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CANADIAN SOCIAL POLICY FOR CHILDREN.
Term Paper ID:18751
Essay Subject:
Abuse, adoption, day care, welfare, child tax credit, poverty, family issues.... More...
10 Pages / 2250 Words
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Paper Abstract:
Abuse, adoption, day care, welfare, child tax credit, poverty, family issues.
Paper Introduction:
INTRODUCTION
This research examines the treatment of children under Canadian social policy. The findings of this examination are presented in discussions concerning (1) the specifics of contemporary policy, and (2) the essential issues of the policy debate.
CONTEMPORARY CANADIAN SOCIAL POLICY
AS IT AFFECTS CHILDREN
Contemporary Canadian social policy concerning children includes programs dealing with three major goals--the support of parental abilities to meet the needs of children, substitutes for parental care, and supplements to parental care (Melichercik, 1987). The program specifics are discussed within the context of these goals.
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As a consequence of the way homemaker servicesprograms are structured and funded, the distribution and level of suchservices available across the country tends to vary widely (Melichercik,1987). The Act was originally intended to maintain the purchasing power ofthe average Canadian family (Melichercik, 1987). Currently, the child tax credit is C$565 per year for each childunder the age of 18 years, with an additional C$2 per year supplement foreach child under the age of seven years. (1978). Surrey, BC:Hancock House. The alleviation of poverty issue far predates the universality issue. The application of agraduated income tax structure to family benefit allowances effectivelynullifies the benefits of universality, although the concept ofuniversality is retained. As age increases,however, the proportion of unrelated females in the population increases,while the proportion of unrelated males decreases. Divorce is a key element of the female poverty trap in the lastquarter of the twentieth century. CONTEMPORARY CANADIAN SOCIAL POLICY AS IT AFFECTS CHILDREN Contemporary Canadian social policy concerning children includesprograms dealing with three major goals--the support of parental abilitiesto meet the needs of children, substitutes for parental care, andsupplements to parental care (Melichercik, 1987). ESSENTIAL ISSUES A pro fertility bias may be read into the policy of doubling thelevel of the per child exemption from gross income for each child beyondthe second child. The combined effect of the poverty trapping of females, and theloss of marital status resulting from spouse death is that the proportionof women living in poverty tends to increase with age. The Pelican history of Canada (Rev. Asincreasing numbers of women sought and obtained employment outside of thehome, however, the pool of foster parents shrank. 47-64). Married personsare less likely than unrelated individuals to be poor. There is no maximum limit on the amount of a familydeduction for child care expense. Adoption services in Canada fall under only provincial jurisdiction.In most provinces, adoption services are provided by both a designatedadoption agency (usually governmental, but, at times, quasi governmental,and through private placement agents. In Canada, two out of three poor adults are women. Strong political pressures exist in Canada in the 199 s to provideuniversal day care as a public utility at the federal level. The proportion ofadult women living in poverty does not decline, however, because many womenbecome trapped in poverty in their earlier adult years. TheCanada Assistance Act of 1965 provides income assistance to raise familyincome to a prescribed level; however, implementation of the Act is throughthe provincial governments, each of which has its own separate program.The federal government reimburses the provincial governments at the levelof 5 percent of the cost of the provincial programs, and the level ofassistance provided to families varies by province. The findings of this examination are presented indiscussions concerning (1) the specifics of contemporary policy, and (2)the essential issues of the policy debate. In the context of protective services for children the YouthfulOffenders Act was legislated at the federal level. Failing in their attempts to end universality, the MulroneyGovernment attempted to de-index family benefit allowances and Old AgeSecurity payments. Current policy seeks totrain individuals to become, in effect, professional foster parents,wherein the foster parents may or may not have any children of their ownliving in the home. This phenomenon isprimarily the result of the difference in female and male average lifespans. A child welfare agency's program of servicesto children in their own homes. The ultimate year round tax guide. Group care is intended for children whose problems are so severe thatthey are not considered to be good candidates for foster care. The percentage of individuals who are likely to bechronically poor, however, increases significantly, if one is nonwhite, orfemale. Under the Canada AssistancePlan, the federal government will reimburse the provincial governments forhomemaking services provided to families unable to pay for the services.In most instances, the provincial governments do not deliver homemakingservices. In S.A. (1991). Exemptions from gross income are also permitted for children, for thepurpose of determining net taxable income. (1976). Income security. (1987). The great majority of the Canadianpublic also supports the concept of universality, and that is the reasonthat the two Mulroney Governments, the first of which had an overwhelmingmajority in parliament, have been unsuccessful in their attempts to enduniversality in the country's social benefit programs (Melichercik, 1987). The Child Tax Credit program is also universalin character, and, although the Mulroney Government has attempted to changeit from a universal program to a means test program, public pressures havecaused the government to retreat each time an attempt has been made. This act establishes auniform definition of a child throughout Canada, as an individual under 18years old (Melichercik, 1987). Child protective services are intended to guard children againstharmful experiences. This type of care is delivered by qualifiedprofessionals, in settings where social, emotional, psychological,educational, child care, nursing, and other special needs of children maybe effectively addressed. All of the other social policies involving children are based on(1) the alleviation of poverty, (2) the development of income equity, (3)the protection of children, and (4) the establishment of universal rights(Ross, 1987; Badgley & Charles, 1987; Melichercik, 1987). (Eds.). Preparing your income tax. Health and inequality:Unresolved policy issues. The MulroneyGovernment, reacting to these pressures, promised during the last generalelection (1988) to implement a federal day care program. Group careis residential in character in Canada, and tends to be treatment-oriented(Melichercik, 1987). The challenge of child welfare (pp. There are three income supplement programs involving children. The principal purpose of the counseling services is to leave therole of parenting with the parents, but to enhance parental abilities inthis context (Hirsch, 1976). In S.A. In S.A. That ratio,however, is somewhat misleading. Thedeductions for child care, as an example, are intended not only to provideequity to working mothers, but to encourage mothers to seek work outside ofthe home. An amount equal to 25 percent of anychild care expense deduction claimed, however, must be deducted from theamount of any child tax credit claimed (Ingram, 199 ). In the past, foster placement was sought instable families with children, where the foster parents were willing toaccommodate children in need under the auspices of the state. Public apathy and government parsimony. While these attempts have failed, the Mulroney Government has beensuccessful in making family benefit allowances taxable as income at thefederal level (Arthur Andresen & Co., 1991). The child tax credit is applied as a direct offset toan individuals income tax liability (Ingram, 199 ). DonMills, ON: CCH Canadian. Where feasible, protective services arrangements keepchildren in their own homes; however, removal from the home and fromparental custody is accomplished when necessary. Ross, D.P. Currently, the level of the family benefitallowance is C$31.58 per month for each child under the age of 18 years, orC$378.96 per child per year. References Arthur Andresen & Co. To date, however,this election promise has not been kept. Levitt, & B. Ingram, D. Yelaja (Ed.). Callahan, M. (1987). (1987). Children oftenhave a dramatic effect on female income; women often leave the labor marketduring pregnancy, and while children are young. Group care is discouraged in Canada, as aconsequence of the high costs associated with its delivery (Callahan,1985). As is true with respectto counseling services involving children, these services are delivered byhighly trained professionals, but they are provided through a combinationof federal, provincial, and private agencies, with the result that deliveryis not uniform throughout the country. Thissituation occurs because women continue to shoulder the majorresponsibility for child rearing in Canada. ed.).Harmondsworth, England: Penguin. Canadian social policy (Rev. Adoption services in Canada arecharacterized by controversies concerning single parent adoptions, adoptionby homosexual couples, and the disclosure of birth parent information toolder adoptees (Melichercik, 1987).Supplements to Parental Care Programs designed to supplement parental care are concerned with theprovision of day-care and homemaker services, and with incomesupplementation. The Child Tax Credit program was enacted by the Trudeau Government in1978 (Melichercik, 1987). The Act also shields children fromtreatment as adults in the criminal justice system.Substitutes for Parental Care Social programs designed to provide substitutes for parental caredeal with foster care, group care, and adoption (Melichercik, 1987).Foster care is designed to provide a substitute for parental care in caseswhere it is generally assumed that the parental incapacity to provideacceptable care is temporary. Second, even when women remain in the labor market while theirchildren are young, they often are constrained in job choice. ed., pp. These deductions are limited to C$4, per child per year forchildren under the age of seven years, and to C$2, per child per yearfor children in the seven-to-14 year old age bracket (physically andmentally infirm children over the age of 14 years are also eligible for theC$2, deduction). The Family Allowance Act was legislated at the national level in 1944(McNaught, 1978). Of these issues,by far the most controversial have been the concept of universality(Melichercik, 1987). Under this program, grants were offered by thefederal government to the provincial governments for the establishment ofday care services. The Act is a universal program which was enacted by theLiberal government of the day, after public dissatisfaction had forced thegovernment into an uneasy coalition in parliament with the CCF (CooperativeCommonwealth Federation), the predecessor to the contemporary NewDemocratic Party (NDP). While these services are delivered by highlytrained professionals, they are provided through a combination of federal,provincial, and private agencies, with the result that delivery is notuniform throughout the country. Where both parents work outside of the home, Canadian federal incometax law permits parents to deduct a part of the costs of child care fromtheir gross income in the determination of net income for income taxpurposes. Generally, the provincial governments and Progressive Conservativefederal governments have opposed the concept of universality. Child welfare policy. Child Welfare, (3), 11-2 . These ratios compare to only one in 12, for male-headedfamilies, and one in 5.7 for unrelated males. Few women expect to be the solefinancial support of their children subsequent to divorce. (199 ). McNaught, K. Melichercik, J. Thus, in order to dischargetheir responsibilities to their children, they frequently accept jobs oflesser status and lower pay than they could otherwise command. (1985). The program specificsare discussed within the context of these goals.Supporting Parental Abilities to Meet the Needs of Children Social programs designed to support parental abilities to meet theneeds of children include the provision of counseling services in the home,and protective services for abused and neglected children (Melichercik,1987). Warf, B. Waterloo, ON:Wilfrid Laurier U P. For the first two children, theexemption is C$392 each, while the exemption is C$784 for each additionalchild (Ingram, 199 ). Children,divorce, low-paying jobs, and iniquitous provisions in social supportlegislation are the four sides of the female poverty trap. Only Ontario took advantage of the offer, and, when thefederal government discontinued the program after the end of the war, theOntario government continued the program with provincial funding.Gradually, through the 195 s and 196 s, most of the other provincesimplemented some sort of governmentally-funded day care programs. Other than that example, however, the issues underlyingCanadian social policy toward children are not related to fertility. ed., pp. The major causal factor in the gender-age-poverty linkage is thetrapping of women in poverty in their earlier adult years. Unfortunately,most divorced mothers in Canada do become the major financial supporters oftheir children, and often become the sole supporters. Rather, they establish minimum standards for such services, andprovide some degree of funding to municipal government and privatedeliverers of the services. The Liberalfederal governments, however, have generally supported the concept ofuniversality (Ross, 1987) and, over the past 5 years, they have been inpower in Ottawa 'most of the time. Hirsch, J.S. Again, public pressures forced the government to backdown on its plans (Ross, 1987). Over the ensuing years,several unsuccessful attempts have been made to end the universal characterof the family benefit allowance through the application of an income meanstest. 195-223). While 25 percent of the population willlikely be poor at some point in their lives, fewer than two percent will bechronically poor. As such actions typicallyoccur before a woman is 3 years old, she more often than not loses groundto male counterparts, whose development of job skills is not interrupted.This situation is further aggravated, when women become pregnant in theirteens. The examination considered both the specifics ofcontemporary policy, and the essential issues of the policy debate. 1-26). Yelaja(Ed.). 7-9). InK.L. In almost allinstances, however, the family support levels tend to be below the povertyline established by Statistics Canada (Melichercik, 1987). Whilethe universal character of the program has been maintained, the MulroneyGovernment has been successful in implementing a federal income tax lawchange, which permits the government to tax back a small portion of thechild tax credit (Ingram, 199 ). Even in the early-199 s, about one in every seven persons in Canada ispoor. Waterloo, ON: Wilfrid Laurier U P. ed., pp. The child tax credit may beclaimed by individuals eligible to receive the child benefit allowance.The total child tax credit available to a claimant is reduced by an amountequal to five percent of that portion of the total of the claimant's annualnet income and the annual net income of the claimant's spouse, which is inexcess of C$24,355. The proportion of the population in female-headed families living inpoverty declines, as the family head ages, simply because the children inthose families grow up and form their own households. In thecontemporary time period, the federal government does reimburse theprovincial governments to a limited extent for day care services under theprovisions of the Canada Assistance Act (Melichercik, 1987). The ratio increases to just under one in five, for unrelatedindividuals, and decreases to about one in eight, for persons in families.For female-headed families, and for unrelated females, however, the ratiosincrease dramatically, to one in every 2.7 and one in every four,respectively. Being female, thus,increases the probability that one will also be poor. Governmentally-supported day care services were firstprovided in Canada during the Second World War, as an incentive for womento enter the workforce. Waterloo, ON: WilfridLaurier U P.----------------------- 12 Yelaja (Ed.).Canadian social policy (Rev. The only successes achieved by theMulroney Government in this context have been the implementation of sometax-back schemes, which have left the concept of universality intact, ifnot the total effect. Badgley, R.F., & Charles, C. SUMMARY This research examined the treatment of children under Canadiansocial policy. When parents are either unable or unwilling to provide the necessaryhousekeeping services for children, the potential is high for thedevelopment of serious child welfare problems. Vancouver, BC: U of British Columbia P. Canadian social Policy(Rev. When relatives are not ableto provide assistance, or when the families involved cannot afford to payfor outside help, most provincial governments have developed programs toprovide some level of homemaking services. INTRODUCTION This research examines the treatment of children under Canadiansocial policy.
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