Thompson Social Policy Class,
October 25, 2005

Back to Workshops Page

Thompson Workshop
(November 15, 2006)

Thompson Workshop
(October 26, 2005)

We were invited to speak to a social policy class at the University of Manitoba School of Social Work at Thompson. We arrived in Thompson at 1a.m. from Flin Flon, had a quick sleep and were rearing to go again by 8 the next morning.

The class we facilitated was made up of all women with the exception of one man; they were receptive and responsive to our topic and offered us much insight. We were fortunate that many of the students had come to Thompson from surrounding northern communities to advance their education and so were able to hear first hand the experiences of women from communities that we would not have been able to visit otherwise.

Time poverty was an issue expressed by many of the students. This wasn’t a surprise as they are all students, many with children, some lone-parenting and many also doing paid work. These women live in a town where there is extremely limited bus service, high violence, few daycares and not enough safe, decent and affordable housing. These are women working hard at educating themselves, incredibly concerned for their communites, taking on large responsibilities and hoping for a good life for themselves and their children.

The following ideas were generated by workshop participants as part of our gender budget consultations. Please note that this list does not represent the official position of the UN Platform for Action Committee Manitoba (UNPAC). Neither UNPAC nor all of the participants have endorsed these suggestions.

1. What are key concerns for women in your community?

• CHILDCARE
• SAFETY
  • Gang prevention
• FAMILY PROGRAMS & RECREATION
  • Youth programs — usually top down men programming, need more youth participation
• RACISM
• WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAMS
• DRUGS & ALCOHOL
• HOUSING
• POVERTY
• ACCESS TO POST SECONDARY EDUCATION
• DOMESTIC ABUSE
• EMPLOYMENT
  • Training
  • Persons with disabilities
  • Actual jobs — min wage, quality jobs
• SUPPORT SYSTEMS FOR FAMILIES
  • Child apprehension
  • Young mothers
• TRANSPORTATION
• HEALTH
  • Nutrition & Healthy eating
  • Physical health
  • Exercise in winter
• FEDERAL JURISDICTION
  • Barrier for on reserve i.e. Access to health
  • Transition between communities — provincial to federal

2. a) What Government programs and services have really helped to meet women’s needs and concerns? How could they be expanded upon or made better?

• CRISP — but did not recognize money from band for education, thought of as social assistance
• SAFFR
• EI —but where did my money go?
• ETS — employment and training
• Youth Build — high school education and job training
• Baby’s Best — more mentoring, people will sell their milk coupons
• Family First — in home support for mother
• LEAP — education training for women
• Some childcare programs
• WHOP
• Winnipeg home improvement project
• Keewatin Community College
• Ma Ma We Tak Friendship centre
  • Aboriginal HeadStart
  • Northern Circle
  • Hosts career opportunities, symposium and workshops
• Women’s shelters — crisis centre , very busy — only 30 day limit
• Milk coupons
• Taxi slips
• Futures
• BRHA — women’s clinic, gives out birth control pills every Tuesday night, when you can’t get a doctor (better, but still have to wait)
  • Healthy Child MB
  • Nutrition program
  • Grassroots mentoring
• Child tax benefit
• YWCA
  • Hostel for pregnant women
  • Girls night out

2. b) Are there programs or services that should be stopped because they are not working?

The following programs need improvement:

• CRISP — make more accessible, do not stop — does not recognize money from band for education, just as Social Assistance
• Legal Aid — there have been so many cutbacks, don’t stop but improve
  • Rude, disrespectful lawyers
  • Denied lawyers
  • Hard enough to go and then have to face the insensitivities of the lawyers
  • Lawyers need a courtesy lesson
  • Will not help unless you are not destitute

2. c) What other ideas do you have for programs and services that could meet women’s needs?

• Catering for Women — employment built on women’s skills, employment from home, do not cut social assistance.
• Get more women involved in decision-making
• Learn trade skills — support for women going into the industry, incentives, support system, encouragement
• Expand on Youth Builders
• Gang awareness
  • Reality check — visit Stoney Mountain Penitentiary
  • What harmful lifestyles can do to you
  • “Scared Straight”
• Basic Training for Women on social assistance. ie. Resumé writing
• More low-income housing, affordable, quality
• Laundry Facilities — people’s kids get taken away for issues like laundry
• Lunch and Breakfast Programs
• Housing — based on income, great to own house but too expensive
• Higher wages for workers
• Support Groups for Women — single moms who do not get out much. Home visits, outreach, peer support
• Lifetime Mentoring Program — Like Urban Circle in Winnipeg
• Youth Volunteer Programs — rewards
• McDonald Youth Services
• Federally Funded Centre in Thompson to address health services access
• Central Therapy Centre
• Transportation for participants for programs
• AFM
  • Teenage
  • 1-800 number
• More childcare
  • More provincial money for childcare facilities
  • Quality
  • Doesn’t know if she will have a space in one year when she goes back to work
  • Pays $1000/month for 2 kids, no lunch

3. Women often do not have enough money to do the things they need to do and they often do not have enough time to do the things they need to do either. Where are you crunched for time? What could the government do to give you more time to do the things you need to do?

• Childcare
  • Evening & weekend childcare centre with recreation
  • For working people
  • In business and workplaces, universities and colleges
  • In Winnipeg some daycares walk kids to and from school during lunch
  • People from out of town with no family
  • Available at school, so you can do homework in evenings (many people do not have computers at home)
  • Largest day care in Thompson (90 kids) was shut down due to labour disputes, only four left, huge waiting lists.
• Support for Students
  • Childcare
  • Transportation
• Kids & Parents programming
  • Swimming
  • movies
• Community Card
  • Used throughout community
  • Onetime fee
  • Criteria open, no stigma
  • Bowling, Skating, Swimming
• Community owned game facility
• Transportation — last bus 6pm
  • Late, improve safety
  • “Everything is harder without a vehicle”
  • worse in winter
  • can’t afford to cab
  • walking takes so much time
• Mental Health Programs
  • Sharing circles
  • Awareness building, encouragement, support
  • Stress relief at exam time
  • Child care should be a part of all programs
• Kindergarten until 12pm not 11:30am — too hard to juggle it all
• More funding for post-secondary students through the band
• Education programs fro people on SA to upgrade
• Flextime for all parents at all workplaces (like at the Y)
• School Buses

4. What ideas do you have on how the Government could earn more money? Use the creativity you have learned from your experience as a woman living with a tight budget.

• Tax
  • Junk food, subsidize milk
  • Tobacco
  • Liquor (ban liquor)
  • Large businesses
  • Corporations — fair tax, or could donate services instead of tax
• Do need more money, just use it more wisely and differently
• Raise amount and income bracket amount in order to receive child subsidy
• Why is the Canadian government giving money to other countries when there is such an obvious need here? — look at the issues right here. Go to reserves, look at the life there — Reality check of own country
• Audit themselves — why such extravagant spending within government?
• Government accountability
• Government officials should receive lower wages
• Do not increase casinos — they do not belong on reserves, unhealthy lifestyle
• Quit making cigarettes — health care would go down
• Receipts for welfare expenses instead of cheques — accountability
• Government connecting to community, instead of community connecting to government — less intimidation
  • Finance Minister Selinger’s Public Budget Consultation process is good — should be used with other departments