People on social assistance with part-time or occasional jobs will be able to keep more of what they earn, says a source close to sweeping welfare reforms to be announced by Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod Thursday.

Currently, they can earn just $200 a month before their benefits are reduced by 50 cents for every additional dollar they make.

The change is part of a broad overhaul of Ontario’s $10-billion welfare system that supports almost 1 million of the province’s most-vulnerable residents.

The multi-year reform framework will include changes for municipalities and stakeholders and “hopefully, the pace will give us the opportunity to get all of this right,” said the source. The Star has agreed not to identify the source who spoke on the condition they not be named.

MacLeod launched a 100-day rethink of the system on July 31. At the time, she also cut a planned 3-per cent welfare increase to 1.5 per cent and killed the previous Liberal government’s three-year basic income pilot project, calling it too expensive and not focused enough on employment. This was despite her party’s promise to keep it during last spring’s election campaign.

The moves have caused panic among those struggling to survive on monthly social assistance payments of up to $733 for an individual on Ontario Works (OW) and up to $1,169 for those on the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP.)

Despite the fears, MacLeod has repeated her view that “the best social program is a job” and has vowed to create a system that will “lift more people out of poverty.”

Allowing people on social assistance to keep more of what they earn will encourage them to work more hours and boost their incomes, sources said.

“Increased earnings exemptions need to happen,” said the source. “It’s just a matter of how much and when (they will kick in.)”

Under previous Liberal government reforms “paused” by MacLeod last summer, earnings exemptions were scheduled to increase to $400 a month on Dec. 1.

At Queen’s Park Wednesday, MacLeod said she thinks people on social assistance will be “surprised” by her government’s “compassionate” plan to give people “a hand up.”

She said the focus of the changes are not to kick people off social assistance, but to provide “wraparound” supports so those who cannot work can live “with dignity” and to help those who can work, find employment.

“This will be a system that will empower more people and bring dignity and respect back into our social assistance program and make sure that those who can work are given every support to do that,” she added.

MacLeod said her ministry will “take care in how we roll (out the changes) because these are real people and we want to make sure that they get the support that they need.”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

But despite MacLeod’s assurances, many remain wary.

“People are quite anxious about the social assistance changes, especially after what they did with the basic income pilot project,” said Tom Cooper of the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction.