It was a few weeks ago that I noted that the Piano Man was back. He was perched up in his usual bus bench in front of the Farmer's Market playing an endless array of demo strings on his organ. One was particularly memorable, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. This was played out loud and clear at two o'clock in the morning to an empty audience on a clear, but cool night in April. I was struggling to continue to overcome my stint in the hospital, which whacked me more emotionally than physically, although I am still medicated. I spoke to the Piano Man once. He told me lived close by, so each time he was able to bring his equipment by pulling it in his cart. The last time was when my husband and I were waiting the last bus home, he came to tell us about a hundred "refugees" from Fort McMurray had arrived at Niagara. I thought to myself, "Those people must be really desperate to come to Niagara, of all places, with no jobs, no money, no future". Then, it was realized they had come back to their families they had left behind when they first left to Fort McMurray.
The Piano Man was around last year too, when my husband and I would go to the bars, have a few drinks, cheer on the Blue Jays and come back to rest up and then go home. I haven't been out anywhere in a long time because simply I can't afford it. Too many people around me in this region are experiencing the Cloud, you know that big hanging gray thing that doesn't leave your stream of consciousness as you attempt to go about your business. There's a whole section of King Street, especially towards Ontario Street where businesses have literally closed down. Even Jumpin' Jaxx, one of my favourite after-bar eats when we all used to hang out at Open Mike nights at the Strega Cafe. We'd sit outside on clear nights and chat politics, philosophy, hopes and dreams, none of which ever became true for any of us. I meet the same people we used to do this with ... many are gone already to Toronto or other better climes, but the ones here are left aimless, with a Cloud over their head, even those who had cheerfully graduated from Brock, even those from Brock's Badgers and others who once held down the fort in this Town.
My illness has left me for broke. All the bills still come in, even if I am not able to bring in any money. This is something that two income families do not have to worry about or people who have high paying jobs with the kind of benefits that would carry you over for a short or long-term illness. I've longed for the days when I was able to secure good high-paid employment with these kinds of benefits, but this is not possible in Niagara. Niagara Region has a culture of gigs, low paying part-time jobs and if you are lucky, you can win a lottery or inherit some money and buy some property by the lake. It is not that there is nobody that is doing well in Niagara. I know a few of them, but unfortunately, there are not enough of them to invest in the entire infrastructure we once had and has now collapsed. There are large companies that feed off the poor, such as payday loan companies, household rental agencies, temp employment agencies, pawn shops and similar enterprises that have scarred our once pristine real estate.
As my husband and I left to catch a cab earlier in the week, a man was shouting to himself as he awkwardly walked down the street. His eyes, glittering from the dose of whatever hit he took, gazed at me then quickly turned away. These are part of the downtown landscape these days. All the days when I used to enjoy time together with my husband and even on my own, are gone. I leave my decrepit home to go to my office, where the stress and threat level always seems so magnified, that nothing I do relieves this anxiety. It's not my inability to do my work that is an issue -- it is the kind of problems that walk through my door that create the anger, the sense of hopelessness that I have in this region. We do many kinds of disability claims, which we are largely successful in but they can be a high climb. People I deal with often have mental disorders and their visions and anger and lost dreams are part of what they bring through my door. I compartmentalize. However, regardless of well I do that, I still remember when private practice was fun. Those were the days people had more agreements, more hopes, more dreams and we were consulted to assist them with business plans, board training, workshops, etc., which I enjoyed delivering as much as those receiving them enjoyed attending. I looked forward to this and did not have to think, just put one foot in front of the other and soon, this one will be dealt with and done. These times were memorable.
Unfortunately, there is not much of that going on anymore. Many small businesses have disappeared or gone bankrupt. Even a few of my colleagues had left their practices in less than glowing terms. There is a high rate of pain and depression among those in my profession. Around Ontario, I am aware of some who've had to go to rehab, others who have attempted suicide, others who have quit their practices and others who have had health crises, a heart attack, a stroke or something like I just had. To the contrary, leaning on one's fellow colleagues is not always a great thing, especially when we all are feeling the same way, but many will not admit it. We have to put a look of strength on our faces, while we work to save the folks who come to us who are literally worse off. Working in the Niagara Region in any small business can be a challenge for anyone. People have a much lower average and median income than most other parts of Ontario, At least half of those that have jobs are working precariously. Most new jobs in the region are low-paying, low skilled positions. Too many people are resigned to be happy just to get a call centre job, an occupation with high turnover, high stress and in many ways, hard on the family.
I know when they come through my door - the names of the culprits tend to be repeated, as we prepare to go through our third, fourth, fifth or sixth round with the same parties. I try not to be too insular at this, as even these parties are hurting in their own way and as Jesus lie dying on His cross, he prayed to His Father, "Forgive them, Father, for they do not know" or words to this effect. It seems when the Cloud falls over us and we become ensnared in her difficult web, we become outwardly more nasty to one another and unable to come to a consensus. At the worst of this, I see more hate crimes committed against people, our most vulnerable. These are the folks that are so distressed that they believe that somehow very vulnerable people are getting something that they aren't and therefore, they must churn their aggression on them. I've witnessed people kicking a homeless man right on my street, as well as a group of teenagers pushing an older woman off her wheelchair and told her tauntingly that she can walk. While I do report all of these incidents, I never see how they are dealt with, and it appears that nobody is surprised when I tell them what I saw.
I walk down the streets of downtown. I notice many businesses closing down, only a few new ones opening up. The tenure of the new ones always seems uncertain as sometimes it seems a business has a remnant of permanency, but appears to lose it once the economy even slips yet another impossible notch. When one is at the bottom, one cannot believe how much further we can go. The fact is Niagara has become more and more bimodal in terms of success patterns. I've met someone I knew in the 1990's who was always investing money in properties, in businesses and various activities. The last time I seen him he was receiving ODSP, after a series of heart attacks. One may say, he should have purchased disability insurance. The point is he did, and yes - he did collect for a bit - until they decided he was on it for too long and he got kicked off, like most claimants eventually are. ODSP is becoming more and more the point of ONLY resort and not last resort.
There are others who I will refer to as the Temporarily Better Off (TBO). These are folks that appear to have jobs that last more than a couple of years, pay people enough to eat and have a roof over their head in the same month and might even pay well enough for the person to own and operate a car. However, more and more studies are pointing to the fact that a majority of these people when asked, believe they are one paycheque, one spouse or one illness away from abject poverty. One of my female acquaintances who was forced onto CPP after long term disability basically dropped her after she had to sue and settle with them, still does not recognize that she is one spouse away from desperate poverty herself. Her spouse is a nice man, very ambitious and successful enough to claim and actually keep middle class status ... but like anybody else, all it takes is an illness, an accident or some other issue to lay him out and then he can no longer support the family. One's own empire of assets gets torn down instantly when you ask for help. You have to live on your savings, your retirement savings, sell your second property, etc. until you are down to next to nothing, before you can get help. I don't know what that accomplishes other than keeping people in need of financial support, making it very difficult for them to climb back up, but somehow the TBOs of our society think this is okay. ODSP keeps stats on how people exit the system. Less than one tenth of one percent leave the system through employment or self-employment. Most leave through reaching the age of sixty five or through premature death. Some get married and leave the system as well, but that number is very low as well.
I hear the folks at ODSP wondering why more and more people are getting on this system. How can we stem the flow, they ask. Well, if people can just stop getting sick, stop getting into accidents, stop divorcing their spouses, etc., we'd all be happy. However, misery tends to compound misery and over the past several years, I've watched so many couples separate and/or divorce. To think this does not affect the upcoming generation is a complete understatement! Niagara Region has become a bastion of depression, apathy, division, scapegoating and poverty. One fellow I spoke to said he read a study that said that there are 100 unemployed workers seeking jobs for every single vacancy. That's not very good and certainly not a unifying factor ... for those that get these jobs, there are always people who think they got these jobs for reasons of nepotism, being a minority, etc. I have met men in the region that feel that they have no protection under the Human Rights Code or Charter, when in fact this isn't true. The majority of folks I've represented before the HRTO were white males and we have met with successful settlements and a few times, successful hearings.
The provincial government wants to pick a region to test the guaranteed annual income. I say, don't pick a region - just implement the damned thing. However, if any region needs to be picked, pick Niagara Region, as to me, this area seems to be the one that is so badly covered by that gray cloud and is followed by lingering misery and longing for days gone by. The people here need a boost to their morale, their sense of hope and to aid them in becoming the creative, capable people they were meant to be, and maybe then my practice will grow back into more of what it used to be ... to help people build things, as opposed to constantly fighting for the declining set of crumbs our social safety net offers, or to assist in conflicts with others that led to each one's demise. Maybe then, the Piano Man will continue to play, but aside from himself, he will have others with him playing guitar, drums and violin, and get invited to play in bars, clubs and other places. He will no longer be alone playing musical demos at three o'clock in the morning.
Your thoughts?
Showing posts with label Niagara Region. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Niagara Region. Show all posts
Sunday, May 15, 2016
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
FIGHT BACK AGAINST THE GREAT RECESSION IN NIAGARA
Have you read the news lately?
The Bank of Canada, The RBC and TD Canada Trust have arrived at a consensus that Canada is now in a recession. or at least heading for one. Bank of Canada is considering slashing its bank rate again, following many prior reductions in order to spur more investment. Polls are suggesting that most Canadians believe we never left the Great Recession. That Poll, conducted by Pollara states that more than fifty percent of Canadians in mid-2014 believed the economy was shrinking. However, our Finance Minister Joe Oliver refuses to believe we are in a recession, as his government is slated to go to the polls this fall. This is despite both private and public sector economists warning that we are either already in a recession, or we are facing one very soon.
One would think that our lower dollar would help resurrect our ailing manufacturing sector, which prior to the 1990's was the main private sector producer of middle-class jobs. But it seems my spider sense, and those of many others, sees this is not happening. As extraction, refining and transportation in the oil and gas sector is facing major competition in the South, Alberta is for the first time in many years sliding into a recession as well. This is being felt by Canadian people across the country, both in their perception of their own economic opportunities, as well as economic growth in general. For the first time, in May 2015, Albertans went to the polls and elected their first NDP government, after years of iron-clad conservative rule. This party has also been leading in the polls federally as well. More than fifty percent of Canadians view the NDP as the best effective change from the current government. Mulcair's party continues to enjoy a steady lead over the other two main parties.
Recessions affect all of us. Traditionally, our governments have been cost conscious and tight fisted when it came to spending on programs to relieve the impacts of a recession. While many on the right would argue that governments cannot spend their way out of a recession,but conversely making cuts and tightening up program spending on vulnerable communities does not 'cure' a recession either. Over the past few years, more and more commentators and even wealthy business people have come forward to protest what we all knew already: the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, and more and more people are saying this is not a good thing. Nick Hanauer, a billionaire investor stated in his TED Talk video that when communities don't have consumers to spend their money, business at all levels suffers. Tax cuts for the rich and cuts to social programs supporting the lower income has not ever led to more and better jobs. In fact, the less money the public has to spend at small businesses in their communities, the less likely these business will hire additional staff.
This issue has been brought to the fore by the Occupy movement that claimed the 1% is taking from the further impoverished 99%. Hugh Segal, former Conservative Senator, has been raising the spectre once again of a guaranteed annual income for all Canadians. This would mean creating an income floor that nobody falls below to ensure that nobody lives in poverty and can meet their basic needs. He critiques the current welfare measures applied today, which do more to discourage work and crush incentive than they lift anybody out of poverty, while citing an unconditional guaranteed annual income for all Canadians will increase local spending, as well as eliminate disincentives for Canadians to accept paid work. While discussions about a guaranteed annual income (GAI) still need to be focused, issues around amounts required per person, per family or household, as well as what - if any - clawbacks would exist - as the recipients of the GAI begin to increase their paid work - need to be finalized to ensure we are not replacing one bad welfare system with another one.
At the same time, last Sunday a referendum was held in Greece, in which 61% of those who voted elected to say NO to further austerity measured imposed on them by the European Union, European Central Bank and the IMF, from which bridge funding has been provided over the past five years and has not yet been renewed. Greeks have lived the effects of austerity, enduring deep cuts in pensions, public sector wages and program spending, leaving many people without enough funds to pay for their basic needs. There have been public suicides, business closures and large public protests, which led to Greece electing a far left government that agreed with its people: austerity has to end. Greece is in a difficult spot, not necessarily a result of profligacy, but a result of many factors (e.g. poor enforcement of tax collections, insufficient value added tax or VAT, previous attempts at cuts, as well as pressures resulting from having an economy and currency controlled by others -- countries with more stabilized funding and a significant resource base). More austerity is not going to cure Greece, nor is kicking them out of the "euro: either. These next few weeks are going to prove interesting as Greece's new government attempts to work with its European partners and creditors to get a plan to get itself out of this mess.
In Canada, our right wing has constantly pushed for further austerity measures on its people; in particular, people who are most vulnerable. I don't understand how cutting the amounts people get in unemployment insurance, disability and welfare allowances is going to create jobs, or get these people into stable, middle class positions/ I have witnesses the effects of this philosophy over the past ten to fifteen years and have only seen a downward drift in wages, in business confidence and a noticeable spike in social problems (e.g. family breakdown, mental illness, hate crimes, etc.)/ People talk about not having enough to eat and to pay for their housing in the same month, so how would it be possible for them to spend any money at their local restaurant, movie house or bowling alley? The downward trend is being accompanied by the disappearance of manufacturing jobs and transition to other types of less labour intensive industries, such as the knowledge sector, personal services and to some extent, financial services. Many jobs are also being automated, leaving many more people out of work now or in the future ... . a future vision of self-driving cars, cell phone apps, e-mail and video communications, and so forth, eliminate many jobs as we speak. A recent article in The Atlantic entitled "A World Without Work" hypothesizes further social breakdown and economic crashes if our policy makers are not cognizant about leading interventions to make this transition smoother for all concerned and again, raises the spectre of a GAI.
As the owner of a small legal practice in Niagara, I know that if I were to remain successful and grow my business, as in hiring new people, I need more clients. That means, I need more people who have discretionary funds to pay my office to assist them in various legal matters. If government austerity policies continue to shrink the pocketbooks of the middle class, who remain our biggest customer, my business would not be able to function, nor would any other business - apart from discount grocery stores, second hand clothing shops and low cost rentals. As more people fall into this decline, the demand for these basics will only go up, while supply is limited. Many anti-poverty spokespersons, most of whom have never been poor themselves, are asked what is needed, their first response is "affordable housing". While I agree housing is an issue, it is a symptom not the cause of the sorry state of affairs we are in now. Most people do not want to live with the rules, restrictions and traps offered by 'rent geared to income' housing, while others would like to hang onto the homes they have. The notion of building more social housing as a salve for poverty's ills is very limited to those that want to and manage to get to the top of extensive wait lists, while others further down the list or those that do not wish to live in social housing are left out. Those in RGI housing tend to remain in RGI housing, as establishing oneself or re-entering the labour force from social benefits is penalized.
An attack on poverty has to start with income; that is, income that does not squeeze incentive from those in receipt of it, or stigmatize those that need it or who apply for it. Housing markets that cater to the general population can and will adjust their prices to match the "market" meaning that prices will eventually rise or fall with average income of those that demand the commodity. This relates to talks the mainstream media has about a "housing bubble", which is when the price of housing becomes too high for most people, the prices will naturally fall to a lower equilibrium. Some economists fear this, as many people have taken advantage of low interest rates and have over-mortgaged themselves, where if the rates ever go up or they re-enter the market, they may find themselves locked out. When prices go back to equilibrium it may not necessarily be a bad thing, especially as it will bring more renters into the ownership market, leaving more rental housing available to those that need them. The situation as it stands now is wage controls (esp. the "social wage") without price moderation, which is shutting out the poor not only from the economy, but from their communities as well. Shelter portions of OW and ODSP were last deemed to be adequate at some point in the 1970's, but certainly are insufficient in today's market. These things tend to segregate a large part of our community, which has been repeatedly found in any academic study I've read, to be polarizing and dysfunctional for the people involved (and with enough people in these situations, there can be a chronic recession - much like we feel today in Niagara region).
We have a federal election coming up. While I cannot tell you who to vote for, but please do study your candidates' positions on all issues of importance to you and choose the candidate you believe will best get Niagara out of this recession. Most important -- register to vote, and learn what you need in terms of ID, as some of this had changed. For agencies and others who work with low income communities, please try to ensure that people that need some type of identification can obtain this identification before they will need it to go out to vote. Promotion of citizenship at this very crucial time is vitally important if we are ever going to achieve stronger communities.
The Bank of Canada, The RBC and TD Canada Trust have arrived at a consensus that Canada is now in a recession. or at least heading for one. Bank of Canada is considering slashing its bank rate again, following many prior reductions in order to spur more investment. Polls are suggesting that most Canadians believe we never left the Great Recession. That Poll, conducted by Pollara states that more than fifty percent of Canadians in mid-2014 believed the economy was shrinking. However, our Finance Minister Joe Oliver refuses to believe we are in a recession, as his government is slated to go to the polls this fall. This is despite both private and public sector economists warning that we are either already in a recession, or we are facing one very soon.
One would think that our lower dollar would help resurrect our ailing manufacturing sector, which prior to the 1990's was the main private sector producer of middle-class jobs. But it seems my spider sense, and those of many others, sees this is not happening. As extraction, refining and transportation in the oil and gas sector is facing major competition in the South, Alberta is for the first time in many years sliding into a recession as well. This is being felt by Canadian people across the country, both in their perception of their own economic opportunities, as well as economic growth in general. For the first time, in May 2015, Albertans went to the polls and elected their first NDP government, after years of iron-clad conservative rule. This party has also been leading in the polls federally as well. More than fifty percent of Canadians view the NDP as the best effective change from the current government. Mulcair's party continues to enjoy a steady lead over the other two main parties.
Recessions affect all of us. Traditionally, our governments have been cost conscious and tight fisted when it came to spending on programs to relieve the impacts of a recession. While many on the right would argue that governments cannot spend their way out of a recession,but conversely making cuts and tightening up program spending on vulnerable communities does not 'cure' a recession either. Over the past few years, more and more commentators and even wealthy business people have come forward to protest what we all knew already: the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer, and more and more people are saying this is not a good thing. Nick Hanauer, a billionaire investor stated in his TED Talk video that when communities don't have consumers to spend their money, business at all levels suffers. Tax cuts for the rich and cuts to social programs supporting the lower income has not ever led to more and better jobs. In fact, the less money the public has to spend at small businesses in their communities, the less likely these business will hire additional staff.
This issue has been brought to the fore by the Occupy movement that claimed the 1% is taking from the further impoverished 99%. Hugh Segal, former Conservative Senator, has been raising the spectre once again of a guaranteed annual income for all Canadians. This would mean creating an income floor that nobody falls below to ensure that nobody lives in poverty and can meet their basic needs. He critiques the current welfare measures applied today, which do more to discourage work and crush incentive than they lift anybody out of poverty, while citing an unconditional guaranteed annual income for all Canadians will increase local spending, as well as eliminate disincentives for Canadians to accept paid work. While discussions about a guaranteed annual income (GAI) still need to be focused, issues around amounts required per person, per family or household, as well as what - if any - clawbacks would exist - as the recipients of the GAI begin to increase their paid work - need to be finalized to ensure we are not replacing one bad welfare system with another one.
At the same time, last Sunday a referendum was held in Greece, in which 61% of those who voted elected to say NO to further austerity measured imposed on them by the European Union, European Central Bank and the IMF, from which bridge funding has been provided over the past five years and has not yet been renewed. Greeks have lived the effects of austerity, enduring deep cuts in pensions, public sector wages and program spending, leaving many people without enough funds to pay for their basic needs. There have been public suicides, business closures and large public protests, which led to Greece electing a far left government that agreed with its people: austerity has to end. Greece is in a difficult spot, not necessarily a result of profligacy, but a result of many factors (e.g. poor enforcement of tax collections, insufficient value added tax or VAT, previous attempts at cuts, as well as pressures resulting from having an economy and currency controlled by others -- countries with more stabilized funding and a significant resource base). More austerity is not going to cure Greece, nor is kicking them out of the "euro: either. These next few weeks are going to prove interesting as Greece's new government attempts to work with its European partners and creditors to get a plan to get itself out of this mess.
In Canada, our right wing has constantly pushed for further austerity measures on its people; in particular, people who are most vulnerable. I don't understand how cutting the amounts people get in unemployment insurance, disability and welfare allowances is going to create jobs, or get these people into stable, middle class positions/ I have witnesses the effects of this philosophy over the past ten to fifteen years and have only seen a downward drift in wages, in business confidence and a noticeable spike in social problems (e.g. family breakdown, mental illness, hate crimes, etc.)/ People talk about not having enough to eat and to pay for their housing in the same month, so how would it be possible for them to spend any money at their local restaurant, movie house or bowling alley? The downward trend is being accompanied by the disappearance of manufacturing jobs and transition to other types of less labour intensive industries, such as the knowledge sector, personal services and to some extent, financial services. Many jobs are also being automated, leaving many more people out of work now or in the future ... . a future vision of self-driving cars, cell phone apps, e-mail and video communications, and so forth, eliminate many jobs as we speak. A recent article in The Atlantic entitled "A World Without Work" hypothesizes further social breakdown and economic crashes if our policy makers are not cognizant about leading interventions to make this transition smoother for all concerned and again, raises the spectre of a GAI.
As the owner of a small legal practice in Niagara, I know that if I were to remain successful and grow my business, as in hiring new people, I need more clients. That means, I need more people who have discretionary funds to pay my office to assist them in various legal matters. If government austerity policies continue to shrink the pocketbooks of the middle class, who remain our biggest customer, my business would not be able to function, nor would any other business - apart from discount grocery stores, second hand clothing shops and low cost rentals. As more people fall into this decline, the demand for these basics will only go up, while supply is limited. Many anti-poverty spokespersons, most of whom have never been poor themselves, are asked what is needed, their first response is "affordable housing". While I agree housing is an issue, it is a symptom not the cause of the sorry state of affairs we are in now. Most people do not want to live with the rules, restrictions and traps offered by 'rent geared to income' housing, while others would like to hang onto the homes they have. The notion of building more social housing as a salve for poverty's ills is very limited to those that want to and manage to get to the top of extensive wait lists, while others further down the list or those that do not wish to live in social housing are left out. Those in RGI housing tend to remain in RGI housing, as establishing oneself or re-entering the labour force from social benefits is penalized.
An attack on poverty has to start with income; that is, income that does not squeeze incentive from those in receipt of it, or stigmatize those that need it or who apply for it. Housing markets that cater to the general population can and will adjust their prices to match the "market" meaning that prices will eventually rise or fall with average income of those that demand the commodity. This relates to talks the mainstream media has about a "housing bubble", which is when the price of housing becomes too high for most people, the prices will naturally fall to a lower equilibrium. Some economists fear this, as many people have taken advantage of low interest rates and have over-mortgaged themselves, where if the rates ever go up or they re-enter the market, they may find themselves locked out. When prices go back to equilibrium it may not necessarily be a bad thing, especially as it will bring more renters into the ownership market, leaving more rental housing available to those that need them. The situation as it stands now is wage controls (esp. the "social wage") without price moderation, which is shutting out the poor not only from the economy, but from their communities as well. Shelter portions of OW and ODSP were last deemed to be adequate at some point in the 1970's, but certainly are insufficient in today's market. These things tend to segregate a large part of our community, which has been repeatedly found in any academic study I've read, to be polarizing and dysfunctional for the people involved (and with enough people in these situations, there can be a chronic recession - much like we feel today in Niagara region).
We have a federal election coming up. While I cannot tell you who to vote for, but please do study your candidates' positions on all issues of importance to you and choose the candidate you believe will best get Niagara out of this recession. Most important -- register to vote, and learn what you need in terms of ID, as some of this had changed. For agencies and others who work with low income communities, please try to ensure that people that need some type of identification can obtain this identification before they will need it to go out to vote. Promotion of citizenship at this very crucial time is vitally important if we are ever going to achieve stronger communities.
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