Food bank officials have told us in recent days that more and more workers are using their services because their salary no longer allows them to make ends meet and buy a full grocery store. This situation is shocking since no one should have difficulty feeding themselves in a wealthy society like Quebec.
Among the many disturbing statistics, HungerCount notes a 20% increase in food bank use compared to last year. This represents an average of 2.2 million requests for food aid per month, a scandalous number!
For several years, our organizations have been sounding the alarm. The problem is therefore not new, but it is now taking on worrying proportions in the wake of galloping inflation. Everything costs more: housing, transportation and food. And salaries are not keeping up. Less well-off people bear the brunt of the repercussions of the increase in the cost of living. The situation is dramatic and urgent.
It takes more than a check!
To deal with inflation, the Quebec government chose to send a check to almost all Quebecers, even those who did not need it. People who earn $80,000 will receive $400 and those who earn $25,000 a year will receive $600. Although this measure seems popular, it is not structuring.
Once the money has been spent, the problem remains. The observation is heartbreaking: sending a check requires much less effort than developing a real plan to fight poverty. Our organizations would have preferred targeted and more generous assistance so that all Quebecers can meet their basic needs.
However, the government has several tools to better support Quebecers and tackle the real causes of inflation. So why not use them? Raising wages, starting with the minimum wage, would better cope with the rising cost of living.
We can already hear business leaders ripping their shirts off as many of them have recorded excessive profits that are fueling inflation. Most serious analyzes show it: wages are not one of the causes of the recent increase in the cost of living. For our organizations, a minimum wage of $18 an hour would be much better than a one-time check.
Other measures aimed at better controlling prices could be implemented. Housing occupies a large place in the budget of low-income people. Although the government has paid lip service to the fact that there is a housing crisis, no plan has been put in place to curb the rise in the cost of rents or to concretely accelerate the construction of social housing.
Several of our organizations are proposing the establishment of a public and universal prescription drug insurance plan in order to bring down costs, which are constantly rising. There is no shortage of ideas to relieve the wallets of Quebecers. So, what is the government waiting for to solve the problem?
*Also signed this text:
Caroline Senneville, President, Confederation of National Trade Unions (CSN)
Éric Gingras, President, Central Trade Unions of Quebec (CSQ)
Luc Vachon, President, Central of Democratic Trade Unions (CSD)
Lydia Martel, Acting President, Union of Quebec Government Professionals (SPGQ)
Christian Daigle, General President, Union of Public and Parapublic Employees of Quebec (SFPQ)
Vincent Chevarie, spokesperson, At the bottom of the ladder and Front for the defense of non-unionized workers (FDNS)
Virginie Larivière, Spokesperson, Collective for a Poverty-Free Quebec Robert Comeau, President of the Alliance of Professional and Technical Personnel in Health and Social Services (APTS)
Eric Shragge, Chairman of the Board, Immigrant Workers Center