NB Common Front calls for higher social assistance rates

By Arun Budhathoki, NB Media Co-op

October 15, 2022

FREDERICTON / UNCEDED WOLASTOQIYIK TERRITORY -- The Moncton Chapter of the NB Common Front for Social Justice is organizing a march and a conference to mark the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on Monday.

The NB Media Co-op reached out to Robert MacKay, a long-standing member of the Moncton chapter, to talk about poverty and next week’s events. 

“The government needs to pay more attention to its people than corporations,” he said in an interview. 

Along with record-high inflation, a housing crisis and crumbling public health infrastructure, many New Brunswickers continue to struggle with poverty. In particular, homeless New Brunswickers may face a harsh winter. 

Robert MacKay, a long-standing member of the Moncton chapter, told NB Media Co-op, “Over the past 25 years, we have been doing things around Employment Insurance, poverty issues, social assistance, minimum wage, et cetera. We have recently been trying to improve employment standards across the province”.

“Our efforts have managed to increase the wage limit for those on social assistance to $500. Although it is a small amount, I think we are on the right track, and it’s a benchmark for us,” MacKay added.

MacKay called for an increase in the rate of social assistance. It currently stands at$593 per month for a single person deemed “employable,” he said. 

On Monday, the opening ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. at the monument at Riverfront Park located behind the parking lot of the Rogers building on Assomption Blvd. Senator Nancy Hartling will be the keynote speaker at St. George’s Anglican Church. 

More details can be found on the NB Media Co-op’s events calendar. 

Arun Budhathoki is a journalist with the NB Media Co-op.