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Refugees vs Pensioners: The Assistance Debate
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Over the last year, an unfortunate email campaign has pitted pensioners against refugees. The widely distributed email is based on an April 2004 letter to the editor of the Toronto Star which mistakenly claimed that a single adult refugee receives over double the monthly benefit of $1012 given to a single Canadian pensioner.
Nothing could be further from the truth. In Canada, a single refugee adult receives about $600/month through the resettlement assistance program (RAP). RAP offers initial support to refugees referred to by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for resettlement in Canada.
Under RAP, refugees arriving in Canada receive very basic furniture and household effects. The one-time start-up allowance also covers winter clothing, as well as a loan for a rental deposit and telephone hook-up. After this start-up allowance, government-assisted refugees receive a monthly cheque which follows maximum prevailing social assistance rates in each province. The national monthly average for a single adult refugee is $600. Some provinces, like Nova Scotia and Alberta, offer slightly more. Ontario, the province which receives the largest number of refugees, offers only $580.
Refugees with no other source of income can receive the benefit for up to a year while they learn English and look for work. Those able to work are eager to do so as soon as they can.
All Canadians, old and new, deserve the income support they need
to meet basic needs and live with dignity. Let’s work for
justice for all, rather than pitting one vulnerable group against
another.
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