Implications of Increasing Family Poverty

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Implications of Increasing Family Poverty

• Given the disturbing increases in income
  inequality in the United States, Great Britain,
  and other industrial countries, it is vital to
  consider the impact of placing ever larger
  numbers of families with children into lower SES
  groups. In addition to placing children into
  conditions which are detrimental to their
  immediate health status, there may well be a
  negative behavioural and psychosocial health
  dividend to be reaped in the future.

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Child Poverty in Lone-Parent and Other Families
in Canada and Four Comparison States, 2000
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Percentage of Persons Living in Poverty in
Lone-Parent Working and Non-Working Families in
Canada and Four Comparison States, 1994
4
Proportion of Young Children Using Child Care
Facilities in Canada and Four Comparison States,
1998, 1999
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Childcare and Early Child Education Government
Policy Situation in Canada, 2000

• Canadian governments provide universal education
  for children ages 5-6, but for those under five
  years of age, government supported childcare may
  be available for those with special needs, poor,
  or working parents. The funding strategies are
  mixed, but come primarily from parent fees. Only
  10 of Canadian children have access to regulated
  child care.
• Primary source Kamerman, 2000

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Childcare and Early Child Education Government
Policy Situation in Denmark, 2000

• Danish governments provide universal education
  for children 5-7, and provides childcare from 6
  months to six years for working parents.
  Government funding is supplemented by
  income-related parent fees to a maximum of 20-30
  of costs.
• Primary source Kamerman, 2000

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Childcare and Early Child Education Government
Policy Situation in Sweden, 2000

• Swedish governments provide universal childcare
  and early childhood education for children from
  birth through six years of age. Funding is
  provided by federal and local governments.
• Primary source Kamerman, 2000

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Childcare and Early Child Education Government
Policy Situation in the UK, 2000

• The United Kingdom provides universal education
  for children 3-4 years of age. From ages 0-4
  child care is available for special needs and
  poor families with funding coming from
  governments or income-related fees.
• Primary source Kamerman, 2000

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Childcare and Early Child Education Government
Policy Situation in the USA, 2000

• The United States provides free education for
  children aged 5. For children from 0-4 years of
  age child care is available for special needs,
  poor, welfare, and working parents. Funding comes
  from governments but parent fees cover 76 of
  costs. Many US parents are unable to afford such
  care.
• Primary source Kamerman, 2000

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Provisions for Paid Maternity Leave in Canada and
Four Comparison Nations, 1995-1996, 2002

• Canada Fifty-two weeks paid at 55.
• Denmark Twenty-eight weeks paid at 100 salary.
• Sweden Fifty-two weeks paid at 80 salary.
• United Kingdom Twelve weeks paid at 90.
• United States Unpaid.
• Source International Reform Monitors, 2002.

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Policies that Support Compatibility of Work and
Bringing Up Children in Canada, 2002

• Canadian provincial governments provide
  subsidized child care for some low income
  parents, but supply is inadequate to the demand
  and cutbacks have worsened the situation in some
  provinces. Most families still must use private,
  unregulated child care. The most enlightened
  province is Quebec which introduced subsidized
  child care for all children. The pursuit of
  family-friendly workplaces on the part of
  employers remains in its infancy in Canada. The
  National Child Benefit is available to low income
  families but many provinces claw these back from
  families on social assistance.

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Policies that Support Compatibility of Work and
Bringing Up Children in Denmark, 2002

• Denmark provides comprehensive provision of
  social services to support families. There are
  day nurseries, municipal day care centres,
  kindergartens, youth recreation centres, and age
  integrated institutions. Extra benefits are
  provided for single-parent families.
• Source International Reform Monitor,
  Newsletters, 2002

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Policies that Support Compatibility of Work and
Bringing Up Children in Sweden, 2002

• Sweden has very good infrastructure of support
  services to working parents. There is a parental
  allowance of 60 days per year per child for sick
  children under 12 years of age. Fees for
  child-care expenses are being lowered and
  unemployed parents are guaranteed three hours of
  child care per day. Extra benefits are provided
  for single-parent families.
• Source International Reform Monitor,
  Newsletters, 2002

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Policies that Support Compatibility of Work and
Bringing Up Children in the UK, 2002

• In the United Kingdom new measures are being
  implemented to assist employed single parents
  such as a child tax credit and obtain child care.
• Source International Reform Monitor,
  Newsletters, 2002

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Policies that Support Compatibility of Work and
Bringing Up Children in the USA, 2002

• In the USA some employers offer subsidized child
  care facilities the vast majority do not. After
  welfare reform, more low income families with
  children need to find and hold jobs. Federal
  employees are entitled to 24 hours per year for
  paid work-leave for child-related activities.
• Source International Reform Monitor,
  Newsletters, 2002

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Policy Trends Weakening Moves Towards Quality
Child Care for Canadian Women

• the reinforcing of decentralist tendencies in
  government, which resulted in part from anxieties
  about Quebec separation
• governmental dealing with fiscal pressures
  through reduced social and health expenditures
• federal withdrawal from program responsibility
  through power devolution to the provinces.
• - Doherty, Friendly, and Oloman, 1998.

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Figure 14 Changes in Number of Low Income
Children in Ontario Since 1989
89
In Female Sole Support Families
91
In Two Income Families
62
In Long Term Unemployed Families
48
In Full Employment Families
103
In Working Low Income Families
91
Total Number of Low Income Children
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Percentage Increase
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Figure 17 Increases in Waiting Lists for
Subsidized Housing, 1988-98, Toronto
500
500
400
300
300
200
100
100
0
Seniors
Families
Singles
22
Low Income

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Canadian Policy Directions

• It has become obvious that people on the low
  end of the income scale are cut off from the
  ongoing economic growth that most Canadians are
  enjoying. It is also obvious that in these times
  of economic prosperity and government surpluses
  that most governments are not yet prepared to
  address these problems seriously, nor are they
  prepared to ensure a reasonable level of support
  for low-income people either inside or outside of
  the paid labour force.
• -- Poverty Profile, 1998. Ottawa National
  Council of Welfare Reports, Autumn, 2000.

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Reducing Health Inequalities

• We consider that without a shift of resources
  to the less well off, both in and out of work,
  little will be accomplished in terms of a
  reduction of health inequalities by interventions
  addressing particular downstream influences.
  
• -- Report of the Acheson Independent Inquiry
  into Inequalities in Health, 1998, p. 33.

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