By Kendall Worth
They gave me permission to call them these names, because like many income assistance recipients in Nova Scotia, they worry about the stigma of being on welfare. This couple, in their 30’s, who are on Income Assistance, know from their past, that some people believe in the stigma about them. For more about the stigma I am talking about, check out these blog posts.
Over these past few months, I have been taking a break from doing these stories where I describe the life of an actual Income Assistance recipient, in Nova Scotia. However, as I pointed in my most recent post, these stories help me report on the Employment Support and Income Assistance program in Nova Scotia from different angles. This story is also related to the need for Social Prescribing because this story points out what happens within the system of Income Assistance itself, that encourages social isolation.
Jospic and Jewl’s story, is also strongly related to this story from back in September 1st, 2017 and also is related to this story from March 19th, 2019.
First, however, I want to give you a deeper understanding of their overall situation and what happened within the system of Employment Support and Income Assistance that changed their situation from 2017. In 2021 they decided to move in together and, I want to explain, what their situation was like while they were both single and had their own places.
Before Moving in together as a Couple!
Jospic was living in a one bedroom apartment from 2017 till 2021 where he was paying $700.00 plus power. His rent and power came to $750.00 a month. From 2017 till 2020 he was getting $810.00 a months, plus the Telephone Allowance $40.00 = $850.00 a month. However the telephone allowance went straight to his phone bill. At the time, instead of approving him for a transportation allowance, his caseworker sent him 4 bus tickets monthly for him to travel to 2 appointments a month. He tried to get Special Diet allowances, but doctors notes kept getting rejected, and the request kept getting denied through appeal hearings.
Jewl – From 2017 till 2019 she was paying $750.00, then, in 2019, her rent went up to $850.00 for her Studio apartment. Her power was ~$50.00 a month. She got $810.00 a month which was standard at the time. She also received 3 Special Diet allowances for $81.00 and the $40.00 telephone allowance.
In 2020, both of the above started Receiving $850.00 which was when the Standard Household Rate first came into affect in Nova Scotia.
What, however, is different about their lives since June of 2021 when they decided to move in together as a Couple?
June 2021 they decided to move in together as a couple. They were then affected by Section 6.1.8 of the ESIA Policy Manual. During our interview, both of them expressed the fear that, although they would receive less money in total, they otherwise would lead socially isolated lives in their community. I talked about this in this blog and this one.
So here is their present situation!
Jospic and Jewl currently receive $1376 a month which is the standard for a couple in a relationship living together. Their rent is $1100 a month, plus power. Their Nova Scotia Power bill is $110.00 a month. They do receive a rental Subsidy of $440.00 a month. Then they receive $40.00 telephone allowance then $81.00 for 3 Special diets. So $1376.00 Plus $440.00 Plus $40.00 plus $81.00 = They receive in total $1937 a month. So minus rent and power = $727.00 left to live on. Of course, the $81.00 diet allowance and the $40.00 for phone has to go right onto those expenses. So after those are paid = $606.00 left for the month.
Now if they lived in their own separate places they would be receiving $974.00 x 2 = $1948.00. So $1948.00 - $1376.00 = they would have $581.00 more to live on. That plus they might each qualify for their own Housing Subsidy.
So the thing is it is that losing that $581.00 is based on their decision to live together as a couple. This penalty demonstrates how Income Assistance prefers people to be lonely and isolated. Further to that they have cut themselves off from people they knew outside of Food-Bank and Soup Kitchens because they fear criticism from Better off people over their decision to be a couple living together on welfare. They told me that they got the same stigma I spoke about above… In the eyes of better off people, who know them, they are believed to be mentally challenged. This is exactly the case I reported on in that September 1st, 2017 article.
Another issue is when the $300 for those on disability, became available, they did not get approved for the extra $300. They appealed it, but were told that more information on their disabilities and documentation was needed for their income assistance file to reconsider.,
The system needs to change and the stigma needs to stop!
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