Poverty

What is it?

Poverty does not just mean financial insecurity, but rather it refers to a chronic lack of the resources, capabilities, choices, security and power necessary for the enjoyment of an adequate standard of living.

Causes of/Factors that Contribute to Poverty

• Lack of affordable housing
• Lack of jobs
• Lack of access to health services
• Discrimination when applying for jobs and accessing services
• Lack of adequate support for the elderly and people with disabilities (people who cannot work)
• Weakening of the social safety net
• Increasing income inequality between the rich and poor

A few quick statistics about poverty in Canada

(From Canada Without Poverty)

• 1 in 7 (or 4.9 million) people in Canada live in poverty
• 1 in 5 children in Canada live in Poverty
• Poverty costs Canada as a whole between $72 billion and $84 billion annually
• Precarious employment has increased by nearly 50% over the past two decades
• 1 in 8 Canadian households struggle to put food on the table. And in 2014, over 60% of food insecure households relied on income from employment.

Marginalized Communities

People who are already marginalized are more likely to experience poverty, including those who are:

• Racialized
• Disabled
• Indigenous
• Women