New Brunswick

Revised October 2006
[incl. links to other directories : Financial Assistance for Students with Disabilities in N.B. - Sources of Funding Assistance and/or Rehabilitation Equipment Loans Programs - Directory of Career Counseling and Job Placement Services - Funding Sources for Barrier-Free Access]
Source:

DEPARTMENTS, DOCUMENTS

- (, formerly Family and Community Services)

- incl. links to : Department (Minister - Contacts - Employees) - About (Adoption and Foster Care - Social Assistance - Protection - Housing - Long Term Care - Childcare) - Programs and Services (Families - Children - Youth - Seniors - Persons with Disabilities) - Information (Legislation - Publications - Related Sites - Statistics)

Department responsible for welfare
- (, formerly Family and Community Services)

Name of the welfare program

Legislation

-
Source:

Policy Manual
+ link to legislation
"This electronic version of the HRD-NB policies is an unofficial version which contains essentially the same material found in HRD-NB's in-house on-line help. This version has been edited for relevancy of content. For example, technical procedures unrelated to policy application have been removed. A full, unabridged version of on-line help can be requested under the Right to Information Act."
- includes sections on Applicant And Client Types - Assets And Income - Benefits - Intake And Continuing Eligibility - Programs - Rates (although not basic rates)
- includes links to the Family Income Security Act and Regulation
of the policy manual - easier to navigate, but not for bookmarking individual pages.

Welfare statistics
(caseload tables, graphs and analysis)

Welfare rates (benefits)
- incl. a short description of each of the three rate programs.
- Rates are in Schedules A, B

Latest search results on for
"welfare, -child, -animal, New Brunswick"
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Related Links
* November 13, 2009
* (PDF - 100K, 5 pages) - November 13, 2009
* (PDF - 1.1MB, 74 pages)
[ ]
* - July 2005 (PDF file - 330K, 57 pages) [ Source: ]
* Discussion Paper on Social Policy (PDF file - 115K, 20 pages)
- February 1999 <<<=== excellent historical document

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Official website of the New Brunswick government initiative to establish a poverty reduction plan

The New Brunswick
Economic and Social Inclusion Plan

A NOTE CONCERNING POVERTY REDUCTION :
To avoid duplication of links on multiple pages of this site, I've moved most of the links to information about poverty reduction
to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page of this site:
http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm

February 17, 2010
FREDERICTON (CNB) - The provincial government is improving the Household Income Policy for Department of Social Development clients. Kelly Lamrock, minister of social development, made the announcement today. (...) The new policy, which only applies to clients who were in receipt of assistance as of Jan. 1, represents a $5-million investment this fiscal year. It is an interim measure that will help current clients economically until Social Assistance Reform, including an important and significant overhaul of the Household Income Policy, is complete in mid-2011.

Related Link:

News Release
Office of the Premier
February 19, 2002

News Release
May 21, 2004
"FREDERICTON - New Brunswickers with disabilities will be able to participate more easily in the labour market because of an agreement announced today by the Honourable Andy Scott, Minister of State (Infrastructure), on behalf of the Honourable Liza Frulla, Minister of Social Development, and the Honourable Tony Huntjens, New Brunswick Minister of Family and Community Services. 'Helping people with disabilities to be more fully involved as citizens is a priority for all governments,' said Minister Scott. 'Every New Brunswicker must have the opportunity to make a contribution to our economy and our society. I am so pleased to work with New Brunswick on this national priority.'"
Source:

This agreement was signed under the , which replaced the Employability Assistance for People with Disabilities initiative in April 2004.
For more info about the national framework and the agreements signed with other jurisdictions to date, go to the Disability Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/disbkmrk.htm

- New Brunswick
News Release
August 25, 2004
"FREDERICTON (CNB) - Beginning on Sept. 1, more New Brunswick parents will be eligible for funding under the Day Care Assistance Program to access affordable and quality child care. The provincial government reminds parents that significant enhancements have been made to the Day Care Assistance Program. First, the family income threshold for a full day care subsidy has been raised from $15,000 to $22,000 yearly net family income. The government also increased the subsidy rate to $22 per day for children under the age of two, $20 per day for children over the age of two; and $10.75 per day for after-school children. All these changes come into effect on Sept. 1, 2004. (...)
The Day Care Assistance Program is part of the New Brunswick's investments under the Early Learning and Child Care agreement." (bolding added)
Source:

Related Links: see the Early Learning and Child Care Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/ecd.htm

Early Childhood Development

January 20, 2005
"FREDERICTON (CNB) - Increased funding in day care services in New Brunswick is one of the highlights of the provincial government's fourth report on the Early Childhood Development Agenda, presented today by Family and Community Services Minister Tony Huntjens. 'I am pleased to report that in , we increased funding to improve the working conditions and training of staff in the province's day care centres,' Huntjens said. 'We increased opportunities for children with special needs to attend full-time day care. We also provided funding to improve the health of pregnant women and their newborns, and we supported mothers and young children living in transition houses.'"

Complete report:

(PDF file - 798K, 35 pages)

Source:

Related Links: go to the Government Early Learning and Child Care Links page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/ecd.htm

- June 2002
(PDF file - 6.9MB, 10 pages)

June 11, 2002
"FREDERICTON (CNB) - Family and Community Services Minister Joan MacAlpine has reconfirmed New Brunswick's commitment to young children and their families. This year, almost $36 million will be spent on programs and activities to support greater opportunities for New Brunswick children. Today the minister announced Phase Two initiatives of the province's Early Childhood Development Agenda."

PDF file - 830K, 11 pages
April 2001 (Modified June 2002)

- June 18, 2002

- January 17, 2002
This program is one of the initiatives included in the Early Childhood Development Agenda.

- Dec. 12, 2001 (...one of seven initiatives of the Early Childhood Development Agenda (ECD) which will invest about $50 million in New Brunswick children over the next five years).

- incl. links to : Child Witnesses of Family Violence - Community Capacity Building for Children and Families - Early Language Program for Preschool Children - Enhanced Child Day Care Services - Enhancements to Early Childhood Initiatives - Excellence in Parenting - Prenatal Benefit Program

- April 10, 2001

- includes information about housing and shelter assistance programs in New Brunswick

Family and Community Services
Jan. 17, 2002
This program is one of the initiatives included in the Early Childhood Development Agenda.

Family and Community Services
Dec. 12, 2001
Women and children who are victims of family violence will be offered new services under the Children's Support Program launched today by the Department of Family and Community Services and the New Brunswick Coalition of Transition Houses. (...) The Children's Support Program is one of seven initiatives of the Early Childhood Development Agenda (ECD) which will invest about $50 million in New Brunswick children over the next five years.

Nov. 16, 2001
FREDERICTON (CNB) -- A group of voluntary organizations in New Brunswick will undertake a project that will focus on building the capacity of the voluntary sector to influence the policies that affect their organizations and the people they represent.

April 10, 2001

Family and Community Services
Nov. 20, 2000
- Includes a list of programs and services implemented over the past few years to assist New Brunswick children and their families.

October 4/00
Office of the Premier
Family and Community Services
FREDERICTON (CNB) - Social assistance clients who are certified disabled will receive additional funding in their social assistance cheques this month.

Press Release (06/00)

News Release
Family and Community Services
June 29, 2000

- December 23, 1999
[sic] - December 17, 1999
- November 24, 1999
- Press Release (Sept. 30, 1999)

- under the Employment Standards Act

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January 5, 2010
New Brunswick is sticking with its plan to raise the minimum wage to $10 an hour over the next 20 months — with one of the increases coming in the middle of the government's September re-election campaign. But Labour Minister Donald Arseneault said the minimum wage is not about politics. "To bring our minimum wage to the Atlantic average by September 2011 is a priority issue for our province if we are going to reduce the level of poverty in our province," Arseneault said Tuesday. About four per cent of New Brunswick workers earn the minimum wage.
The wage will rise in four steps:
* April 1, 2010: an increase of 25 cents to $8.50 per hour.
* Sept. 1, 2010, an increase of 50 cents to $9 per hour.
* April 1, 2011: an increase of 50 cents to $9.50 per hour.
* Sept. 1, 2011: an increase of 50 cents to $10 per hour.
Source:

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How does that compare
with other Canadian jurisdictions?

(this is the BEST resource for info on current and upcoming minimum wage levels by province/territory)

This information is broken up into five files - one for each decade.
The link above takes you to the latest decade (2005 to 2014); click the date links at the top of the page for pages for earlier decades.

NOTE: Several other jurisdictions have either recently increased their minimum wage level or will be doing so in the coming months.
Highlights:
* Newfoundland and Labrador increased its minimum wage from $9.00 to $9.50 as of January 1.
* Nova Scotia will increase its minimum wage twice this year - in April and October. The current level is $8.60, increasing to $9.65 as of October.
* Ontario's minimum wage, currently $9.50, will increase to $10.25 at the end of March.
* Since 2007, Yukon increases its minimum wage each April to match increase in the Consumer Price Index for the City of Whitehorse.
For more information, see (this is the same link as above)

Source:

[ ]
[ ]

- Go to the Minimum Wage /Living Wage Links page:
http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/minwage.htm

Finance

December 1, 2009
The 2010-11 provincial budget will focus on continuing record funding for health care and education; tax relief to individuals and businesses; and record capital investments of $896 million for strategic infrastructure projects. These investments will boost the two-year record capital investments of $1.2 billion announced in March to almost $1.6 billion.
- includes links to all budget documents and related multimedia presentations
- also includes links to previous budgets

News Release
Dec 1, 2009
FREDERICTON (CNB) - The 2010-11 provincial budget will focus on continuing record funding for health care and education; tax relief to individuals and businesses; and record capital investments of $896 million for strategic infrastructure projects. These investments will boost the two-year record capital investments of $1.2 billion announced in March to almost $1.6 billion. Finance Minister Greg Byrne tabled the budget in the legislative assembly today. (...)
The main components of the budget are in keeping with the priorities of last year's budget:
* a record two-year investment in infrastructure approaching $1.6 billion;
* the second phase of The Plan for Lower Taxes in New Brunswick; and
* record investments in priorities, including health care, education and social development.

(PDF - 824K, 29 pages)
(PDF - 375K, 12 pages)
(PDF - 209K, 8 pages)
(PDF - 1.2MB, 326 pages)

Source:

________________

Related links:

By Marty Klinkenberg
December 1, 2009
FREDERICTON — Struggling in the polls as a result of its plan to sell NB Power to Hydro Quebec, Premier Shawn Graham's Liberal government rolled out an election-year budget Tuesday that calls for nearly $8 billion in spending, including record investments in health and education. The government estimates it will spend a record $2.46 billion on health, an increase of $82.8 million over the current fiscal year; $996 million on education, an increase of 3.3 per cent; and $987 million on social development, an increase of $35 million.
Source:

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(PDF - 1.6MB, 28 pages)
Analysis by the
[Powerpoint presentation]
February 2010
NOTE: This is an analysis of the poverty situation and the New Brunswick Government's poverty reduction plan; the provincial budget is mentioned in some bullet points on p. 26.
"... budget offers no relief for those most in need"
"For 97% of social assistance, there will be no changes in rate until April 2011 or possibly later."

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By Nick Moore
FREDERICTON - New Brunswickers will continue to pay lower tax rates next year, but could also face the possibility of paying higher fees for some provincial services and see reductions to certain programs and services currently offered. Yesterday's provincial budget also detailed changes to the government's initial plan to see a return to balanced budgets by the 2012-13 fiscal year. That plan has now been pushed back further by another two years, to 2014-15
Source:

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December 1, 2009
FREDERICTON – New Brunswick has recorded a $754-million deficit for the 2009-10 fiscal year, the highest deficit in the province's history. The provincial government tabled a $8-billion budget Tuesday for 2010-11 with no expectation to get out of the red ink until at least 2014.
Source:

NOTE: On this page, you'll find information about the latest provincial budget only.

To avoid unnecessary duplication of budget links on multiple pages, I've moved links to all earlier budgets over to the pages below, organized by fiscal year. The pages below include links to media analysis and selected critique from NGOs on the budgets, and the amount of coverage varies across jurisdictions and over the years.

Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2010
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2009
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2008
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2007
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2006
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2005
Go to Canadian Government Budgets 2004

Department of Justice

- organized alphabetically

Social Condition added to Human Rights Act - New Brunswick
On June 30, 2004 the New Brunswick government passed an amendment to the New Brunswick Human Rights Act to include "social condition" as a protected ground in the Act. Throughout the Act all relevant sections will be amended striking out "or sex" and substituting ", sex, social condition, political belief or activity".
See the New Brunswick government website for .
Source:

See also:
(NB Govt.)

Office of the Auditor General

(1995 to 2002)
- incl. chapter on Andersen Consulting
- incl. chapter on the NB Case System (Andersen Consulting)
NOTE: there's a section in each report entitled "Follow-up on Prior Years' Audit Work" - you'll find references to Andersen Consulting in this section for most years

Department of Education

- incl. links to : What's New - Issues - Documents - Who We Are / Contacts - Talent Banks & Groups
NOTE: the Documents section contains links to over two dozen reports on women and health, early childhood services, history and pay equity

Sample reports:

(PDF - 130K, 6 pages)
[* includes links to nearly three dozen online resources]
April 2009
Table of contents:
1. Fewer Women Qualify
2. Accumulating Those Magic Hours
3. When Caring Conflicts With Work
4. Women’s Benefits Are Low
5. Inadequate Sickness Benefits
6. A Poor Plan For Parents
7. Quebec Parents Have It
8. Inadequate Caregiving Leave
9. What Women Want
10. In Support of Effective Policies

(PDF file - 330K, 57 pages)
Ysabel Provencher & Chantal Bourassa, Action Research Laboratory, School of Social Work, Université de Moncton
July 2005
"The two general objectives of the study were to gain a better understanding of (1) the reality of Francophone social assistance recipients in New Brunswick, and (2) the successes and difficulties encountered in implementing the new mechanisms, policies, and programs associated with the 1995 reform of the social assistance system. The findings of this study arose from a series of five group interviews conducted with Francophone social assistance recipients in the southeastern and northern regions of the province in the summer and fall of 2004. (...)We describe a few aspects of the social assistance system (income levels, programs and benefit rates, eligibility procedures) and present a few characteristics of the provincial profile of social assistance recipients (number of households on social assistance, distribution of recipients by type of household and benefit rate). "
- highly recommended, excellent resource on welfare reforms in New Brunswick!

Women's List - Federal Election 2008
September 2008
Issues of importance to Canadian women’s equality in the 2008 federal election:

* Deliver on the constitutional promise of equality
* Ensure equal rights for Aboriginal women
* Fund quality early childhood care & education
* Ensure a livable income
* Commit to affordable housing
* Eliminate violence against women
* Ensure access to justice
* Improve maternity & parental benefits
* Act for women’s health
* Increase female political representation

Click the Women's List link for a collection of over 120 individual resources related to the above list of issues.
[Some of this info is specific to NB]
NOTE: Never mind the federal election --- I highly recommend this resource as a primer on women's issues in Canada!

October 2, 2008
By Elsie Hambrook
Nasty prejudices still get in the way of concerted action on poverty. Some people paint all the poor with the same brush. They think the poor are "lazy" or "irresponsible", that if they made different choices, worked harder or "smarter", they could pull themselves out of poverty. Denial is also a stumbling block, as in "I'd never go on welfare, it'll never happen to me." The reality is that many people work full-time but earn less than the poverty line, juggle part-time or seasonal jobs, education and training along with family responsibilities and still can't make ends meet. For some New Brunswickers, poverty is as close as a few missed paycheques, the result of a separation or divorce for women, or of an illness or disability that strikes before the Old Age Pension kicks in.
Source:

[ Author Elsie Hambrook is the new Chairperson of the
]

(PDF - 63K, 2 pages)
We should be hard-headed about poverty in New Brunswick – “hard-headed” as in focussed and scientific about finding and doing what works to eliminate poverty. Some current poverty programs, here and in other jurisdictions, may have the effect of keeping people poor, for all the care that goes into what gets called a “poverty program”. What is worse, effective programs may be undone by other initiatives, given the lack of coordination and of monitoring.
From the column by Ginette Petitpas-Taylor
Former Chairperson of the

in the , July 17, 2008.

2004 Report Card on the Status of Women in New Brunswick
March 8, 2004
"Fully 75% of New Brunswick women with preschoolers were in the labour force in 2002, a jump from 70% the previous year. The 2004 Report Card on the Status of Women in N.B. released today by the Advisory Council on the Status of Women notes that N.B. has a higher rate than the Canadian average of 70% for women with preschoolers. The majority (60%) of lone mothers with preschoolers were also out working for pay in N.B. in 2002."
(Word file - 25K, 2 pages)
(PDF file - 1.76MB, 76 pages)
(PDF file - 179K, 1 page)
(small PDF files, one-pagers) :
* Women in the labour force * Violence * Youth * Aboriginal Women in NB * Woman with Disabilities
[ ]
[ ]

- includes links to earlier report cards as well as to annual reports of the Council and reports on a variety of topics, including the legal aspects of common-law relationships, sexual health, child care, income assistance, women and voting, the pay gap, single parents, and much more.

- links to overviews of 45 issues affecting women in New Brunswick, many including links to more detailed info

New Brunswick Status of Women
News Release
December 5, 2003
"The final report of the New Brunswick wage gap round table was released today by Training and Employment Development Minister Margaret-Ann Blaney, Minister responsible for the Status of Women. The report recommends that the government lead a five-year action plan consisting of voluntary measures to address the wage gap in the public and private sectors."
Complete report:
- PDF file (1.5MB, 101 pages)

March 2002
"A statistical profile of women in New Brunswick: Population, Education and Training, Income and Poverty, Family Responsibilities, Labour Force, Violence, Positions of Influence, Provincial Government Employees."

Other New Brunswick Sites

New resource from the :
(May 25, 2009)

(PDF - 263K, 19 pages)
By Kurt Peacock
University of New Brunswick (Saint John)
[ - PDF ]

Source:

Social Development Report Series, 2009
[ ]

Also from CCSD :

(PDF - 341K, 29 pages)
By David I. Hay, Information Partnership

Related links ===> Go to the Anti-poverty Strategies and Campaigns page: http://www.canadiansocialresearch.net/antipoverty.htm

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March 24, 2009
By Michael Shapcott
A total of 725 people were homeless in Moncton, New Brunswick, according to the 2008 homelessness report card from the Greater Moncton Homelessness Steering Committee. Among other items, the report notes that 30 people sleep on mats on the floor at one hostel every night, including pregnant women.
Source:

[ ]

Toronto