SOCIAL SECURITY AND HELP FOR FAMILIES

IN ONTARIO

With the status of Canadian Residents, you and your family have the right to receive some help and protection from the government. There are several federal, provincial and municipal programs to help families who need help, especially those with children. Apart from a free elementary and high school education, your family has the right to receive economical help during the period while you have no job. These are the benefits in Toronto and in the province of Ontario, for people who need:

-          Canada Child Tax Benefit.

-          Universal Child Care Benefit

-          Ontario Works Program (Welfare)

On the other hand, workers count on an Employment Insurance which allows for some income during the period when they have no job. Besides, after 65 years old, people who have worked have the right to a monthly pension, according to the Canada Pension Plan.

When a family in Toronto, and in other cities in Ontario, have no job or their income is too low, they can resort to food banks. There are several organisations in the different Canadian provinces in charge of delivering daily food rations to those in the need. Food Banks are sponsored by private and official funds, and a family can ask free food for their daily needs.

-  CANADA CHILD TAX BENEFIT – CCTB

In Ontario, families with children under 18 and with a low income, can benefit from the financial help by the province and federal goverment to satisfy their basic needs. As permanent residents in Ontario, immigrant families have the right to receive this help from arrival.

The federal help program known as Canada Child Tax Benefit (CCTB) is run by the Canada Revenue Agency, and provides with help to mothers for every child under 18 until they turn 18. The benefit per child is related to the family annual income, the number of children, their age, and the general situation of the family. There is also additional help in case of disabled children.

To register, fill out and submit the corresponding forms to the nearest Canada Revenue Agency bureau. They will ask information related to your family income during the previous year (the lower the income, the greater the initial help will be) and then will send you the monthly help benefit.

The Canada Child Tax Benefit is a monthly benefit, free of charges, and it is given to mothers of children. The amount is calculated according to the total income of the family during the previous year. The following chart is shown as an example, calculated for a family with an income of $20,435, for a period of July, 2006 to June 2007:

Annual maximum CCTB for the July 2006 to June 2007 benefit year for families with net incomes below $20,435 in 2005

-         If you have children of 6 or younger, you will also receive the UCCB. (see following paragraph)

To estimate the amount of money you would receive for your family, use the next link:

Child and Family Benefits On-Line Calculator

- UNIVERSAL CHILD CARE BENEFIT - UCCB

From July 2006, the Universal Child Care Benefit - UCCB - was implemented with the aim of helping mothers with children under 6. This help has the aim to recognise the upbringing of children and encourage mothers and their efforts, by giving them financial help.

The UCCB is a monthly payment of $100 per every children under 6. To register and receive this benefit, you can use the Canada Child Tax Benefit application.

Use the following link to ask for your UCCB: Apply for the Universal Child Care Benefit

- SUBSIDIZED CHILD-CARE 

In the case of families whose both parents work, do courses, etc., there are child-care centres to take care of children. If parents cannot afford the fee, they may be eligible for a benefit known as subsidised child-care. For more information consult the Ministry of Community and Social Services.

You can get more information on family help programs in any Human Resources Canada Centre

- ONTARIO WORKS PROGRAM – (Welfare)

In Canada, families have the necessary support from the government to guarantee the minimal welfare of citizens, especially of children, when parents are unemployed or going through a difficult financial situation.

There are assistance programs for resident families in the province of Ontario and in the city of Toronto, by the Ministry of Community and Social Services. The program called Ontario Works provides people temporary in need with economical assistance and job opportunities and, at the same time, involves them in certain activities.

1.      FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, food, housing (rent), clothing, purchase prescribed medicaments, dental service for children, special winter clothes, school materials, prescribed glasses and lenses, transportation, etc..

2.      ASSISTANCE IN JOB SEARCHES. They include preparation in the following aspects:

● Training or skill development

● Academic upgrading

● Independent job searches

● English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL)

● Services in the local Employment Resource Centres.

Once a family resorts to Ontario Works and is accepted in the program, a social worker is assigned, who will be in charge of co-ordinating and planning the actions to take. He/she will also assess the family needs and decide on the necessary financial assistance to suit them. Besides, the social worker and the client -the worker - will set the necessary strategies leading to get a paid job. Their goals may be short or long-term, and the client should commit and work to achieve them, as part of the activities related to the program.

As a requirement to receive financial help in Ontario Works, it is compulsory for people to take part in at least one of these programs:

● Employment Supports (Preparation and help in job searches)

● Community Participation (To give a certain service to their community)

● Employment Placement (Placement for people who are ready to work)

● Learning, Earning & Parenting. (For young parents -16-21- who have to Venice high school and get trained to run their families)

For further information on this program, please follow this link:

http://www.toronto.ca/socialservices/index.htm - applyss

Contact Information : Toll-Free: 1 888 789-4199

Toronto: 1 416 325-5666

- EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE - EI

Employment Insurance (EI) is a temporary financial benefit for workers who have paid for this insurance when they had a job. The insurance is paid to workers who have lost their jobs for reasons against their will, such as a lack of work, having a baby, or being sick. This benefit also applies if the worker leaves his /her job to take care of a close relative whose life is at risk.

The aim of this insurance is to assist the worker while he / she finds a new job, or gets trained in their specialisation. There is a requirement of minimum worked hours to have the right to this benefit, which vary according to certain conditions such as area, period worked, etc. It is around 910 hours.

The amount received is the 55% of the average salary the worker had in his /her last job, or a maximum amount of $413 per week. A worker may receive this insurance for no more than 45 weeks. After that, they lose the right.

As the Employment Insurance has a maximum limit, there is also a yearly maximum amount fee for the worker to pay. For 2006, deductions for this insurance were 1.87 per every $100, up to a maximum of 39,000. This maximum is $729,30 for 2006.

For more information on the Employment Insurance, please consult the fallowing link:

Human Resources and Social Development Canada

Employment Insurance (EI) On-line Services.

Contact Information

Toll-Free: 1 800 206-7218

TTY: 1 800 529-3742

-  FOOD BANKS

There are Food Banks in Ontario and in every Canadian province, whose main goal is to provide foods to families with a low income who cannot purchase them in regular supermarkets. These food banks are organisations supported by the government and receive assistance from stores and private donations. In general terms, they are run by volunteers who donate their time to help others. Their goal is that no people in Canada goes to sleep without having had the necessary food.

The families that resort to these banks regularly are:

-         Canadian Families low income families, with different problems, single mothers, unemployed or with an extremely low salary.

-          Refugees. More than 80,000 refugees arrive in Canada per year, from all over the world, especially from Africa, Latin America and Asia. These people are wholly supported by the government during the necessary time they may require to learn English and enter the job market.

-          Skilled Workers , who find it difficult to enter the job market, and have been unable to find a job according to their skills for a long time.

The Canadian Association of Food Banks

http://www.dailybread.ca/

http://www.northyorkharvestfoodbank.com/

“ In every region, food banks report that inadequate minimum wage and social assistance rates, followed closely by high rents, are among the primary reasons for the growing demand for emergency food assistance. The information below is taken from HungerCount 2004 “ 

- WORKER'S COMPENSATION

It is an insurance paid to workers in case of having an industrial accident. It is also applicable in case of job-related illnesses. Apart from the financial benefit, the worker receives therapy and medical treatment to allow him/her to go back to work. There is a Workers Compensation Board bureau in every province, where it is decided if a certain worker qualifies for this compensation, based on medical reports and evidence of the accident or job- related illness.

To get more information about Workers Compensation programs, please consult the Ministry of Labour of Canada

-  CANADA PENSION PLAN - CPP

CPP is a monthly benefit received by those who contributed regularly to the Canada Pension Plan. In 2006, the monthly contribution of a worker for the CPP is approximately 4.9 % of his total salary if he /she is an employee, or 9,99 for independent workers.

This pension intends to cover the 25% of income on which the contributions of the worker are based.

To qualify for the CPP you must be 65 years old, and must have contributed as required by law. A worker may also start receiving the pension on turning 60, but in that case he /she will receive a 30% less than the corresponding amount for somebody of 65 years old. A worker may opt to start receiving the benefit at 70, in which case this person will receive an extra 30%.

The CPP has set a minimum amount per worker of $828.75, in 2005. The average CCP received by the Canadians in 2004 was $458.

For further information, please consult  the Canada Pension Plan

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