Feed Ontario says deepening cracks in the economic foundation are contributing to all\u002Dtime highs in food bank use. Find out more.
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But inflation is only one factor fuelling the rise in food bank visits, Feed Ontario said. An erosion in well-paying jobs combined with growth in low-wage and gig work, government cuts to social programs and a lack of affordable housing are also contributing to poverty. That’s all making it more difficult for people to find their way out.
A shift in the province’s labour market offers one explanation for worsening poverty. Ontario’s unemployment rate is low, coming in atin September, but job quality isn’t what it used to be. High-paying, unionized manufacturing jobs have given way to lower-paying, part-time or temporary ones, such as gig work. While in 1991 five in 10 Ontarians worked in manufacturing, now only one in 10 do. Meanwhile, jobs delivering food or groceries for gig companies such as Uber Inc.
A lack of government investment in affordable housing isn’t helping matters either. With few inexpensive living options, rent payments are taking up a bigger chunk of people’s budgets. Almost three-quarters of people who use food banks said they spend close to 70 per cent of their income on rent, the report said. In contrast, shelter costs are considered affordable if they take up 30 per cent or less of one’s budget.
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