Child Poverty in Canada Essays - Economy, Distribution Of Wealth

Child Poverty in Canada Essays - Economy, Distribution Of Wealth Child Poverty in Canada Poverty and Health in Canada: Current Evidence and Policy Responses (HLST 3510) Professor Dennis Raphael The "campaign 2000 2016 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada" measures poverty through more of a concentrated method. The measurement includes: The Low-Income Measure After or Before Tax Calculated from tax filer data (LIM), The Market Basket Measure (MBM) and Low Income Cut Offs (LICO). Along with the OECD Report on Child Poverty the measurement includes the Child Income Poverty Rate and the Poverty Rates in Households with Children and a Working Age Head by Type of Household and Employment Status. In terms of the benefits of using these measures, according to the Campaign 2000 Report the most accurate is the Low-Income Measure After Tax (Campaign 2000 Report Card on Child Family Poverty in Canada, 2016). Reason being, there is a fixed %50 of the median family income and can be adjusted with the number of household members increasing along with household needs demand increasing. LIM is most benefited in international comparisons for poverty. Compared to the other me asurements such as the Low-Income Cut Off which is an outdated version of measuring as it lacks many important factors that an average modern Canadian family requires for such as modern technology and increased levels of expenditures on food. The Market Basket Measure is the measure of absolute poverty via data released by Statistics Canada. It includes basic essential such as shelter, food and transportation of a family of four individuals including two children. According OECD Report Canada amongst other countries Canada is at 13% for children income in poverty. It is the top tenth highest country of children living poverty similarly the 28th country in line for children living in poverty. After the OECD average Poland is leading along with Slovak Republic, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Japan following Canada. Canada is in 7th place for child poverty after the OECD average percentage. For a developed Nations, Canada should be amongst the eleven nations below the 10% mark Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Korea, Switzerland, Sweden, Ireland, Germany, Slovenia, and United Kingdom. In a country like Canada child poverty is not measured by severe starvations and wearing ragged clothing rather suffering from food insecurity, putting food on the table using food banks and having long waiting lists for subsidizing housing and being able to fight for a spot for free children's educational/recreational programs. As a nation, we have all the right reso urces available to decrease our child poverty rate, it is unreasonable we rank in 28th place when the countries below the OECD average are not as rich as Canada is. If Canadians were to find out our place amongst other nations, they would be confused as to how that could even happen to our country. Some specific concerns for different poverty rates among groups of individuals such as people with disabilities working within certain limits, recent immigrants, aboriginal people, people of color. Family lone parents suffer three times in poverty more than a family of two parents. People with disabilities make a living more off their benefits and due to the low benefits, they result to be living close or on border line poverty. According to an article released by CBC, roughly 13.7% of Canadians from ages 15-64 are living with disabilities ( 12 Facts a nd Figures About Having A Disability In Canada 2013 ). Out of those individual according to a Canadian Human Rights Commission Report released in 2009 , men with disabilities that hold a permanent employment position from ages 25 to 54 are 622,175 individuals however men without disabilities that hold permanent employment were 3,166,836 individuals. The numbers are similar with women fro m ages 25 to 54 with 639.622 (with disabilities) and 3,044,787 (without disabilities) ( Canadian Human Rights Commission, pg. 41, 2010 ) . The reports indicate that people with disabilities are often not employed and if they do get employed they are paid less compared individuals with no disabilities. People with disabilities find it very hard to move up the social determinant ladder because they are less capable to do so financially. Many Canadians that have disabilities are not in the labor force resulting them to lead