Instead of Harsher Work Requirements for Food Stamps....

[Amarok]

Actually we have food vouchers in Canada . But we prefer direct money and food banks .

Sorry but for a family of 4, $15 isn't even a livable wage when you consider that off the top, you don't see an average of 26% of your paycheck due to taxes and other deductions. This of course, depends on where you live, but in my location, 26% is the norm here so I'm going by that. That leaves you with approximately $11.10 per hour to work with.  After those taxes and deductions and based on a 40 hour work week, that's $444 a week or $1924 per month you see on your check. $23,088 yearly. Let's do some more math. 

My household pays $1025 a month for rent on a two bedroom townhouse. We converted the front part of the finished basement into a bedroom for one of my kids. That's $12,300 a year on rent alone. Subtract that from the $23,088 and you're left with $10,788. There's electric, gas, water, cable (internet which the kids need to do homework) and phones which, combined, those utilities cost $446 per month. That's $5,352 a year. Subtract that from $10,788 and you're left with $5,436. We still haven't eaten yet, or paid our car payment, car insurance, renter's insurance (required as per our lease), maintenance on vehicles, including a yearly inspection and emissions fee for the stickers, vehicle registration. We also haven't yet paid for clothes for the kids (because they just have to grow), money for field trips, medications, ER visits, gas for our vehicles, health insurance. All in all, my family's expenses, including rent and utilities, run well over $2200 per month. That puts us well over the $1924 per month my other half would bring home, if he were earning $15 an hour.  

And of course, none of this counts in the fact that there are unique circumstances for everyone. Many people pay child support. Guess what... my other half paid out over $800 a month, based on $17.00 per hour when his ex had the boys full time. 

Keep in mind that at $23,088 (after deductions) based on a $15.00 per hour wage, for a family of four, still puts that family below 100% of the Federal Poverty Level Guideline of $24,300. A family of 5, which we are, is $28,440 and we still can't get help. Why? See below. 

Sadly, most government programs use gross wage calculations, rather than a net earning amount to determine if a family qualifies for help. It can easily be argued that if you earn $15.00 then you make $31,200 a year, but realistically, you don't see $8112 of that money for that year. But they count it as earned income anyway. The system is designed to keep the poor, poor. There is simply no good, realistic way to get out of being poor unless you don't have kids or you come into a windfall of money. You can budget until your fingers bleed, but at the end of the day, when push comes to shove, for many working families the struggle is all too real.

Oh i never said it was adequate. I was simply correcting Capt on his claim about Canada as food stamps .