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i dunno if i have posted on welfare before on this site but it is something that really bugs me about this country's politics.
plus, i have lost track of all of the other threads i have been watching so i guess i will just start a new one.
anyway, what really burns me is that the tax money i pay goes partly to fuel some welfare bum's alcohol and/or drug addictions. imo, there needs to be way better screening so that there are no alcoholics or druggies permitted to collect welfare checks.
why should i pay so that an alcoholic can drink his life away?
so what do u guys think?

   

Welfare barely pays the rent in most places, Indelible. If you don;t have a permanenet address you can't get welfare. The vast majority of welfare recipients are people stuck in an unfortunate situation and trying to get out.

We need to expand the welfare program so it encourages people to work (the present clawbacks achieve exactly the opposite) and make training programs and daycare a major part of the system.

   

as a property manager, I'd like to see changes to the welfare system as well. Simple changes to protect the tax paying public, like....

Rent goes directly to the landlord - so that he is ensured payment.
Food stamps, rather than cash.
If X# of community service hours aren't completed in a month, they don't get a cheque that month. Period.
As it is now it seems that the people who really need assistance have a very hard time getting help, but those who are screwing the system, who know the -in's and out's are living it up.

I manage two apartment buildins and several private homes..I'd say 70% of my tenants are on welfare [pretty pathetic] and only 5 of them pay their rent on time, regularly. When you are on welfare and you are handed your rent every month there is absolutely NO excuse for it being late. The real kicker is that if I evict someone for non-payment of rent and sue them, I'll never see the money, because you can't garnish a welfare cheque. My options sicken me.

option 1 - Sue them, never see the money.

Option 2 - Rat them out to welfare, welfare will deduct the amount from future cheques, but does NOT reimburse the landlord.

I usually go for option 2 - at least this way they don't get off scott free.

   

Payment directly to the landlord is a choice here in Manitoba, Narissa. It works well for welfare recipients and their landlords, but results in the working poor, those trying desperately to get off of welfare, having great difficulty finding housing. Landlords prefer the welfare recipients so the rent is guaranteed. In the end it discourages people from trying to get off of welfare.


I completely disagree with the community service hours. What you are really talking about is slavery...forced labour in return for next to nothing in the way of wages. Required job skills training would make sense. Raising the minimum wage so people can live on those wages would make sense. Tax breaks to companies that take welfare recipients into the work force make sense. Programs to supply clothing and telephones so people can actually look for work make sense. Day care makes sense. Those kinds of programs give people resources and encourage them to get off of welfare. Simply force them to do menial work without paying them encourrages no such thing.

   

The programs you mention with regard to daycare, and whatnot are all great suggestions - Here in Ontario a landlord cannot force a welfare recipient to have their rent paid directly to the landlord, he can request it, but the tenant can refuse, and that cannot be used as a reason to refuse tenancy.

I only know of 2 tenants out of 40 on welfare that are making an effort to get off the system - the others don't even bother to try. That's what infuriates me, there is one girl in particular that I watched bring a brand new television into her rented house, then tried to give me some sob story about her not being able to pay her rent. It's these people that really anger me.

Ok first of all, the do get paid - welfare, they should be happy to 'give something back' to the community who is supporting them. There actually is a program in effect in ontario that does require welfare reciepients to work so many community service hours per month, but if they don't do it, they still get their cheque - so it's no incentive to get off their butts either.

I've, in my own experience, faced tough times where I was forced to go on the system briefly - I sure wasn't looking for an easy ride, I used the system for what it should be - a TEMPORARY solution to a temporary problem. -
I'd LOVE to see a five year maximum placed upon the collection of welfare, being on welfare for life, is just plain lazy.

   

I wonder if getting these people out and about amongst working folk would help them to see past the stagnant welfare lifestyle? One of the biggest problems is as Narissa said. It becomes it's own lifestyle. The emotional impact on an individual collecting welfare is not something someone who's never been there can relate to.

I use to work for a Neighbourhood House (a United Way organization) We had an employment centre that welfare recipients were forced to attend. One of the saddest things I've ever seen is young men who would pass out because of lack of food and lack of nutritional food. At this time they were given $500.00 dollars a month (before Liberal cuts). After spending $250.00 on rent, utility bills, laundrey soap, deodorant, toilet paper, razors, toothepaste, shampoo, bus fare, this leaves what for food?

   

What is the deal with brand new Canadian immigrants? Somebody told me they can just move in and collect wellfare, but I was a little skeptical, anybody know how that works?

   

From:
http://www.russcanada.com/faq.htm

Of course if you've immigrated based on refugee status the above is n/a

   

Ahh, that could be the hitch. I have a friend who escaped Romania under Chow.. uh... Chow-chess-Q? You know, that mean guy that ran Romania for awhile? Anyway, he always talks about coming to Canada, busting his ass, and how he has never required financial assistance. In his opinion, a new immigrant should not be able to collect welfare or unenployment for the first five years you live here. If you can't contribute, you don't belong.

I can see his point, but lets say the refugee shows up at the border with a crippling gun wound or something...

I've seen too many people abuse Canada's welfare system, I don't know what can be done, but there's gotta be something.

Maybe it should be extremely hard to collect a third year of checks, or maybe less time than that. I dunno.

   

I don't know the case with regard to imigrants collecting welfare, but I can tell you one thing, about 11 years ago I was in the welfare office in Ottawa with my cousin and her and I were the only two caucasians in there....the rest of the people were all somalian - no exageration, and there were about 50 people there.

I'd like to know why welfare reciepients are given a tax refund. That just blows my mind, they don't have 'income' they don't pay taxes, what taxes they may pay are paid with taxpayers money anyway - What's up with that???

   

Are you sure the welfare cheque is not subjected to tax deductions?

   

I think that varies from province to province for income tax deducted/refunded, but most do apply for and receive their GST rebate. When they purchase goods and services they do pay tax...just like the rest of us.

Refugees are a different matter because they are basically on the run, escaping persecution. Most arrive without documentation of education or verifiable work histories.

That's a lot different than the workfare programs that exist or have been proposed though, Twila. It's more like giving them a chance to gain job/life skills so they can become independent.

The problem with forcing people to work for their welfare cheques is that they are expected to do menial, basically meaningless tasks where they gain no skills and receive no extra benefits. At current welfare rates most proposed workfare plans don't even pay minimum wage. They also require participants to spend time that would be better spent gaining skills or looking for real jobs participating in workfare programs.

   

A guy walks into the local welfare office, marches straight up to the counter and says, "Hi! You know, I just HATE drawing welfare. I'd rather have a job".



The social worker behind the counter says, "Your timing is excellent. We just got a job opening from a very wealthy old man who wants a chauffeur/bodyguard for his nymphomaniac daughter.



You'll have to drive around in his Mercedes, but he'll supply all of your clothes. Because of the long hours, meals will be provided. You'll be expected to escort her on her overseas holiday trips. You'll have a two-bedroom apartment above the garage. The starting salary is $200,000 a year".



The guy says, "You're bullshitting me!"
The social worker says, "Yeah, well, you started it."

   

Hell, if I can take my dogs, I'll take that job.

It brings up an interesting point though...neither welfare nor EI actively works at job placement in this country. The best that's offered is a posting (on the internet or at the office) of available jobs.

   

Both EI and Welfare recipients can access job search clubs/ places.

These are locations that get the daily papers, have internet access and allow you to email, or fax resume's to local numbers. They have a library of job hunting books, resume building books, employment trends etc.

The inability of some to find work is almost impossible here in Vancouver. It's more along the lines of not willing to work for minimum. Which is understandable for some but not for everyone.

   

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