‘You’re left hungry’: Sask. disability payments fall short, advocates say

Recipients of Saskatchewan's disability benefits are joining the NDP to call for better funding, saying the program has not kept pace with inflation.

Some Saskatchewan residents receiving disability benefits say they are struggling to make ends meet, while advocates say payments are not keeping up with the cost of living.

Wendy McCallum, who has received Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability (SAID) benefits for several years, said the monthly payments are not enough to cover her basic needs and that she does not have stable housing.

“Your basic allowance has to go towards the rent, otherwise you’re not going to have anywhere to live and then you’re left hungry,” McCallum said.

Collette Warlow of Prairie Underdog Advocacy, a non-profit that provides disability support services, said many recipients are in similar situations. She said she is currently supporting someone with a disability who cannot afford food or rent.

“It’s frustrating watching people with all these disabilities and anybody on SAID that cannot be supported properly,” Warlow said.

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Fran Forsberg, who works with people experiencing homelessness, said she is seeing a growing need.

She said she has helped provide meals every Sunday for three years through an organization that feeds between 100 and 200 people in under 30 minutes.

She said more people with disabilities are ending up without housing.

“It has become evident that it is getting worse and worse,” Forsberg said.

NDP disabilities critic Brittney Senger said people in major centres receive about $1,159 a month through SAID, while the average cost of a one-bedroom apartment in Saskatoon is about $1,200.

“We need to ensure that everybody in Saskatchewan can afford to live. This is affecting the most vulnerable population, it doesn’t even cover the cost of rent,” Senger said at a press conference Thursday.

In a statement, the provincial government said it has increased income assistance benefits at a rate higher than inflation since introducing SAID.

“Since replacing the Saskatchewan Assistance Program in 2009-10, monthly benefits have increased 70 per cent for SAID clients, higher than the 45 per cent increase in Saskatchewan’s Consumer Price Index over the same period,” the statement said.

The province also said there is no set maximum monthly benefit.

“Benefit amounts vary depending on an individual’s needs, eligibility, financial resources and situation,” the statement said.

The province said SAID benefits are set to increase by two per cent starting in May, providing up to $40 more per month.

“This is the fourth consecutive year monthly benefits have increased for SAID clients,” the statement said.