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TDRC Media Releases |
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MEDIA RELEASE
Toronto
Disaster Relief Committee Endorses Campaign
"Ontario's homelessness disaster has part of its roots in an affordable housing crisis caused by provincial cuts to social assistance and an inadequate minimum wage," said Michael Shapcott, Research Co-ordinator for the Toronto Disaster Relief Committee. "About one in eight renter households have annual incomes of $10,000 or less. They can only afford to spend a maximum of $250.00 per month on rent. But the average rent in Ontario last year was $836.00. That's more than three times what the poorest households can afford to pay." The minimum wage has been frozen at $6.85 for eight years while social assistance was slashed by 21.6% in 1995. Both minimum wage workers and people on social assistance live thousands of dollars below the poverty line. "The impact of the minimum wage freeze and cuts to social assistance is very obvious in my building," said Jenny Gonsalves, a Tenant Representative who lives in Toronto public housing. "People have a very poor quality of life because they have to choose between paying the rent or paying hydro. Some people also have to borrow or beg to make their rent payments." Determined to make poverty an election issue, the Ontario Needs A Raise Coalition has come together to promote increases to social assistance rates and the minimum wage. On June 5th the Toronto campaign launch will include a press conference at 10:30 a.m. at Queen's Park and a rally at the Eaton Centre at 12:00 noon. Outside Toronto, participants in more than twenty communities will distribute flyers and hold events throughout the day. For more information, contact TDRC at tdrc@tdrc.net -30- |