Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-fwgfc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-09T12:41:55.088Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Politics of Minimum Income Protection in the Canadian Provinces

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 March 2020

Alain Noël Open the ORCID record for Alain Noël [Opens in a new window]
Alain Noël*
Affiliation:
Département de science politique, Université de Montréal, C.P. 6128, succursale Centre-ville, Montréal, H3C 3J7, alain.noel@umontreal.ca
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

This article compares social assistance incomes, or minimum income protection, for four household types in the 10 Canadian provinces between 1990 and 2017 and relates these incomes to a number of factors, including partisan dominance over time, trade union density, the presence or absence of poverty reduction strategies, provincial social expenditures, overall redistribution efforts, debt service costs and social assistance recipiency rates. In line with findings for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) welfare states, partisan politics does not play a strong role but, as power resources theory predicts, union density and a province's overall redistribution efforts do. Social assistance recipiency rates, which capture the salience of social assistance incomes in a province, also have a significant, positive impact on welfare incomes, confirming the “welfare paradox” identified by Ivar Lødemel. Poverty reduction strategies, however, do not, and they even have a negative influence on welfare incomes.

Résumé

Résumé

Cet article compare les revenus d'assistance sociale, ou le soutien financier minimal, pour quatre ménages types dans dix provinces canadiennes de 1990 à 2017, et il associe ces revenus à différents facteurs, incluant la prévalence d'un parti politique dans le temps, la densité syndicale, la présence ou l'absence de stratégie de réduction de la pauvreté, les dépenses sociales provinciales, les efforts provinciaux de redistribution, les coûts du service de la dette, et les taux de recours à l'aide sociale. Conformément aux résultats obtenus pour les pays de l'OCDE, la politique partisane ne joue pas un rôle significatif, mais comme le prédit la théorie des ressources du pouvoir, la densité syndicale et l'effort provincial de redistribution importent. Le taux de recours à l'aide sociale, qui indique l'importance des revenus d'aide sociale pour une province, a également un impact positif significatif, confirmant le « paradoxe de l'aide sociale » identifié par Lødemel. Les stratégies de réduction de la pauvreté, en revanche, n'ont pas un effet positif sur les revenus d'aide sociale.

Keywords

social assistancewelfare incomeswelfare stateredistributionpovertyassistance socialerevenus d'aide socialeÉtat-providenceredistributionpauvreté
Type
Research Article/Étude originale
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 53 , Issue 2: Special Section: COVID-19 Short Research Papers , June 2020 , pp. 399 - 420
Copyright
Copyright © Canadian Political Science Association (l'Association canadienne de science politique) and/et la Société québécoise de science politique 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Arsenault, Gabriel. 2018. L’économie sociale au Québec: Une perspective politique. Québec: Presses de l'Université du Québec.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
August, Rick. 2015. “Saskatchewan: Development, Reform, and Retrenchment.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Bachelet, Marion, Rastrigina, Olga, Browne, James, Immervol, Herwig, Neumann, Dirk and Pacifico, Daniele. 2018. The OECD Tax-Benefit Model for Canada: Description of Policy Rules for 2018. Paris: OECD.Google Scholar
Bahle, Thomas, Hubl, Vanessa and Pfeifer, Michaela. 2011. The Last Safety Net: A Handbook of Minimum Income Protection in Europe. Bristol: Policy Press.Google Scholar
Banting, Keith and Myles, John. 2013. “Canadian Social Futures: Concluding Reflections.” In Inequality and the Fading of Redistributive Politics, ed. Banting, Keith and Myles, John. Vancouver: UBC Press.Google Scholar
Bartels, Brandon. 2015. “Beyond Fixed versus Random Effects: A Framework for Improving Substantive and Statistical Analysis in Panel, Time-Series Cross-Sectional and Multilevel Data.” In Quantitative Research in Political Science, vol. 4, ed. J, Robert. Franzese. Thousand Oaks: Sage.Google Scholar
Béland, Daniel and Lecours, André. 2008. Nationalism and Social Policy: The Politics of Territorial Solidarity. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bell, Andrew and Jones, Kelvyn. 2015. “Explaining Fixed Effects: Random Effects Modeling of Time-Series Cross-Sectional and Panel Data.” Political Science Research and Methods 3 (1): 133–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Boychuk, Gerard W. 2015. “Federal Policies, National Trends, and Provincial Systems: A Comparative Analysis of Recent Developments in Social Assistance in Canada, 1990–2013.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Bradley, David, Huber, Evelyne, Moller, Stephanie, Nielsen, François and Stephens, John D.. 2003. “Distribution and Redistribution in Postindustrial Democracies.” World Politics 55 (2): 193–228.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brady, David. 2009. Rich Democracies, Poor People: How Politics Explain Poverty. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brady, David, Baker, Regina S. and Finnigan, Ryan. 2013. “When Unionization Disappears: State-Level Unionization and Working Poverty in the United States.” American Sociological Review 78 (5): 872–96.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cantillon, Bea. 2011. “The Paradox of the Social Investment State: Growth, Employment and Poverty in the Lisbon Era.” Journal of European Social Policy 21 (5): 432–49.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
CEPE. 2009. Prendre la mesure de la pauvreté: Proposition d'indicateurs de pauvreté, d'inégalités et d'exclusion sociale afin de mesurer les progrès réalisés au Québec. Québec: Centre d’étude sur la pauvreté et l'exclusion.Google Scholar
Cox, Robert Henry. 2015. “International Trends in Social Assistance.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Daigneault, Pierre-Marc and Béland, Daniel. 2015. “Introduction: Understanding Welfare Reform in the Canadian Provinces.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Deault Picard, David and Noël, Alain. 2016. “Données: Nombre de prestataires et taux d'assistance sociale, dans les provinces canadiennes, depuis 1990.” Département de science politique, Université de Montréal, http://alainnoel.ca/recherches/donnees.html (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
Environics Institute. 2019. “Confederation of Tomorrow 2019 Survey: Detailed Data Tables.” Toronto: Environics Institute; https://www.environicsinstitute.org/docs/default-source/project-documents/confederation-of-tomorrow-2019-survey---report-1/confederation-of-tomorrow-survey-2019---report-1-pulling-together-or-drifting-apart---banner-tables.pdf?sfvrsn=376b472_2 (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
Graefe, Peter. 2015. “Social Assistance in Ontario.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Haddow, Rodney. 2014. “Power Resources and the Canadian Welfare State: Unions, Partisanship and Interprovincial Differences in Inequality and Poverty Reduction.” Canadian Journal of Political Science 47 (4): 717–39.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haddow, Rodney. 2015. Comparing Quebec and Ontario: Political Economy and Public Policy at the Turn of the Millennium. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Haddow, Rodney. 2016. “The Politics of Tax States in the Canadian Provinces after the Golden Age.” Canadian Journal of Political Science 49 (1): 63–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hanniman, Kyle. 2018. “Is Canadian Federalism Market-Preserving? The View from the Bond Market.” In Federalism and the Welfare State in a Multicultural World, ed. Goodyear-Grant, Elizabeth, Johnston, Richard, Kymlicka, Will and Myles, John. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press.Google Scholar
Hudson, Carol-Anne and Close, David. 2011. “From Neo-Liberal Populism to Inclusive Liberalism: The Politics of Newfoundland and Labrador's 2006 Poverty Reduction Strategy.” Canadian Review of Social Policy 65/66: 76–91.Google Scholar
Immervoll, Herwig. 2009. “Minimum-Income Benefits in OECD Countries: Policy Design, Effectiveness and Challenges.” IZA discussion paper series (December). No. 4627. Institute for the Study of Labor. Bonn, Germany, https://doi.org/10.1787/218402763872 (May 7, 2019).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Iversen, Torben and Soskice, David. 2019. Democracy and Prosperity: Reinventing Capitalism through a Turbulent Century. Princeton: Princeton University Press.Google Scholar
Kneebone, Ronald and White, Katherine. 2015. “An Overview of Social Assistance Trends in Canada.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Kneebone, Ronald and Wilkins, Margarita. 2019. “Provincial Government Budget Data, March 2019.” School of Public Policy. University of Calgary. https://www.policyschool.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Provincial-Government-Budget-Data-March-2019.xlsx (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
Larocque, Florence. 2018. “Les politiques sociales du gouvernement Couillard: Une aide renforcée aux ‘personnes vulnérables méritantes.’” In Bilan du gouvernement de Philippe Couillard: 158 promesses et un mandat contrasté, ed. Pétry, François and Birch, Lisa. Québec: Presses de l'Université Laval.Google Scholar
Lødemel, Ivar. 1997. The Welfare Paradox: Income Maintenance and Personal Services in Norway and Britain, 1946–1966. Oslo: Scandinavian University Press.Google Scholar
Maytree. 2019. Social Assistance Summaries 2018: Canada. Toronto: Maytree.Google Scholar
Mondou, Matthieu. 2015. “Social Assistance in Newfoundland and Labrador.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Mosimann, Nadja and Pontusson, Jonas. 2017. “Solidaristic Unionism and Support for Redistribution in Contemporary Europe.” World Politics 69 (3): 448–92.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Nelson, Kenneth. 2003. Fighting Poverty: Comparative Studies on Social Insurance, Means-Tested Benefits and Income Redistribution. Stockholm: Swedish Institute for Social Research.Google Scholar
Nelson, Kenneth. 2008. “Minimum Income Protection and European Integration: Trends and Levels of Minimum Benefits in Comparative Perspective, 1990–2005.” International Journal of Health Services 38 (1): 103–24.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Nelson, Kenneth. 2013. “Social Assistance and EU Poverty Thresholds 1990–2008: Are European Welfare Systems Providing Just and Fair Protection against Low Income?” European Sociological Review 29 (2): 386–401.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noël, Alain. 2013. “Quebec's New Politics of Redistribution.” In Inequality and the Fading of Redistributive Politics, ed. Banting, Keith and Myles, John. Vancouver: UBC Press.Google Scholar
Noël, Alain. 2015. “Quebec: The Ambivalent Politics of Social Solidarity.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Noël, Alain. 2017. “How Do We Measure Poverty?” Policy Options, November 9, https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/november-2017/how-do-we-measure-poverty/ (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
Noël, Alain. 2018. “Is Social Investment Inimical to the Poor?” Socio-Economic Review, advance article, October.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noël, Alain. 2019. “The Politics of Minimum Income Protection in OECD Countries.” Journal of Social Policy 48 (2): 227–47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Noreau, Pierre, Emmanuelle Bernheim, Pierre-Alain Cotnoir, Pascale Dufour, Jean-Herman Guay and Shauna Van Praagh. 2015. Droits de la personne et diversité: Rapport de recherche remis à la Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse. Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse, December, Montréal, https://www.crdp.umontreal.ca/files/sites/101/2016/01/Rapport_Final_Diversite_Droits_Commission_2016.pdf (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
OECD. 2016. Income Distribution and Poverty Database. Paris: OECD, https://www.oecd.org/social/income-distribution-database.htm (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
OECD. 2019. Social Expenditures Database. Paris: OECD, https://www.oecd.org/social/expenditure.htm (May 7, 2019).Google Scholar
Parolin, Zachary. 2019. “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Black-White Child Poverty Gap in the United States.” Socio-Economic Review, advance article, May.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Plante, Charles. 2019. “Policy or Window Dressing? Exploring the Impact of Poverty Reduction Strategies on Poverty among the Canadian Provinces.” Journal of International and Comparative Social Policy 35 (1): 112–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pulkingham, Jane. 2015. “Social Assistance in British Columbia.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Rueda, David. 2007. Social Democracy Inside Out: Partisanship and Labor Market Policy in Industrialized Democracies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Simpson, Wayne. 2015. “Social Assistance in Manitoba.” In Welfare Reform in Canada: Provincial Social Assistance in Comparative Perspective, ed. Béland, Daniel and Daigneault, Pierre-Marc. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.Google Scholar
Singh, Prerna. 2015. How Solidarity Works for Welfare: Subnationalism and Social Development in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tweddle, Anne and Aldridge, Hannah. 2018. Welfare in Canada, 2017. Toronto: Maytree.Google Scholar
Van den Berg, Axel, Plante, Charles, Raïq, Hicham, Proulx, Christine and Faustmann, Sam. 2017. Combating Poverty: Quebec's Pursuit of a Distinctive Welfare State. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Kersbergen, Kees and Vis, Barbara. 2014. Comparative Welfare State Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Van Lancker, Wim, Ghysels, Joris and Cantillon, Bea. 2015. “The Impact of Child Benefits on Single Mother Poverty: Exploring the Role of Targeting in 15 European Countries.” International Journal of Social Welfare 24 (3): 210–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Van Mechelen, Natascha. 2009. “Barriers to Adequate Social Safety Nets.” PhD thesis. Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, University of Antwerp.Google Scholar
Supplementary material: File

Noël supplementary material

Noël supplementary material

Download Noël supplementary material(File)
File 35.8 KB