Ep. 40: The Intersection of Disability and Poverty — Intersectionality Series Pt. 2

In our season six closer episode, we’re delving into the intersection of Disability and poverty.

Both are on the rise in Canada.

The Canadian 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability showed, 27% of Canadians 15 and older have at least one disability.

That’s eight million people.

And that’s up 5% from the previous survey in 2017.

And, 2022 and 2023 figures from Statistics Canada show, over one million people who have a disability, are Canadians with low income.

And that’s even higher for people without disabilities — almost two million people.

So what’s going on in this country? And does it depend on where you live in Canada?

It wasn’t until 2003 that Human Resources and Development Canada introduced what’s called, the Market Basket Measure (MBM).

It’s basically calculated by adding up the cost of one basket of goods and services that a family of four needs for a basic standard of living…and establishing how much income they need for that one basket.

But disability advocates say the MBM leaves out a big thing — additional costs, such as mobility aids, that people who have a disability, have every year.

They’ve given the federal government a failing “F”  when it comes to addressing the issues involved in the intersection of disability and poverty.

Find out why…what needs to change…..and what motivates our two guests to advocate for change…in this compelling conversation with:

• Rabia Khedr, National Director of Disability Without Poverty
• Fabio Crespin, Senior Manager of Inclusive Employment at United Way Greater Toronto

SHOW NOTES

• Episode 40 transcript (PDF)
• Disability Without Poverty website
• Disability Without Poverty’s 2024 Report Card
• Statistics Canada — Poverty and low-income statistics by disability status
• Statistics Canada — A demographic, employment and income profile of persons with disabilities aged 15 years and over in Canada, 2022