[community] Disability Inclusive COVID-`9 Recovery Policy

Sun Jul 12 19:12:52 UTC 2020

thanks Ushnish, I couldn/t agree more. Notwithstanding some good decisions
on the response by the Ontario government there does seem to be an ongoing
problem of transparency around the collection and use of data, including
disaggregation as an important step for recovery planning.

I am personally trying to push a similar point within government about the
need to disaggregate data on employment and income security impacts of the
pandemic. There is plenty of discussion about income security as the CERB
is likely to be phased out, and those who no longer qualify for EI would
(under current circumstances  end up drawing down their savings/assets and
go onto social assistance. This is important as far as it goes but iit
assumes that income support should be tied to earned income, as with EI,
but this overlooks the situation for those who are systemically pushed out
of the workforce due to accessibility barriers and discrimination based on
ability.

>From a policy standpoint there is an assumption that if you experience such
barriers, you will be on ODSP for income support. This is well below the
level of support offered by the federal CERB.

But as there is no ongoing disaggregation of labour market or social
assistance data for activity limitations, discrimination or acccessibility
barriers, we have no way of planning for a fair disability-inclusive
recovery.  We do not even know if those on Ontario Works -- who are
required to be seeking employment despite the pandemic - experience these
barriers. We simply do not ask the question and so we do not collect the
data.

 that can take years and even then, there is no data about those who do NOT
make it onto ODSP as to what activity limitations they may have. No one on
OW is assessed for these barriers unless they formally apply to DSSP, so we
simply have no disaggregated data about activity limitations or
accessibility barriers for the nearly 1 million Ontarians living on
sub-poverty income support through OW and/or ODSP.

Please let me know if you (or anyone on this list) is involved in
government programs to remedy these data gaps.  I am very interested to
connect and offer whatever support I can from my particular vantage point
in MCCSS.

thanks
j

 As it now stands, there is discussion of launching whole new income
support programs to catch those who may no longer qualify for EI and may
therefore, in the legacy income security system we have in place (OW and
ODSP) have to draw down all their savings and assets before going onto
social assistance.

This is correctly seen as a major gap in the income security system, but it
fails to recognize we need income support that is not tied to earnings
alone because many PWD experience discrimination and  lack of accessibility
in the workplace

On Mon, Jun 15, 2020 at 12:03 PM Ushnish Sengupta <
ushnish.sengupta at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi John
> You have identified an important gap in evidence for policy.
> AFAIK, there is no disaggregated data being collected and published by the
> provincial governments in Canada on PWD and Covid19 cases, deaths, tests.
> Without the data it is difficult to understand the disparate impact on PWD.
> We know from news reports that vulnerable communities involving PWD have
> been severely affected:
> https://nationalpost.com/news/jane-philpott-on-life-inside-the-care-home-where-95-per-cent-of-the-residents-have-covid-19
>
> Organizations serving the Black community and allies jointly and
> successfully lobbied the provincial government to start collecting
> disaggregated racial data for Covid19 cases.
> IMHO We need a similar joint and concerted effort by organizations serving
> PWD to get the provincial governments across Canada to collect and publish
> disability related Covid19 cases, death and test data.   Evolving policies
> can then be based on evidence, and evidence that can be examined and
> verified by NGOs and individuals.
>
> My argument is that this non-collection of disaggregated disability based
> data has political, cultural and social roots, but that is a discussion for
> another day.
>
> Ushnish
>
>
> On Mon, Jun 15, 2020 at 10:21 AM John W (personal) <pickupwillis at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Thanks so much, Liviya, it's a great article and very inspiring
>>
>> thanks
>> j
>>
>>
>> On Sun, Jun 14, 2020 at 8:28 PM Liviya Mendelsohn <LiviyaM at mnjcc.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > Dani Saad and I wrote a piece for First Policy Response which may be
>> > helpful:
>> >
>> http://policyresponse.ca/canadas-recovery-planning-must-include-people-with-disabilities/
>> >
>> > <
>> http://policyresponse.ca/canadas-recovery-planning-must-include-people-with-disabilities/
>> >
>> > Canada’s recovery planning must include people with disabilities | First
>> > Policy Response
>> > <
>> http://policyresponse.ca/canadas-recovery-planning-must-include-people-with-disabilities/
>> >
>> > Among the most vulnerable and the least consulted groups, disability
>> > communities have been hit hard by COVID-19. The crisis has revealed and
>> > exacerbated major gaps and inequities, showing that social and physical
>> > isolation do not affect everybody the same way.
>> > policyresponse.ca
>> >
>> >
>> > [image: cid:image002.jpg at 01D6398E.85285300]
>> >
>> > *Liv Mendelsohn M.A., M.Ed.*(she/her)
>> >
>> > *Director, Accessibility and Inclusion Artistic Director, ReelAbilities
>> > Film Festival Toronto*
>> >
>> > 416.924.6211 x <416.924.6211+x+502>330  |  liviyam at mnjcc.org
>> > <matthewl at mnjcc.org>
>> >
>> > Miles Nadal JCC
>> > 750 Spadina Ave., Toronto | M5S 2J2
>> > www.mnjcc.org
>> >
>> > Find us on Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/milesnadaljcc>  |
>> Instagram
>> > <http://www.instagram.com/milesnadaljcc>  |  *Twitter
>> > <https://twitter.com/MilesNadalJCC>*
>> >
>> > Stay Connected!  Sign up for our newsletter <
>> http://www.mnjcc.org/connect>
>> >
>> > ------------------------------
>> > *From:* community <community-bounces at lists.idrc.ocadu.ca> on behalf of
>> > John W (personal) <pickupwillis at gmail.com>
>> > *Sent:* Sunday, June 14, 2020 5:47 PM
>> > *To:* Inclusive Design Community <community at lists.idrc.ocadu.ca>
>> > *Subject:* [community] Disability Inclusive COVID-`9 Recovery Policy
>> >
>> > Hi friends, I have an opportunity to craft a short briefing note for the
>> > Ontario governments recovery planning table as it relates to social
>> > assistance programs -- that is, how COVID recovery planning should take
>> > into account the interests and rights of people with disabilities
>> needing
>> > government support.
>> >
>> > I am using the recent UN Policy Brief
>> > <
>> >
>> https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/sg_policy_brief_on_persons_with_disabilities_final.pdf
>> > >
>> > as the foundation but I really could use some rapid assistance from the
>> > community to develop a few persuasive statistics. Can anyone point me to
>> > online statistics for COVID-19 pandemic impacts on
>> >
>> >      - job losses,  reduced work time/ reduced earned income for
>> Ontarians
>> > (or Canadians) with disabilities
>> >      - rates of recovery in employment, hours of work, and/or incomes
>> for
>> > PWD compared to the rest of the population, as economic activity grows
>> in
>> > the later-pandemic stages  (is the recovery fair?)
>> >     - any demographic profiles of PWD who are most marginalized by the
>> > pandemic and/or recovery, to illustrate intersectional experiences
>> related
>> > to ethnicity, racialization, gender, age, etc.
>> >
>> > I am hoping to locate this type of data for drafting *immediate
>> > recommendations so I'm hoping to get your input as sooon as you can
>> > manage.*
>> >
>> > Thanks!
>> > j.
>> >
>> > - impact on INCOME or EMPLOYMENT status o
>> > -
>> >
>> > --
>> >
>> > *John D. Willis | CE CAIP MDes*
>> > Design & Innovation in Public Services
>> > Toronto CANADA
>> >
>> > Garbled text? My apologies - speech-to-text technology is still a work
>> in
>> > progress...
>> > ________________________________________
>> > Inclusive Design Community (community at lists.idrc.ocadu.ca)
>> > To manage your subscription, please visit:
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>> >
>>
>>
>> --
>>
>> *John D. Willis | CE CAIP MDes*
>> Design & Innovation in Public Services
>> Toronto CANADA
>>
>> Garbled text? My apologies - speech-to-text technology is still a work in
>> progress...
>> ________________________________________
>> Inclusive Design Community (community at lists.idrc.ocadu.ca)
>> To manage your subscription, please visit:
>> https://lists.idrc.ocadu.ca/mailman/listinfo/community
>>
>
>
> --
>
>

-- 

*John D. Willis | CE CAIP MDes*
Design & Innovation in Public Services
Toronto CANADA

Garbled text? My apologies - speech-to-text technology is still a work in
progress...