An election, no matter which party forms government, is always an opportunity for renewal.
As social workers, we know that individual and family well-being is intrinsically tied to the community, to its economic, social and cultural health.
This means that a community requires a full spectrum of social services to meet the health and social needs of its residents. As Tim Broadhead, retired president and CEO of J.W. McConnell Foundation says: 鈥淭his community sector is the lifeblood of a democratic society.鈥�
In B.C., we are concerned about the underfunding of social services generally, and in particular the plight of the wide range of community social services that support people and families at various stages in their lives. These have dwindled because of freezes, cutbacks and poor wages.
In Victoria, we hear of many examples of the impacts of this underfunding of community services. Youth counsellors in schools are dealing with the fallout of mental illness of students as services have been overloaded through underfunding. Families who have adopted children from the foster-care system are no longer receiving specialized post-adoption supports.
A report released this month by the 91原创 Centre for Policy Alternatives, Reality Check on the Size of B.C.鈥檚 Public Sector, informs us that B.C. now has the smallest public sector in Canada.
The 91原创 Association of Social Workers points to a lack of accountability for the 91原创 Social Transfer, which deeply affects 鈥渟ocial determinants of health.鈥�
The recent B.C. budget was a disappointment. One example is Community Living B.C., which supports people with developmental disabilities. While the yearly forecast was an increase of 4.9 per cent in individuals and families requiring such service, the budget provided only a 1.2聽per cent increase.
In B.C., a single person with a Persons with Disabilities designation still only receives $906 per month ($375 for housing and $531聽for all other living expenses), increasing homelessness and reliance on the medical system among our most vulnerable citizens.
In tough economic times, these are the very services that require boosting. But the opposite has happened. And we will all pay dearly for it in the long run with spiralling health costs, huge prison, mental health and institutional expenditures and increased poverty.
Perhaps most tragically, we in B.C. continue to jockey annually for the highest child-poverty rate in Canada.
According to the Living in Canada website, the largest sector of employment for community and social-service workers is health care and social assistance. The average weekly pay for the health-care and social assistance sector across Canada was $800 in 2012, a decrease of 1.7 per cent on the previous year. This average yearly income of $41,650 is still below the poverty line in B.C. for a two-parent, two-child family.
The average hourly rate in B.C. was $19. This is just a living wage in B.C., but many in this sector are working for $14.18 an hour, well below the poverty wage for our city.
When many workers in this sector are themselves in poverty, it makes for a stressful work environment, especially while dealing with the trauma of others.
There is no official body, either provincially or federally, that relates directly to the concerns of the community sector and since 2006, the provincial and territorial ministers responsible for social services have not met with their federal counterparts to share best practices and develop national strategies.
This means that people who are overworked and underpaid are left to defend the limited resources and conditions of the people they serve.
The CCPA claims the austerity policy in the recent federal budget is ill-conceived. While claiming to boost infrastructure spending, the budget actually directs a $1-billion decrease ($1.25 billion to $250 million in 2014). Most of the promised money does not kick in until after 2020. Communities need it now.
The CCPA-proposed alternative federal budget 鈥渢akes the economy off austerity auto-pilot. Deficit-reduction will take a backseat to job creation, and more 鈥� not less 鈥� government spending in the economy. New programs such as national child care, community-based health care, and long-term care facilities will provide 91原创s with much-needed services while stimulating employment in these areas.鈥� It also eliminates the deficit by 2016.
This is the kind of substantial renewal the community requires.
Will the next government, provincial or federal, have the courage to really invest in our future?
David Turner wrote this on behalf of the 91原创 Island Branch of the B.C. Association of Social Workers.
