Redesigning Canada

1
Redesigning Canadas Social Policy Regime From
Liberal Maternalism to Liberal Reconciliation?

• Rianne Mahon
• Chancellors Professor
• Carleton University
• Ottawa, Canada
• Presented to
• Canada-Korea Social Policy Research Cooperation
• University of Toronto
• January 27-28, 2005

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Social Policy Redesign Debating the new social
architecture

• In Canada, as in the European Union, the
  discussion is less about the details of reforming
  the old social security system (though that is
  happening too e.g. health and pensions). Rather
  the debate centres on the appropriate principles
  for redesigning the social policy regime.
• For some, the difference between the old and new
  social architectures is that between passive
  support vs. activation or, from welfare to
  workfare.
• Yet there is an important gender
  dimension to this shift and it is this which
  constitutes the focus of my presentation.

3
The old social policy architecture focus on the
male breadwinner

• there was a maternalist side
• women were supported as providers of unpaid care
  in the household.
• Examples joint taxation spousal allowance
  clauses in public and corporate social insurance
  programs child/family benefits.
• In the absence of a breadwinner, mothers of
  school-age children were often exempted from the
  need to seek paid work

• In earlier decades, social policies in North
  America and Western Europe supported the male
  breadwinner, so he could provide for his family
• It protected against the risks he faced
  unemployment, illness, injury, old age.
• BUT

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Working mothers the ignored step-sisters

• There were always some mothers who stayed in the
  labour force. On the whole, however, working
  mothers did not get the degree of support
  accorded their housewife sisters.
• In most Western countries, governments ignored
  their child care needs, leaving it to families to
  make informal arrangements or for local charities
  to step in.
• In a few countries, like France, governments did
  establish crèches for those who needed them and
  some countries pioneered maternal leave schemes.

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Canadian Social Policy then

• From Workmens Compensation to unemployment
  insurance, the focus is on the needs of the
  working man. Mothers are assumed to be at home,
  supported by their husbands wages (amplified by
  tax deductions for dependents) and his social
  insurance.
• From 1944-1992, however, there was a modest
  universal family allowance (per child), paid to
  the mother.
• The provinces started to provide allowances for
  lone mothers between the Wars. In 1966, the
  federal government begins to contribute 50 under
  the Canada Assistance Plan (CAP). Even then, the
  provinces retained considerable latitude,
  allowing important interprovincial regime
  differences to persist (Boychuk, 1998).

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Working Mothers in postwar Canada

• Temporary federal funding for child care during
  World War II. Ended after the wars conclusion.
  Only Ontario enacted childcare legislation. 1966
  CAP reopened the door to federal funding but few
  provinces take it up at least initially.
• 1950-57 married women need to work extra time to
  be eligible for Unemployment Insurance (Porter,
  2003).
• ILO convention n right to maternity leave (12
  weeks, with pay) but as late as the 1960s, only 4
  provinces have introduced the right to (unpaid)
  leave.

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Things have been changing, in Canada as elsewhere
in the OECD countries

• Ageing as more people live longer, there are
  more frail elderly to care for
• Declining fertility people are having fewer
  children, later, or none at all
• Changing families lone parents and divorce
• Growth of non-standard employment temporary
  work, part time work, self-employment. This
  contributes to
• Polarisation of incomes low wages especially
  among younger workers

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Across the OECD, two policy concerns demography
and poverty

• 1 will there be enough economically active
  people to support the elderly and other
  dependents?
• An important part of the answer
• The mobilisation of untapped resources,
  especially women

• 2 Reducing high poverty rates
• Falling average wages and unstable employment
  means it takes two salaries to keep a family out
  of poverty
• Rising rates of lone-parent families (with high
  probability of being poor)
• An important part of the answer activation of
  lone parents as well as women generally
  (recommended by the OECD, etc.)

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These two policy concerns have produced

• The activation agenda (carrots and/or sticks) -
  aimed at getting lone moms off social assistance
  and into the labour force.
• making work pay - by removing disincentives to
  low wage jobs providing training/job-readiness
  etc
• child care (of some sort)

• A reconciliation agenda
• maternity/parental leaves, of a reasonable
  length
• public support for non-parental child care
• flexible work times for parents of young children
• part time work as a bridge
• other forms of care leave (with or without pay)
  to care for a relative who is sick or dying.

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Third policy concern Investing in human capital

• To succeed in the so-called knowledge-based
  economy, people are said to need the capacity for
  life-long learning.
• National competitiveness is also said to rely on
  the presence of a high-quality labour force.
• Investment in early child education is
  increasingly touted as the first step toward life
  long learning.
• Reconciliation measures thus form part of the
  broader social investment paradigm (Jenson,
  2002).

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Four blueprints for reconciling work and family
life

• There are, however, different blueprints for
  responding to the new situation
• Neo-Familial
• Neo-Liberal
• Third Way Liberal
• Egalitarian

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The Neo-Familial Blueprint

• Modernise gender
  difference
• the female caregiver role now temporary and
  partial
• Lone parents right to care limited to early
  years (0-pre-school start)
• Availability of long term parental leave, also
  0- pre-school.
• But low amount usually means it appeals primarily
  to working class women.
• Support for higher income families to hire
  nannies or use family-based care, that is, cared
  for in home
• Part-time preschool, short part time work for
  mothers (the 1 and 1/4 earner model)
• Examples France, Austria

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The Neo-Liberal Blueprint

• Gender sameness, without gender or class
  equality.
• Lone mothers required to seek work within a few
  months to a year after giving birth.
• They may receive subsidies for child care but
  concerns about quality
• Short parental leave (to preserve human
  capital).
• Private responsibility (families and employers)
  for arranging child care and flex-time
  arrangements.
• Child care affordable for the majority because of
  low wages paid to care givers.
• Examples the US.

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Third Way Liberalism

• Gender sameness, with equal
  opportunity over the life-cycle
• Lone mothers are to be induced to return to work,
  using a mixture of carrots and sticks.
• Flexibility for women.
• Part time work as a bridge, but under parity
  (wages and conditions) with full time. I and 1/2
  earner household the norm.
• paid parental leave - for a maximum of one year.
• No quota for fathers necessary leave remains
  largely maternal leave
• Subsidised child care focuses on the demand side
  (information, subsidies to parents).
  Benchmarking for quality assurance.
• Examples Blairs UK Canada?

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The Egalitarian Blueprint

• equitable sharing of domestic child care between
  parents children have the right to early
  childhood education and care.
• Additional supports for lone parent,
  wage-earners.
• Universally accessible and affordable quality
  child care services
• Care is provided by skilled caregivers, the value
  of their skills is recognised by equitable wages,
  good working conditions and in-service
  opportunities for further training.
• Provision is made for democratic control,
  including a strong element of parental and
  community voice.
• Examples Sweden, Denmark

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Social Policy Redesign in Canada - Following the
3rd Way Blueprint? The National Child Benefit
(NCB)

• The NCB and related provincial initiatives induce
  lone mothers off social assistance.
• Family allowance replaced by tax benefit for low
  to moderate income families with children under
  18. 80 of families with children lt 18 receive
  something.
• Plus Supplement (NCBS) to poor families with
  kids.
• Provinces can reduce social assistance benefits
  by the amount of the NCBS, but reinvest in
  services for families and healthy child
  development.
• Little invested in quality child care some
  provinces, e.g. Ontario, rely on informal care
  for workfare participants.

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Leave policies and child care

• CAP replaced by block funding (CHST)
• Growth of informal care for workfare recipients
  in a number of provinces
• 2.2 billion for Early Childhood Development -
  but no requirement spend on childcare
• 900 million Multilateral Framework Agreement -
  ECLC -

• Paid maternity (15 weeks) and parental leave (35
  weeks) - but replacement rate 55, low ceiling 2
  weeks waiting if shared and eligibility
  restrictions
• Family supplement for NCBS recipients - but at
  price of family-based income testing
• Compassionate Care Benefits (6 weeks), for
  support gravely ill family member. Same rules as
  parental leave.

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In the works a national child care system based
on QUAD.

• Quality, Universality, Accessibility,
  Developmental
• The time has come for a truly national system of
  early learning and child care, a system based on
  the 4 key principles that parents and child care
  experts say matter - quality, universality,
  accessibility and development. Speech from the
  Throne, 5 October 2004
• Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministers
  Responsible for Social Services met today and
  agreed on shared principles to guide the
  development of a new national system of early
  learning and child carethat would include
  measurable goals, shared principles, strong
  accountability and provincial/territorial
  flexibility. The agreed-upon principles include
  quality, universally-inclusive, accessible, and
  developmental. Press release, 2 November 2004

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Quebec leading the way?

• Quebec The federal governments idea of a new
  national child care plan is said to be inspired
  by Quebecs system of 7 a day childcare
• for all children, including whose parents
  unemployed or on social assistance
• collectively bargained wages plus skill
  enhancement for providers.
• Parental leave offers more generous parental
  leave benefits, over a longer period, than the
  current federal program. Self-employed the
  largest category of working poor are covered.
• Sharing of care 1st 18 weeks at 70 salary for
  maternity leave t weeks for the father at 70
  salary 7 weeks at 70 for either parent and
  final 25 weeks at 50. (Federal 55 for 50
  weeks. No daddy quota).

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Conclusions

• Across the OECD, the basic assumptions guiding
  family policy are changing, from various ways of
  supporting the male breadwinner/female caregiver
  family to measures to reconcile work and family
  life.
• But reconciliation can be achieved in different
  ways...
• For the most part, Canadas family policy is
  following a third way blueprint. This is evident
  in policies targeting lone parents, leave
  policies and child care policies - at least to
  date!
• There is, however, a chance Canada will introduce
  an important egalitarian element - QUAD
  inspired by the Quebec model.