News Archives
12 women you should know
Posted on March 08 2010 under News Archives
Names to celebrate on International Women's Day
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The poor bear the personal cost of diabetes
Posted on March 08 2010 under News Archives
The Canadian Diabetes Association estimates 57 per cent of Canadians with Type 2 diabetes fail to follow treatment guidelines because of the cost of their medication and testing suppliesn
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Mac prof honoured for promoting social justice
Posted on March 02 2010 under News Archives
Dr. Sally Palmer's work as professor of social work at McMaster University has never been just a job.
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File a tax return, raise your income
Posted on February 23 2010 under News Archives
A single mother earning $15,000 a year could get about $8,000 extra income from tax, child and other benefits
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Canadian women's rights in decline, report says
Posted on February 23 2010 under News Archives
The Conservatives' $100-a-month universal child benefit is not an adequate substitute or a realistic alternative for impoverished mothers, especially single ones, who need to work to support their families, Lahey said.
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Guaranteed income leads to better health: prof
Posted on February 23 2010 under News Archives
Would residents be happier, healthier?
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Turn the spotlight home
Posted on February 20 2010 under News Archives
"If Canada wants to lead or lecture the world on anything, we'd better start by filling the gaping holes in our own backyard," said Layton last week.
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Legal aid facing 'troubling' cuts
Posted on February 20 2010 under News Archives
Loss of researchers especially worrying, storefront lawyers say
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Grandparents cheer big victory
Posted on February 20 2010 under News Archives
Tribunal reinstates $230 monthly benefits that allow them to raise 15-year-old grandson
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Area's rising EI, welfare numbers a worrying trend
Posted on February 20 2010 under News Archives
Hamilton has bucked the national trend in unemployment insurance recipients again -- the number grew here in December while it dipped in the rest of the country.
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What happens when EI runs out?
Posted on February 16 2010 under News Archives
Half a million other jobless workers will exhaust their EI benefits this year.
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Natives' poor health tied to poverty
Posted on February 15 2010 under News Archives
Higher rates of H1N1 hospitalizations and deaths among aboriginals than other Canadians demonstrate how basic human rights are not applied equally, according to First Nations physician Dr. Marcia Anderson.
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What do you think the priorities of the 2010 federal budget should be?
Posted on February 15 2010 under News Archives
As part of this year's Alternative Federal Budget project, we have initiated an online consultation that we hope you will participate in.
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Jack Layton: There is suffering in our own backyard
Posted on February 09 2010 under News Archives
Stephen Harper’s recent announcement that Canada will be making maternal and child health a top priority at June’s G8 meeting makes him a welcome latecomer to the issue.
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PFIB Meets with Community and Social Services Minister Meilleur
Posted on February 01 2010 under News Archives
A delegation from the Put Food in the Budget Advisory group met with the Hon. Madeleine Meilleur, Minister of Community and Social Services, on Wednesday, January 20.
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Crowe says Liberals not doing the job on poverty
Posted on February 01 2010 under News Archives
Anti-poverty activist Cathy Crowe has spent decades waging her fight at street level and is now seeking a seat in the provincial legislature, saying the Liberal government's social policy and its wasteful spending compelled her to make the leap.
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Canadians running out of EI: report
Posted on January 27 2010 under News Archives
Half a million Canadians could lose EI benefits before they have any job prospects, the Canadian Labour Congress says.
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The face of hunger changes
Posted on January 26 2010 under News Archives
More working poor and people on fixed incomes make up the soup lines
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Time to transform social assistance
Posted on January 26 2010 under News Archives
As this recession wanes, let's ensure we give Ontario's poor a better life
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'Sad day' for affordable housing, as city shut out for funding
Posted on December 24 2009 under News Archives
Affordable housing advocates were "disturbed" yesterday to learn all six city-recommended rental housing bids were again unsuccessful in the second round of government funding.
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Many give because they have known hard times
Posted on December 24 2009 under News Archives
Hamiltonians are a generous bunch who answer the cry of those who serve its neediest, they say.
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HST brings cautious support, NDP fire
Posted on December 08 2009 under News Archives
Poverty advocates say they're not against the merged sales tax as long as it comes with the right conditions to help the province's poorest residents.
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Senate report urges guaranteed income for poor
Posted on December 08 2009 under News Archives
A Senate report on poverty says tax benefits for the poor should be increased to give them a guaranteed income equal to what is called the low-income cut-off line.
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Report: Growing number of Ontarians struggle without winter coats, nutritious food, & health care
Posted on December 08 2009 under News Archives
First ever provincial food bank client survey reveals the harsh reality of living in poverty
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Does $572 a month cover basic needs?
Posted on December 05 2009 under News Archives
Anti-poverty activists want you to do the math: can you pay the rent, your bills and buy decent food for yourself with that?
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Rallying to feed Hamilton's hungry
Posted on December 04 2009 under News Archives
Christmas hampers will feed 30,000 this season
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Food banks swamped by Christmas need
Posted on December 04 2009 under News Archives
Demand climbs 20 percent
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Where are you on the Deprivation Index?
Posted on December 02 2009 under News Archives
Families not able to afford two or more items from a list of 10 indicators on the Ontario Deprivation Index are considered as "having a poverty level standard of living," the McGuinty government says in its first annual report on Ontario's poverty reduction strategy.
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Report calls for stronger anti-poverty measures
Posted on December 02 2009 under News Archives
A year after Ontario released a landmark plan to fight poverty in the midst of a global economic meltdown, activists are calling for "visionary leadership and unwavering political commitment" from Queen's Park to ensure everyone reaps the benefits of recovery.
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Ontario poverty reduction sluggish: report
Posted on December 02 2009 under News Archives
Activists fear poverty will 'explode'
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Advisers aim to fix Ontario's welfare 'quagmire'
Posted on December 02 2009 under News Archives
"If this group can't make the proper recommendations, then nobody can," said food bank executive director Gail Nyberg.
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Coalition warns poverty reduction at risk
Posted on December 02 2009 under News Archives
One year into the Ontario government’s commitment to reduce child poverty by 25 per cent by 2013, the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction warns the province risks missing its target unless further action is taken.
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How to save a city, one kid at a time
Posted on December 01 2009 under News Archives
Strickland, who has been called an entrepreneur of social change, was the keynote speaker last night at Hamilton Place -- where a rapt audience of more than 1,000 heard ideas that could inspire Hamilton.
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MPP’S AGREE THAT SOCIAL ASSISTANCE IS TOO LOW FOR HEALTHY DIET
Posted on December 01 2009 under News Archives
Is Ontario's Poverty Reduction Strategy Working?
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Welfare reform creeps at snail's pace
Posted on December 01 2009 under News Archives
Little provincial action since 2008 pledge to review regulations on clawbacks, savings
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Ontario Government Continues To Clawback Social Assistance
Posted on November 30 2009 under News Archives
Families hit worst by the July 2009 clawback were single parents with one child aged 13 and over: the average such family is receiving only $1 per month more than they received last year, both for OW and for ODSP
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Ottawa's turn to join poverty fight
Posted on November 30 2009 under News Archives
Next week marks the first year anniversary of the launching of Ontario's plan to reduce child poverty.
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Healthy food increasingly out of reach for low income people
Posted on November 25 2009 under News Archives
Despite the launch of Ontario's Poverty Reduction Strategy¸ the provincial government has not raised social assistance rates sufficiently to cover the cost of healthy food.
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Poverty Reduction Key to Canada’s Economic Recovery
Posted on November 24 2009 under News Archives
“Now that seven out of 10 provinces have committed to poverty reduction, it’s time for the federal government to exercise leadership and develop a clear plan with targets and timetables,” says Sid Frankel, Social Planning Council of Winnipeg.
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Housing strategy is long overdue
Posted on November 24 2009 under News Archives
For the 130,000 families waiting on a list for the chance to live in a home where they can afford to pay the rent without skipping trips to the grocery store, next spring is too far away.
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EI rolls double in Hamilton
Posted on November 24 2009 under News Archives
In Hamilton, the number of people receiving EI benefits more than doubled year over year.
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City's $500,000 food 'hamper
Posted on November 20 2009 under News Archives
Vouchers issued amid welfare crunch
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City adds 3,000 cases to soaring welfare load
Posted on November 19 2009 under News Archives
The city's welfare caseload has skyrocketed by almost 3,000 cases in one year, to its highest caseload since 2000.
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Recession's toll seen in record food bank spike
Posted on November 18 2009 under News Archives
2009 survey finds largest-ever increase in food bank use
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'Nearly homeless' struggle to hang on
Posted on November 16 2009 under News Archives
Some 647,000 Ontarians pay more than 30 per cent of their income on rent; more than 129,000 households are waiting up to 20 years for a social housing unit where rents are geared to income.
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Crisis Coming for Ontario Communities
Posted on November 15 2009 under News Archives
Hard Hit, a new research report from the Social Planning Network of Ontario (SPNO) documents the one-two punch affecting Ontario's nonprofit community services -- an increasing demand for services and lost revenue from funding cuts driven by the economic downturn.
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Poverty roundtable removes 'interim' from Cooper's title
Posted on November 12 2009 under News Archives
A longtime community activist and a Spectator columnist has been appointed director of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction.
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City to hike bus fares, starting Jan. 1
Posted on November 12 2009 under News Archives
Hamiltonians will pay 15 cents more for bus fares beginning Jan. 1.
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Why don't we want the poor to own anything?
Posted on November 10 2009 under News Archives
Asset testing used today is far more stringent than at any time since the post-war period.
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Pan Am fees covered: mayor
Posted on November 10 2009 under News Archives
City won't need to raise taxes to pay for Games, Eisenberger says
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More than 4 million people in Canada living on low incomes
Posted on November 10 2009 under News Archives
Poverty is the No. 1 cause of preventable death, disease and illiteracy, according to the World Health Organization. Excluding the unemployed from benefits during this profound period of economic restructuring is only making things worse.
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New protection for temp workers in Ontario
Posted on November 08 2009 under News Archives
Ontario temp agency workers have new job and wage protection under provincial legislation that takes effect Friday.
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Canada accused of failing nation's poor
Posted on November 04 2009 under News Archives
Refusal to sign indigenous rights' declaration sends wrong message, Amnesty International chief says.
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Five benchmarks for social assistance
Posted on November 04 2009 under News Archives
Ontario's fiscal woes come as bad news for the growing number of Ontarians dealing with the fallout from the recent economic storm.
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Transit Fare Headache
Posted on November 04 2009 under News Archives
A transit fare increase may ultimately be necessary, but not before a great deal of sincere collaboration and creative thinking rule out other alternatives.
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Higher fares and dirtier buses
Posted on October 27 2009 under News Archives
City staff are calling for a 20 cent fare hike for the HSR and DARTS, and switching bus purchases to 40-foot diesel vehicles instead of a mix of 40 and 60 foot articulated hybrids.
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Fare hike next stop for city transit
Posted on October 27 2009 under News Archives
The HSR wants to hike bus fares for the third time in as many years to make up for lower ridership and increased costs.
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GUINNESS WORLD RECORD SHATTERED BY CITIZENS ACROSS GLOBE DEMANDING THAT THEIR LEADERS END POVERTY
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
More than 173 Million People Gather at "Stand Up, Take Action, End Poverty Now!" events, setting new world record for largest mobilization in history!
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Food Banks Under Increasing Pressure
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
The economic downturn has forced more Canadians to turn to food banks and feeding programs, says a new report from the Salvation Army.
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Good intentions may turn to action by year's end
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
In a move that has surprised and heartened many observers, Canada has told the United Nations it may ratify a strategic agreement on the rights of people with disabilities this year.
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New Campaign Lets You "Do the Math" On Income Security
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
This fall, our federal politicians may lead us into an election fought on the issue of Employment Insurance benefits. But when it comes to the other income security programs most important to Ontarians, we are still looking for someone to lead us into battle.
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Unemployment soars in Hamilton
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
Hamilton posted one of the worst unemployment hikes in Ontario during June.
New figures from Statistics Canada show the number of people getting Employment Insurance benefits in the Hamilton-Grimsby-Burlington area soared almost 130 per cent between June 2008 and the same month this year.
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Nation looks to premiers to lead fight against poverty
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
Canada has been plunged into a worldwide recession that is harsher than any economic downturn since the Great Depression. Now, more than ever, citizens are counting on their governments for vision, compassion and leadership.
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Poor households in a world 'far removed'
Posted on October 21 2009 under News Archives
Forget cellphones, poorest can't afford life's basics, and the recession has only made their plight worse
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Rent allowances good for families - and the city
Posted on October 19 2009 under News Archives
Now that Thanksgiving is behind us, it is time to really "talk turkey" and dispel some of the misconceptions surrounding the Royal Connaught controversy.
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It's about food and choices
Posted on October 06 2009 under News Archives
Sometimes, words really do fail. Consider the following example, drawn from the lexicon of the social services sector: Food insecurity.
The term is used to describe people who live in poverty to the extent that their supply of decent food is uncertain.
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The reality of trying to live on disability support
Posted on September 29 2009 under News Archives
She just wants Ontarians to know what life on ODSP is like.
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Affordable housing strategy politically motivated, says NDP MPP
Posted on September 28 2009 under News Archives
Province gets suggestions on local housing needs.
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Fairness to Tenants
Posted on September 21 2009 under News Archives
Feel like getting out of town? The cottage life might not be as difficult to obtain as you think.
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Six food banks share $50k boost
Posted on September 19 2009 under News Archives
Six Hamilton food banks are sharing $50,000 from a foundation established by the Weston family of the Loblaw and Fortinos grocery chains fame.
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BILL 152, “Poverty Reduction Act” Passed Into Law By Unanimous Vote
Posted on September 15 2009 under News Archives
Recognizing that the government can and should play an active and leading role in reducing poverty, the Ontario Government has committed itself to an on-going long-term plan for poverty reduction...
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Robert Land's New Life
Posted on September 14 2009 under News Archives
The elementary school had always been the heart of this struggling but proud neighbourhood.
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