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National Action Committee on the Status of Women: Shocking Pink Paper

The National Action Committee on the Status of Women is publishing the 1997 Shocking Pink Paper to provide the shocking facts about women's lives in Canada. We encourage you to copy this paper and to use it during the federal election to question candidates on their party's platform.

Training
International
Child Poverty
Women's Programs
Medicare
Immigration
U.I. Program
Childcare
Violence
Affordable Housing
Universities and Colleges
Aboriginal Women
Persons with Disabilities
Jobs
Lesbian and Gay Rights
Public Pensions
National Standards
NAC's Voter's Guide

Since 1993 the Liberals cut training spending by $600 million despite Red Book promises of more Training. Federal training money will be gone by 1999. The job shifts to the provinces.

Training programs for women and immigrants have been dumped. Women will carry big debts if they take out EI training loans.

For-profit trainers are moving in; they have a poor record in training women.

NAFTA removed protections that guarantee our rights as women & workers; we need "fair trade" agreements that guarantee rights to people, not transnational companies.
Worldwide, women bear the brunt of their country's debts; Canada must forgive its loans to "poor" countries.
Canada must ratify the UN International Convention on the Rights of Migrant Workers & their families - affecting domestic workers.

The number of poor kids in Canada has risen by at least 46% since 1989. Kids are poor when their parents are poor; federal policies that destroy jobs and the social safety net make it worse.
Job creation, better minimum wages and social spending would attack Child Poverty at its roots.
The new Child Tax Benefit gives the working poor a few more dollars but none for the kids of those on welfare.

The promotion of women's rights and equality is more important than ever but federal funding for Women's Programs has dropped from $11 million to $8.1 million. With more groups eligible for grants, a welcome move, the funding needs a significant boost.
It's essential that women's groups get stable, multi-year core funding.

The government cut billions from provincial transfers for health care, jeopardizing its ability to uphold the Canada Health Act. U.S. -style two-tier Medicare looms as "for profit" firms move to fill the vacuum created y health care cuts. Women will have to pick up the slack in families that can't afford expensive services.
Funding must be restored and a non-profit national drug plan established.

Although the government's studies show Immigration is good for the economy, they introduced a $975 Head Tax. It must be abolished.
Family sponsorship by immigrants is being cut and refugees abandoned. Meanwhile, sponsored "business class" immigration gains government favour. The government must keep its promised immigration levels of 300,000 yearly, the majority "family class".

By 1998 U.I. benefits will have been slashed by $9 billion - even though the 1998 UI Account will have a surplus of $12 Billion and only 48% of unemployed workers are collecting U.I., a huge drop.
U.I. Program cuts that hurt women include tougher rules for regular and pregnancy benefits in the case of part-timers with 15 to 34 hours weekly, workers placed on periodic layoffs and new entrants/re-entrants.

Less than 15% of children who need Childcare have access to licensed care.
The Liberals broke their Red Book promise to establish a national childcare program. They have ended all federal funding for childcare.
For the first time in 25 years the number of childcare spaces is declining. All levels of government are now shifting responsibility to individual families.

51% of women experience physical or sexual Violence at least once as adults.
The federal government downloaded responsibility for transition houses, rape crisis and women's centres to the provinces, letting them deliver the fatal blow to services and women's groups. Funding must be restored.
Measures to end women's social and economic inequality would help reduce the rising violence.

Over 1 million Canadians are in desperate need of Affordable Housing. In all provinces, homelessness is on the increase, particularly for women-led households.
Since 1993 there has been no new federal funds for low income housing programs; the government has withdrawn.
The federal government must take the lead in a national strategy to provide affordable housing.

On average, students leave Universities and Colleges with $25,000 of debt. Low paid female graduates carry a costly debt load.
Higher tuition, program cutbacks and a corporate orientation flow from the federal government's abandoned role and slashed funding to the provinces.
The federal government must fund and shape a quality post-secondary system that is accessible and affordable.

Aboriginal Women are "the poorest of the poor" in this country, on-reserve or off-reserve. Racism, sexism and poverty interact. Some end up having to place their kids with Social Services.
Unemployment among Aboriginal women is almost 18%; for those living on-reserve it's 430% to 80%. The lack of public funding for services and on-reserve childcare only reinforces this crisis level of unemployment.

Only 40% of adults with disabilities have paying jobs. The federal government must improve their access to training, employment and income support, disability tax credits and social housing.
The health services that Persons with Disabilities need are under attack. The federal government must establish national standards to ensure health care plans don't discriminate against people with disabilities.

Only one if five women have steady full-time Jobs paying over $30,000 yearly. Women fill 70% of part-time jobs.
Unemployment persists at move than 9% but the government laid off 45,000 federal sector workers and cut transfers which led to layoffs for women in health, education and social services.
Government spending on construction continues to ignore social infrastructures like child care and elder care.

Full recognition of same sex couples as families is not recognized by our federal government. This is a fundamental equality issue.
Lesbian and Gay Rights to access, custody and adoption are denied, as is sponsorship under family class immigration policies.
The federal Income Tax Act still does not permit the registration of pension plans that extend benefits to same sex spouses.

Among single elderly, most of them women, the poverty rate is still 50%. Twice as many women over 75 are poor, as compared with men.
Privatizing pensions by slashing Public Pensions doesn't save money, it just shifts the burden to the individual. Most women have low earnings and can't afford personal RRSPs, a fact overlooked by those who promote RRSPs, like the Reform Party and the banks.

Since 1993 the Liberal government has slashed more than $7 billion from provincial funds for health, post secondary education, social services and welfare. Funding must be restored.
National Standards must be set in federal law to ensure provinces don't reduce or privatize services, allow user fees, adopt workfare or create different entitlements and standards across the country.

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The National Action Committee on the Status of Women (NAC) has produced a 184-page "Voter's Guide:A Women's Agenda for Social Justice" (James Lorimer & Co. publishers) available at some book stores or from NAC:

Email nac@web.net

Fax (416) 932-0646 or Telephone (416) 932-1718

NAC, Suite 203, 234 Eglinton East, Toronto ON M4P 1K5

This page has had visitors since June 1, 1998

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