By Kendall Worth!
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| Receiving my booster! |
As COVID restrictions ease, and the days of full COVID lock-downs seem to have come to an end, combined with news about the so-called anti-vaxx mandate/“freedom convoy”, there seems to be more and more anger brewing in the community of people living in poverty.
“What we have been seeing in the news is making us scared!”
“Throughout all of this we followed the rules and got our vaccines.”
My readers want to know: “Have family members, and past friends, who want to keep in touch, been vaccinated and are they taking COVID risk seriously? Are any of them participating in, or sympathetic to, these anti-vaxx/”freedom” convoys ?” “We hope not.” they say.
People living in poverty do not have the same resources to follow all the changes. For example:
When COVID restrictions get implemented, enforced, eased, or lifted now, how do IA recipients know? We do not always have the resources (like internet or phone) to find out about changes. This increases anxiety.
The soup kitchens and other drop-ins, are still doing only take out meals and still following the same protocols as they were from the beginning of restrictions. That also means that people using these services, cannot get COVID information by talking to the volunteers or staff.
Because COVID restrictions have lasted as long as they have, people living in poverty, are getting use to living with COVID restrictions, and “Normal” life feels like it can never return.
This leads me to two new issues:
ONE: During COVID, annual reviews are being completed over the phone, then the paperwork is sent to clients in the mail, to be signed and returned. IA Recipients, I talked to, like this system better than going to see the caseworker in person. However, they still were full of anxiety about doing the telephone interview part of their Annual Review without an advocate sitting with them. If you look at this article I wrote about reviews, in the NS Advocate, you will understand why.
In Nova Scotia, attending your once a year Annual Review, to continue receiving Income Assistance, is the law. Someday, I hope this will change. This has been a part of what The Benefits Reform Action Group was advocating for, as outlined here. And for many years even long before COVID.
The current concern (real or imagined) IA Recipients have, with reducing COVID Restrictions and getting back to “normal”, is Annual Reviews are returning to in-person interviews. They are worried that their income assistance caseworker, is an Anti-Vaxxer and they are concerned that their caseworker might direct them to participate in these anti-vaxxer/“freedom” rallies. However, we know this will not happen.
Why? According to this link there is a vaccine mandate for civil servants (which would include Community Services employees) They must be vaccinated!
Note: "With final data in, [in Dec] Nova Scotia is reporting high rates of COVID-19 vaccination for employees under both the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for key sectors and the provincial vaccine mandate for civil servants..."
So IA Recipients should have no need to fear. But not every IA recipient understands that their caseworker works directly for the provincial government and are covered by this mandate. Some lack communications devices, some have learning disabilities etc. But the one thing I can say is “For an income assistance Caseworker to direct their Clients to support this would go against Provincial standards” - So I believe IA clients have nothing to worry about there.
IA recipients are hearing that these protest rallies are happening across the country demanding an end to vaccine mandates, COVID restrictions and other Public Health measures. Yesterday on February 12th, 2022 we saw an example of this right here in Halifax Nova Scotia, when an anti-vaxx /”Freedom” Convoy happened right here in our own back yard.
All income assistance recipients known to me personally stayed away from these protests because they do not support the cause. But, many of the people I advocate for, also have serious health problems and they will not put themselves at further risk. IA recipients, I spoke to, told me that the convoy through Halifax made them afraid to leave their home, on a truly remarkable, record breaking, warm Saturday in February. They did not want want to be stuck in the house/in their apartments, however, the actions of the so-called truckers and, a cause they do not support made them scared. So, they were stuck at home on a day where they could have taken a walk along the waterfront, or through the various walking trails, which would have had a health benefit!
My contacts are worried about the views of the following people who have an impact on their lives, and whether they might be sympathetic to anti-vaxx/”freedom” convoys:
The income assistance Caseworker assigned to our case who conducts our once a year required Annual Review.
Volunteers who volunteer at the Soup Kitchens and Drop-ins we attend.
For those of us who are lucky enough to have a part time job where we get the opportunity to become acquainted with co-workers (Remember not all IA Recipients who are working part time are that lucky – some work in in isolation)
For us lucky ones – friends and family members who like to keep in touch with us, and who look out for us
Anyone we are acquainted with, through groups we are part of. . .
The community of people I advocate for, have all been doing our part and are taking what we are suppose to be doing, to end the pandemic, seriously. However, just like the financially-better-off-community we are wanting this to come to an end.
But the question now is “How do we move forward without being fearful of what is to come with a “new normal”?
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