Quebec basic income program begins, but advocates say many low income people excluded
For the first time in many years, Monique Toutant thinks she might be able to buy herself some better groceries and a few new clothes.
The program, aimed at 84,000 Quebecers with a “severely limited capacity for employment” such as a chronic illness or mental health condition, will provide an increase of more than 28 per cent for a single person, the government says. Just as importantly, they will also have the ability to earn about $14,500 a year in wages — up from $200 a month — and have up to $20,000 in savings, all without losing benefits.
Jean Lalande, a spokesman for a welfare rights committee in Montreal’s Pointe-St-Charles, said the program addresses some of the problems with traditional welfare, which discourages people from taking steps to improve their situations by cutting benefits as soon as someone tries to get a job or save money.
William Moore, 58, is also excluded. The Montreal man has been unable to work since 2013, when his body broke down after a life of physical labour jobs, resulting in back and knee problems.
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Quebec basic income program begins, but advocates say many low-income people excludedThe program, aimed at 84,000 Quebecers with a “severely limited capacity for employment” such as a chronic illness or mental health condition, will provide an increase of more than 28 per cent for a single person, the government says
Read more »