Netsilik MLA says constituents face delays receiving income assistance
Rules for identification prevent community members from getting needed funds: Joseph Quqqiaq
Netsilik MLA Joseph Quqqiaq said that community members are facing delays for needed income assistance. He added that an emergency program for community members without identification would be helpful. (File photo)
Netsilik MLA Joseph Quqqiaq says members of his constituency are waiting too long to receive income assistance.
During question period in the legislative assembly Wednesday, he said one constituent was denied income assistance from the Government of Nunavut for three or four months because of a lack of identification.
Income assistance is a territorial program to help families and individuals meet their basic needs by giving them a monthly allowance.
“When community members are already struggling to provide for themselves, this seems like a very bureaucratic answer,” Quqqiaq said of the person being denied assistance.
“I could almost say, it is unfair.”
Quqqiaq said that acquiring proper identification can be difficult in small communities such as Taloyoak.
He asked Family Services Minister Margaret Nakashuk why a community liaison officer would deny a resident’s need for support, instead of helping them to get the necessary documents.
Nakashuk said she’s not aware of any residents being denied income assistance for as long as four months, unless their income was too high to qualify for assistance.
She said if people have problems getting assistance, they should not only go to their community liaison officer but request a review at the territorial level.
Nakashuk added that community liaison officers do their best to help people get their documents.
Quqqiaq said community members say they frequently endure delays of a couple of days before receiving their income assistance. Often, they have to call government offices in Cambridge Bay to learn why their assistance is delayed.
Nakashuk said some of the issues the office for income assistance faces involve people not having proper documents or that they have a bank where direct deposit for assistance may be delayed for a couple days.
Getting that assistance is important for people in small communities where there are fewer jobs, Quqqiaq said. He said it’s needed for community members to pay for food and bills while the cost of living is rising.
When Quqqiaq asked what the GN is doing to combat inflation for those on income assistance, Nakashuk replied that income assistance was recently raised by 34 per cent.
Under that increase, a family of six living in Taloyoak now receives $2,731 each month. A single person in Taloyoak would receive $992 a month.
Across Nunavut, the income assistance for a single person ranges between $914 and $1,048, depending on the community, according to table the department published in April, when new rates were adopted.
Quqqiaq told Nunatsiaq News that “I’d love to see emergency income assistance for individuals that don’t have proper identification.
“That would help.”
It’s called get a job 😂 I have two
Every job (full time, part time, casual, seasonal) in a community should be filled and the workers that have those jobs keep them for more then a month or 2. Infact with not many jobs in the communities there should almost be fighting for the work, not fighting not to work.
The only people that should be on Income support are active hunters (in know not everyone agrees), carvers (though there should be a way of legitimizing this more) and also the primary child care giver of a family. the stay at home parent/family member/grandparent should be able to get income support because that is an hard important job that is worth recognition. But also the other people in the family of age need to also be doing work to provide for the family as well.
ME TOO !!!!!!!!!
MLA Joseph Quqqiaq should read the Income Assistance Act and Regulations as it is a legal requirement, passed by the Nunavut Legislative Assembly, for applicants to show proper identification. It is illegal for Income Assistance Workers to issue funds without the proper identification being in place. He is asking the Minister why GN staff are following the legislation.
Quqqiaq told Nunatsiaq News that “I’d love to see emergency income assistance for individuals that don’t have proper identification.
Where can I see the Income assistant act, why are we on assistance not aware of it?
Located here: https://www.nunavutlegislation.ca/en/consolidated-law/income-assistance-regulations-consolidation
All Nunavut Acts and Regulations can be found at http://www.nunavutlegislation.ca
Section 3.2 references what is required to be assessed. Being assessed does not mean that you will qualify for funding.
Income Assistance Regulations, Consolidation of Current to: 2021-08-16
R.R.N.W.T. 1990,c.S-164
3.1. Subject to sections 3.2 and 3.3, the Director shall determine the content of the forms to be used by an Income Assistance Officer for an application, statement and authorization referred to in section 2, and for an assessment and verification of whether an applicant is a person in need and for any other purpose that the Director considers necessary.
R-199-96,s.6; R-010-2020,s.3.
3.2. The following must be provided in respect of an applicant and each of his or her dependants before assistance is granted:
(a) name, sex, address, phone number, birth date, marital status and
ethnicity;
(b) education and occupation;
(c) proof, satisfactory to an Income Assistance Officer, of health care
and social insurance numbers;
(d) description of any support order entitling the applicant to support;
(e) reason for the application for assistance;
(f) employment history;
(g) the monthly amount and sources of all income including gross
earned income, net earned income, unearned income and income in
kind;
(h) the value and description of all assets; and
(i) information concerning finances from, if relevant, his or her
employer, educational institution, bank, co-operative association or
other body providing banking services, or government agency.
R-199-96,s.6; S.Nu. 2012,c.16,s.69(2); R-020-2013,s.4;
R-010-2020,s.3
Thank you Tommy Douglas for Medicare and stuff like this guy is yapping about, Douglas did great deal to improve our lives where only the rich (like US?) was lucky enough to be treated medically. Ottawa in the fifties had us for dead, the well-to-do were to important in those days and had priority in everything. Although the income assistance is late here, it’s way better that most Canadians are now facing…for those who cannot make ends meet; lay off bingo for while and other gambling apparatuses (pull tickets?) see how you fair.
My kids won’t eat without income assistance. There’s no job worth it here. IM NOT GOING TO WORK AT THE NORTHERN
I have a buddy , who was on welfare , then got a job a Northern , but every time he got paid , he went on a “bender” , lasted 3 month and is now back on welfare.
even if you are on income assistance you guys need to learn to budget…
…and if you’re not related to the right people, nothing will happen, especially if you anger the wrong person with “authoritaa” regardless of how much education or experience one has.
Local GN office employees are mostly relatives.🤣
Why is it not worth it? There our kids, doing what ever is necessary is worth it… Infact If you dont think kids are worth it then feel sad for your kids and i hope there is someone in the family that feels they are worth it.
so there are legit jobs but you just refuse to work? beggars can’t be choosers! for the sake of your kids, you rather stay in income assistance than showing them that they can get out of this vicious cycle and earn a living?
Then follow the age-old path leading to greener pastures.
You go to where the jobs are, you don’t wait for them to appear where you are.
He’s right for your info; any job is worth it, you can live on any payroll, you just have to get off cigs, pot, booze and gambling, simple as that….any kid is worth it and looking and keeping the job is the answer….
I have a full time job BUT BUT almost my whole income go to housing so thinking of quitting and doing the same 👍
Housing rent is on a scale. so having a job would not take all your money, though yes it would cost more then the $60/Month. but there is a limit to how high the rent goes and i have faith that you can work hard and end up with a job that pays enough.
Inuit communities should have Inuit leaders. But other regions and communities can have other people’s as MLAs, but if it is an Inuit community, by encouragement to hire more Inuit and have Inuit involve, they should have Inuit MLAs.
All of Nunavut who comes from Nunavut should be welcomed at any work force, like other regions for mining jobs.
They are mostly french, but not many Inuit being hired. With that number, regional offices should consider hiring more Inuit in all regions.
Not many Inuit are working ,but 85 percent in workforce are mostly non Inuit. With that number, I think mines should consider changing their hiring system or completely close them off due to non interested Inuit wanting to work in our land.
You have good intentions but until Inuit finish school, stop having babies when they are kids themselves, show up to work, etc. nothing is ever going to change. It seems some posts mentioned about just quitting and go back to welfare, why? Generations of people from all corners of the globe move to “greener pasture” when the current situation does not yield gains. Why can’t Inuit? Inuit also have an overabundant of resources to catapult one self to success. Why not make full use of these resources. I am fairly certain, as an Inuk and if you want to pursue higher education, start a business, run a program, get a scholarship, etc, you will be rolled out the red carpet and a ton of money/resources are made available to you! You should use it!
No such thing as an ‘Inuit community’. There are Inuit majority communities though.
There is so much money available for Inuit looking to pursue education. It is a a very privileged position to be in. Show some initiative and take advantage of the many opportunities that are being provided.
All you need is a class 3 air brakes, go to your local hamlet and become a sewer and water truck drivers. It is the only job we have in Nunavut. There are no other jobs than the local hamlet jobs, northern and coop stores job. But they are all planned out they make more money than alot of graduates. They are mostly with no education, and makes more money and works daily and completely fights off those with good education. Not much work other than hamlet jobs, store jobs.
Even when working for northern or co-op, you’re going to need help with food and bills. As far as I know northern takes a big chunk off people’s pay. Co-op probably pays small too. They sat they don’t have enough money to pay well. They are all bs. Wolves. Even drug dealing is better pay than the co-op or northern.
There should be a requirement to collect income assistance, welfare, etc. every 5 years or so, must have earned a taxed income of 500 hours or more.
Reason I say this is 60% (being generous) of people on assistance have been on it for lifetime without ever earning an income. Trash the housing they are provided with for free, and complain it isn’t being kept up to living standards expecting someone else to pay their damages. Then their kids are brought up like this, and also bring their family up same way, starting a family before 16.