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STREET SMARTS What predictions do you have for 2013?
KIERAN REPORT
Harper clueless to challenges of age tanding on the doorstep of 2013, I am sadly aware that the phrase “another year older” has sobering implications — especially BRIAN on one such as I, a KIERAN charter member of bkieran@ the ubiquitous agmondaymag.com ing demographic. And, looking back on 2012, I find that issues of aging barely rated a mention when the younger media pundits were crafting their year-in-review pieces. As I look back before looking forward, I can’t shake off my disbelief over Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s decision to progressively increase the age of eligibility for the OAS pension and the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS) from 65 to 67. It sent a pretty clear message to the early onset seniors amongst us that this government has no understanding of the challenges seniors face. The theory is that pushing the retirement age to 67 will keep seniors working longer and thus reduce the “dependency
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ratio” between idle snowbirds and the dwindling ranks of benefit-paying worker bees. To get a sense of what the retirement landscape will look like when all this starts kicking in it helps to get a sense of where we’re at today. OAS and GIS provide one third of the income of all seniors over 65, and one half of the incomes of seniors with incomes less than $20,000. One in four seniors 65 to 70 is still working, more than double what it was in 2000, and a quarter of them can only find part-time work. Twenty per cent of workers over 65 earn less than $5,000 a year. A Statistics Canada survey of 55-plus workers found that only one third had retired because they were financially ready. Based on this reality, respected Canadian Labour Congress economist Angella MacEwan predicts that “delaying the age of eligibility for OAS and GIS will result in significantly reduced incomes for those who are unable to replace OAS/ GIS income from earnings in low wage jobs.” She says it will take considerable hours in low-wage jobs to replace the maximum OAS/GIS benefit of about $14,000 per year or even to replace the basic OAS benefit of just over $5,000 per year.
I predict real estate will drop considering the state of wages and incomes.
“Forcing lower paid workers to work from age 65 to 67 by depriving them of access to the OAS and the GIS would mean that an important subgroup of seniors would likely experience very significant reductions in income compared to the status quo. To some degree, it would also force older workers to compete with younger workers for entry-level, part-time jobs,” she says. The reality today is that most baby boomers don’t want to sacrifice their current lifestyle to enter retirement and many will stay in debt to accomplish this. Almost 60 per cent of pre-seniors 50 to 59 would rather work longer to live better in retirement, versus just 25 per cent who are prepared to live more modestly in order to retire early. This is reality. For many it is a hard one. And, it will be harder still in the years to come for the many thousands of seniors who have not been fortunate enough to financially inoculate themselves against Harper’s retirement scheme. In the year to come it would be reassuring if our elected representatives returned to this issue and demanded another round of informed debate. Sadly, you will rarely find the word “informed” in a sentence that also includes the words “Harper government.” M
CORY SINGH, Victoria
Broadened consciousness. GRACE VANGASTLE, Victoria
Gloom and doom for the world economy. DURELL BENNETT, Victoria
More of a sense of oneness and living for others. ANDREW BARBUTZA, Victoria
CITY WATCHDOG
Anthropologist digs into native treaties n the past, I have invoked the ghosts of Victoria’s birth to illustrate the ongoing injustice borne by the indigenous nations of British Columbia. The demons of our past — James Douglas, John Helmcken, Matthew Begbie — make convenient villains, their crimes laid bare by a view of history less biased toward colonial heroes. SIMON It is easy to fill ourselves with guilt when NATTRASS the legacy of these men is revealed in the snattrass@ politics and relationships of today, but for mondaymag.com UVic anthropologist and fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, Michael Asch, guilt is not the final word. At first Asch set out to tell a story, to help those who had never thought about pre-colonial history to understand where we come from and what it means to live on someone else’s land. As time went on, simply knowing our history wasn’t enough for Asch or his students, and he began looking for a way to move away from the political and social foundations laid by men like Douglas and Begbie.
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Asch turns to an unlikely source for this alternative, looking to a set of treaties written during the confederation of Canada. We can neither deny that today’s treaty process is deeply flawed nor ignore governments’ willingness to minimize the promises made to the people whose land we have gleefully logged, strip mined and developed for hundreds of years. Even so, for all these flaws, Asch’s work reveals in these early treaties one of the only opportunities Canadian law offers to pursue a relationship with indigenous peoples characterized by respect instead of exploitation. Asch’s work is founded in the simple reality that indigenous people were here first and have a right to the land that continues to this day — a right that Canada continues to ignore. The promises made in these treaties are simple: to approach our relationships with indigenous peoples with kindness, to respect their right to the land, and not to interfere with their cultures or ignore their interests. Every tar-sands pit, oil rig, mine, and even city takes on a new light when we consider these obligations. M Asch will be teaching a free course as part of a series on Canadian History and Politics with the Free Knowledge Project. For dates and other information visit freeknowledgeproject.wordpress.com. M
THE POLL Did PETA step over line with turkey protest billboard? Yes, targetting kids is wrong
16% 12% Maybe, bad taste doesn't taste good To participate in next week’s poll, go to mondaymag.com
Proudly Standing Up for the Issues That Matter. Carole James MLA Victoria – Beacon Hill 250-952-4211 Carole.James.MLA@leg.bc.ca www.carolejamesmla.ca 1084 Fort Street, Victoria [6]
MONDAY MAGAZINE JANUARY 3 - JANUARY 9, 2013 mondaymag.com
Maurine Karagianis MLA Esquimalt – Royal Roads 250-479-8326 Maurine.Karagianis.MLA@leg.bc.ca www.maurinekaragianis.ca A5 – 100 Aldersmith Place, View Royal
No, it got people's attention
72%
Total Votes: 18