Remember back to the days when the Liberals first came to power, with their big broom and dustpan, and started sweeping out of government all sorts of social programs and safety nets?
Although much of that hoopla has died down, (there has been plenty of other hoopla in between) the government has continued its policy of reducing funding to health, education, and welfare. In the area of social assistance, the new idea was to reduce welfare rolls by, let's say, “encouraging” people to go find work.
The result of several years of this kind of policy from the Ministry of Housing and Social Development is that some people who clearly are entitled to be on welfare are facing punitive processes which at a minimum make life unnecessarily miserable, and perhaps lead to more dire circumstances such as homelessness and even death.
By way of illustration, consider the case of Ray Carboni, known on the street as Ramaray.
Born in Sardinia, a large Italian island in the middle of the Mediterranean, where his family ran hotels and restaurants, Renato Carboni came to Canada when he was two, lived in St. Catherines, Ontario until he was seventeen and then moved to Vancouver.
Ray describes his life's journey as a “spiritual quest”. It seems that his idea of a good time is to spend the day in meditation.
Most of the productive years of his early adulthood were spent with- get ready- Hare Krishna- the shaved-headed, saffron-robed chanters who helped form the backdrop of sixties culture.
An unusual career path, perhaps, but that's what he was doing from 1968 to 1976, when the founder of the movement died, and the remnants scattered in confusion.
After that, he had a series of jobs, including- electrician, motor assembly, and landscaping. While working in the last job he aggravated a congenital bad back- he has a rotated spine, and one leg is shorter than the other- walking too long becomes difficult. During this time he also got married and fathered two girls, who live in Vancouver.
When he arrived in the Comox Valley about fifteen years ago, Ray tried to get work, but his physical problems, lack of training or work experience, and some psychological issues- trouble with anger and anxiety- made this difficult.
Eventually he was classified as a person with “persistent multiple barriers”, which meant he was basically on permanent assistance, with no need to look for work. At the same time, he was told repeatedly by staff in the local welfare office that he could legally maintain his status while working part-time, for no more than $500 a month.
Ray is a smart, genial, and seemingly happy man. It's easy to be with him and wonder- “Why can't he get a job?”
In fact, several years ago Ray did try and work part-time- a friend hired him to help out with a contract he had cleaning up parking lots, and Ray did this for five hours a week. Eventually, he found even this too hard on his body- “My back hurt and my knees were swollen”, and he had to cut back.
For ten years, the Ministry did a yearly review and found Ray eligible every time to maintain his status.
Then when the Liberals cracked down, Ray was called in and told- “We want you to go on a job plan”.
What followed was a process of pure futility. Ray was sent to various agencies designed to help people find work, and every time he was told he was basically unemployable, which he already knew.
After a carousel of employment agencies and the welfare office, Ray was once again classified as someone with multiple barriers, getting a score of fifteen on a Ministry scale, entitling him again to full assistance.
Every two years, there has been a “financial review” which assesses Ray's status. Twice, it was confirmed, as usual; then last October, Ray filled out the form and reapplied for assistance.
This time, when he heard back from the Ministry office in Nanaimo- he was rejected.
During a short telephone interview, Ray was told that because he had worked for five hours a week, that indicated his ability to work, which changed his status, so he had to start a job search.
Somehow, his classification rating had dropped from fifteen to seven.
Ray started to try and find out what was going on.
The workers at the local welfare office weren't able to help him clarify his situation, although he says the Courtenay office was “very good to me, no complaints there”.
But still, was he given the wrong information, or was it being interpreted wrongly at the Nanaimo office?
He found out that the only permitted work was “in a supported or sheltered type of work environment”. His friend who he had worked for made the job as flexible as Ray needed it, and still he was physically unable to continue it for long.
If this wasn't supported and sheltered, then nothing was.
Ray was forced to begin the process of appealing the decision, and sent a letter outlining his objections to the Nanaimo office, including that he was told he could work a number of hours, the work he did should be defined as supported, and what exactly was the legal basis for the wording about his work stipulation? Where was the law it was based on?
Ray received a letter back saying his appeal was rejected, without addressing any of his points- it simply repeated the statements from earlier.
Ray says- “What bothers me is the total lack of legal procedures. I presented my evidence- there was no response. If the same thing happens to an ordinary citizen, I'm cleared. There's something wrong with the Ministry. I'm just told I'm guilty, not if the arguments are good or not.”
There was one final recourse- an appeal before a tribunal of three citizens not employed by the Ministry.
Ray got some helpful info from an advocate at the Wachiay Centre, and registered his appeal. He was told the date of the tribunal would be December 27, which meant that unfortunately his advocate, who would be with his/her family during the holidays, was unable to show up to help.
And so, in the unsettled days between Christmas and New Year's, a couple of months ago, Ray Carboni faced the tribunal on his own.
There is a movie with Albert Brooks called “Defending your Life”- where, after he has died, he must justify his entrance to heaven by answering questions about how he lived- a high stakes interview, for sure. Not much less intense was Ray's requirement to defend his right to his meager government allowance. Imagine anyone facing the same pressure- your fate entirely in the hands of three strangers.
Although he felt he was rambling, Ray was able to make his points. And although there was an hour allotted, the tribunal cut it off after half an hour- “We've heard enough,” and ruled unanimously in Ray's favour.
This story has a happy ending- eventually the system worked, and Ray Carboni's life was not ruined.
But why did such an already marginalized person have to endure what he did, and go to such lengths to ensure his survival?
Yeah- life is tough, people work hard for their livelihood, and no one is promised a free ride. But is this the kind of policy we really want in our province?
Ray says- “Two people I know are homeless because of welfare decisions. A lot of people give up- “I'll never go back to welfare”, it's so insulting, inhumane. I thought- maybe I'll give up, I can't defend myself. I was close to giving it up. Being angry, going to the Lower East Side and being homeless, but no- that's falling into their trap. This is one place where homelessness can be reduced.”