immigration status face in their struggle to build a new life and participate in Ontario civil society. OCASI will continue to raise the critical issues faced by immigrants, refugees and racialized communities, and engage all levels of government in a dialogue on crafting effective mechanisms to ensure their full and equitable social, economic and political participation in all aspects of Ontario.
For more information or inquiries, please contact Roberto Jovel, Policy and
Research Coordinator at 416.322.4950 ext. 234 or email rjovel@ocasi.org