Does A Gap Between the Rich and Poor Exist?
Canada is a very wealthy nation; many people are astonished when they learn about the social class separation that exists. With the cost of living constantly increasing and poor governmental legislation, the social class separation between Canadians is at its peak, and will continue to grow unless our government takes appropriate action to reduce the gap. “The poorest 10% of families saw their inflation adjusted net worth fall 28 % between 1970 and 1999 and leaving them an average of $10, 600 in debt. In the same period, the richest 10% saw their wealth more than double to an average of $980, 000” (Perkel), the growing division between the rich and poor is continuously getting worse, and becoming more obvious. There are measures that could have been taken in the past that would have helped to eliminate the gap; however today in 2007 the gap is wider than ever. Middle and lower income citizens are being victimized because of inappropriate, or lack of action by our federal and provincial governments, it is time for a change.
Reasons for the Growing Gap Between the Rich and Poor:
Arguably the main reason why the gap between the rich and poor has increased is because of inflation. Everything in life is becoming more expensive as time moves on, this includes: services, housing, materials, taxes, etc. However, for the middle and lower income citizens, their wealth is not reflecting the rapid growth of inflation. A recent study conducted by Stats Canada “concludes that half the country’s families control 94 per cent of its wealth” (Perkel), this is an alarming statistic and demonstrates the inequality that exists in society, as the wealth of the majority, is in the hands of a few. The rich population is not suffering from inflation, they are earning more money and their house values are increasing, while the middle and lower income are suffering greatly, leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), Jack Layton claimed that “Corporate giant CEOs enjoy windfall incomes, working and middle families are working harder than ever just to make ends meat” (Brennan). Layton also went on to place a blame for the growing income divisions in Canada, “The growing divide can be attributed in part to federal and provincial tax policies that have been enormously skewed to favour the wealthy” (Brennan), in past years the legislation in place helped greatly to reduce poverty and homelessness, however recent legislative changes has had a very negative impacted, resulting in more citizens being poor. As of today there has been no answer to stop, or deal with inflation, which is causing the middle and lower income class citizens to be left victimized, while the wealthy get wealthier.
In a recent report released by the United Nations, Canada was placed 10th in the Human Poverty Index, even though the UN condemned our federal and provincial governments for exacerbating poverty and homelessness. The federal and provincial governments can take much of the blame for the growth of social class separation in Canadian society. There are numerous examples, which prove why the government should be held accountable for the growing gap between the rich and the poor. One of the ways that our government has contributed to the gap growth is through recent changes in legislation, “Through down funding, funding cuts and trade deals, the Liberals and Conservatives have drastically reduced the capacity for the federal government to play a positive and helpful role” (Gap Between), there are numerous legislative examples that demonstrate the reluctance to reduce social class separation by our government. Social programs have diminished greatly over the years, and the result is a clear growth between the rich and the poor, in the same report released by the UN, they censured Canada for “Cuts to unemployment insurance programs and social assistance, and the government’s repeal of the Canada Assistance Program, which ensured national standards for education, health and social assistance” (Shantz). A reasonable and effective government will take measures to reduce social class separation, however Canadian leaders have failed to do so and the result is the division between rich and poor being larger than ever.
Who Are Most Likely To Be Victims:
The victims who are most likely to be at risk of being in the lower income class of society are single mothers and aboriginal peoples. The upper income citizens in Canada are getting richer, while the poor are getting poorer. In recent studies, statistics have concluded, “The top 20 percent of families held 75 percent of the nation’s wealth and were rapidly accumulating more. The bottom 20 per cent had no net wealth (their debts exceeded their assets)” (Goar). This should be very alarming for our government and motivate them to take strong action, as this is an astonishing difference between the top and bottom income brackets in Canada. With the majority of the wealth being in the hands of a few, many Canadians are left to suffer. Recent reports have had scathing attacks on Canada’s treatment of the women, poor, and aboriginals. The report concluded “It [Canada] identifies inadequate housing, high unemployment, a high suicide rate, lack of safe drinking water and dispossession of aboriginal lands. Almost a quarter of aboriginal households lack basic amenities and Aboriginal women living on reserves do not enjoy the same rights as women living off reserves” (Shantz), Canada is supposedly a nation that strives on national equality, however equality is few and far between. Mass amounts of women and children are being denied their basic human right to food, clothing and shelter. The United Nations also concluded, “the number of food banks has doubled in the last five years, and that more than 90% of single mothers under the age of 25 now live in poverty” (Shantz). Canada is a very wealthy nation and for most poverty does not appear to be a major concern, however it is tearing our nation apart.
What Can Be Done To Eliminate The Problem?
Although the government illusions us to believe that the growing gap between the rich and poor is out of their control, there are actually numerous things that can be done to eliminate it. A recent article stated that there was a “national emergency for low-incoming housing” (Shantz), and this is very much true, as the amount of people who cannot afford housing is constantly increasing. More low-income housing would provide affordable living conditions for many of the Canadians who are homeless, or those who have to do whatever they can to be able to pay their monthly rent. Inflation has caused housing costs to grow enormously, “the number of tenants paying more than 50% of their income in rent has increased by 43% in the past five years”(Perkel), however the wages that people earn has not reflected this enormous growth in costs. The cost of housing is becoming overwhelming for many Canadians forcing them to become bankrupt, go deep into debt, and eventually become homeless. Canada’s major cities should have a society that reflects it’s economy, however “Homelessness has been declared a national disaster in Canada’s 10 largest cities” (Shantz) there is a major housing crisis, the addition of more low-income housing would help greatly to reduce this problem.
Lack of employment is also a key cause for the growing gap between the rich and poor in Canada. Technology is constantly increasing and making things easier to do, however at the same time many jobs are being eliminated, “250,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost in Canada in the last 5 years, more than one in 10 jobs in the manufacturing sector have been lost to layoffs, plant-closures and non-replacement of retiring workers” (Layton Sounds Alarm). Many people work in the manufacturing industry, and receive decent wages doing so, but technological developments are eliminating a great number of jobs. The reduction of jobs is making many Canadians very unsure about their financial future, and there is much reason for them to be afraid.
For those being supported by the government, what they receive has been diminishing over the past few years, “Unemployment insurance cuts have resulted, in the last five years, in a roughly 50% drop in the proportion of unemployed workers receiving benefits” (Shantz). Not only is the availability of jobs in Canada declining, but also unemployment services are substantially weakening. The combination of these two harsh realities facing many Canadians is resulting in a growing gap between the rich and poor in Canada, and ultimately homelessness.
Homelessness is a huge issue and is not easy to tackle, but with the right ideas and people in place, anything is possible. The federal government in Canada needs to do a much better job in addressing poverty issues, and taking action to help reduce the problems. There are many measures that can be taken to reduce the growing gap between social classes, however the government has not forcefully done so. The economic gap in Canada has become more and more obvious as time pass-bye, however the awareness for this issue needs to improve. For those living in large cities poverty is exposed to them on a daily basis, however for those living in more rural cities everything may appear to be fine. The fact remains that our government must eliminate the growth in social class separation, and improve the quality of living for Canadians.
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Points: 300
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