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Toronto – Information
picket lines will go up
outside Ontario
Disability Support
Program (ODSP) offices
across
Ontario
today to protest a
crisis in understaffing
that is seriously
eroding the delivery of
public services to
325,000 Ontarians who
receive income support.
One hour information
pickets are scheduled to
form at 12:00 noon at
more than 40 ODSP
offices in Ontario.
“The ODSP delivery
system is broken and the
government is unwilling
to fix it,” said Ontario
Public Service Employees
Union president Warren
(Smokey) Thomas. OPSEU
represents more than
1,200 ODSP workers, who
are responsible for the
administration and
delivery of $2.6 billion
in benefits to disabled
Ontarians living beneath
the poverty line.
“Study after study has
made clear the obvious:
the health of ODSP
workers is suffering –
and the clients they
serve are being treated
like second class
citizens – because the
government refuses to
ease the caseload
demands that our members
are expected to carry.”
ODSP income support
specialists have a
caseload ratio for 530
benefit claims for every
one staff worker. By
contrast, similar
workers in British
Columbia have a caseload
ratio of about 300:1. In
Nova Scotia,
Saskatchewan and
Manitoba, the rate is
lower than 200:1.
In a study funded by the
Ministry of Community
and Social Services and
released last July,
Wayne Lewchuk of the
labour studies
department of McMaster
University, said ODSP
frontline workers are
suffering from steep
levels of stress,
tension, ill health and
high absenteeism caused
primarily by the high
level of caseloads.
Thomas said the McGuinty
government has pledged
to reduce poverty rates
in Ontario by 25 per
cent over the next 5
years.
“The government can
demonstrate its
commitment to fight
poverty by starting with
a level of public
service that those
living in poverty are
entitled to.”
For background
information on the Day
of Action, including the
addresses for ODSP
information pickets,
please visit:
http://www.opseu.org/ops/ministry/odsp/odspindex.htm
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