Some days Terry Meehan does long stretches of eating just one meal a day to stretch his food supply.
The $1,100 a month she receives from the Ontario Disability Assistance Program just doesn’t stretch that far.
That won’t change for Meehan — or the vast majority of Ontarians who receive assistance under the program — when the Ontario government today begins allowing recipients to earn more money from work before they get their benefits back.
The change will allow ODSP recipients to earn $1,000 from work, up from $200 previously. For every dollar earned above the $1,000 exemption, the person with a disability will keep 25 cents.
But like Meehan, 95 percent of ODSP recipients will see no change in their monthly income as a result. She said many of her friends are in the same boat as her and she’s not sure how she feels about the government making the change.
“I feel suspicious … when this government is very punitive to those of us who are stuck on assistance,” Meehan said.
In addition to her ODSP benefit, she earns a few hundred dollars a month by taking on gig work when she can, such as using her wheelchair to deliver Uber Eats.
After paying her monthly bills and for medicine and food, she said most months she might have $200 left over. Sometimes it’s less.
“I don’t get enough,” Meehan said. “I was thinking earlier today to see how long it would take to pay back a payday loan.”
The Auditor General of Ontario said that in 2018-19, 510,000 people received ODSP support. When the provincial government announced it was increasing the income tax exemption, it said it would help 25,000 people.
Trevor Manson, co-chair of the ODSP Action Coalition and an ODSP recipient, said the exemption will help workers but doesn’t come close to solving the problem many ODSP recipients face. He called their situation “legalized poverty.”
“We know that the majority of people on ODSP are unable to work,” Mason said. “So it’s not really going to make that much of a difference for the vast majority of people in the program.”
In September 2022, the provincial government increased payments under the program by 5 percent. The change increased the maximum payment by $58 per month to $1,228.
It will be adjusted based on inflation in June.
Jennifer Robson, associate professor and program director of policy management at Carleton University, said the income exemption increase does nothing to close the gap to get ODSP rates down to an acceptable minimum.
“In a city like Ottawa, a person needs just over $25,000 (a year) just to stay on the poverty line,” Robson said.
At the maximum ODSP benefit per month, plus $1,000 in earnings from work, an ODSP person’s monthly income would barely exceed that.
Robson said Ontario could learn from a pilot program for Quebec launched in January.
The new basic income program is for people with severe limitations in their ability to work, including people with disabilities. The basic benefit is $1,138 per month, but can be higher depending on the individual’s circumstances.
For Meehan, work is a variable thing. She says she never knows what kind of job she might get. In December she was able to work for Christmas and worked every day. But she ended up making too much money, leaving her January ODSP payment at $0.
If she could find a permanent part-time job, she would take it immediately.
She paid her rent this week by saving her earnings from December and is worried about how she will continue to afford groceries as food prices skyrocket.
“I had to make sure I saved that money from December so at least my bills were paid, food—oh,” Meehan paused. “I’ll know when I know.”
“Anyone can be in this situation for any reason at a moment’s notice,” Meehan said.
“People don’t get to choose whether or not they have a health problem or have had an accident and can’t work.
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