Sam; if you live in Ontario check out the above link for the Trillium benefit plan. There is a bit of work involved (paperwork etc) but it may help you with your prescriptions.

If you aren’t in Ontario, you may find that other provinces have similar programs with a google search.

Good Luck

I know I’m lucky to live in a country where so many services are covered, but I can’t give 20% of what I make to taxes and be confident that my health will be provided for, which is a really scary way to live. I would be immensely more comfortable on what I’m making if my provincial health coverage included some sort of drug plan and at least a ‘once every two years’ dentist and optometrist check-up for adults.

Let’s say 500 $ per month for each adult canadian citizen without discrimination. That is 6000 $ a year rewarding everyone, adding up to general income, make it minimum or not. For the really wealthy, might be a way to do a trade in for charity of else, for most people, it would simply push them in the next taxation bracket. One thing is sure, it would help the economy thrive.

So you wanna pile up in a 2 bedroom apartment to save up on rent? fine. You wanna work more, work less. No problem. And for single parent with kids… just boost the child support accordingly. Basically, we spend millions of dollars just to manage, file, investigate, grant and cut… This would be a big start up… but the returns would be amazing. And that is a way to bypass the wages which, as dictated by the market and the world economy, are hard to increase.

What about that Gail?

But first you need some principles.

1) Anyone willing and able to work a full work week (40 hours) should also be able to earn a sufficient wage to be self-supporting.

2) People in low income jobs have should have some level of income security and some protections from emergency costs (medical etc.)

3) Irrespective of income people should enjoy some level of quality of life.

Now I’m not speaking here of any kind of socialist utopia. Able-bodied adults need to work a full week’s hours if they can, and of course you get a much more modest pay for entry-level, low-skill, low-responsibility work.

But people should has some measure of fairness, not everyone can be a heart surgeon or well-paid construction worker, and those who aren’t should do without the basics, or live in constant fear of not making the rent.

To that end:

1) Minimum Wage should be aligned with the local poverty wage rate for the basics, while it can’t vary in every little town, there needs to be an acknowledgment that is much more expensive to live in Toronto than North Bay.

As such, the minimum wage in most parts of Canada could be $10.00 an hour; but in Cities like Toronto that won’t cut it. At least $12.00 is required, and that’s being very optimistic.

2) The Basic personal exemption (the level below which you pay no income tax) should be aligned with the minimum wage, so that taxes do not have the effect of pushing someone into poverty who otherwise would be self-sufficient.

3) Every body should get a least a small number (5??) of paid sick days. This is important as low wage earners are often those without, and if they get genuinely sick, they may find themselves short of rent money, or perhaps even transit fare to get to work! This is a bit complicated for people with hourly shifts that vary from week to week, but there are formulas that make it do-able.

4) Finally, every one should get at least 3 weeks paid vacation. Most of the world gets 4 weeks, not just Europe, but places like Australia, India, and Brazil. Even the Japanese get more than 2 weeks, and 13 statutory holidays to boot. Aside from providing a better quality of life; the greater vacation standards mean greater employment (up to a point)
I should point out, Saskatchewan has 3 weeks paid vacation, but is the only province to require this.

In a province that has two or three of the country’s most expensive housing/rental markets, this is shameful.

I got desperate recently, thinking that heck, I could work evenings and weekends at Zellers or a grocery store for minimum wage and save on childcare!

Then my husband got notice that he was being deployed to go overseas December 1st.

There went that idea.

So, I plug away at my business again. Try to reduce costs so I can make more money without affecting quality. At least I can run my business for the most part without too much reliance on child care.

What would I change? How about increasing the military pay, so that when spouses are forced to move and be without work it isn’t a hardship on the family. My husband in his specialized field could be making double on “civvy street”, but he loves serving our country. As the one who does the bills and who has to say “no” constantly, this makes me a bit bitter when politicians spend our money on increasing their salary, or make stupid decisions that end up costing tax payers millions.

As I say, that is the case of a single person, if you have children, a major medical emergency, or a similar disaster, it is no longer enough. The minimum wage has to go up because as much as we say that a low pay is motivation to get an education, it is not always possible. If you have two kids and suddenly no husband, you just cant afford to go back and get a college degree for two years, let alone a bachelor’s for four.