In our season six closer episode, we’re delving into the intersection of Disability and poverty.

Both are on the rise in Canada.

The Canadian 2022 Canadian Survey on Disability showed, 27% of Canadians 15 and older have at least one disability.

That’s eight million people.

And that’s up 5% from the previous survey in 2017.

And, 2022 and 2023 figures from Statistics Canada show, over one million people who have a disability, are Canadians with low income.

And that’s even higher for people without disabilities — almost two million people.

So what’s going on in this country? And does it depend on where you live in Canada?

It wasn’t until 2003 that Human Resources and Development Canada introduced what’s called, the Market Basket Measure (MBM).

It’s basically calculated by adding up the cost of one basket of goods and services that a family of four needs for a basic standard of living…and establishing how much income they need for that one basket.

But disability advocates say the MBM leaves out a big thing — additional costs, such as mobility aids, that people who have a disability, have every year.

They’ve given the federal government a failing “F” when it comes to addressing the issues involved in the intersection of disability and poverty.

Find out why…what needs to change…..and what motivates our two guests to advocate for change…in this compelling conversation with:

• Rabia Khedr, National Director of Disability Without Poverty
• Fabio Crespin, Senior Manager of Inclusive Employment at United Way Greater Toronto

SHOW NOTES

• Episode 40 transcript (PDF)
• Disability Without Poverty website
• Disability Without Poverty’s 2024 Report Card
• Statistics Canada — Poverty and low-income statistics by disability status
• Statistics Canada — A demographic, employment and income profile of persons with disabilities aged 15 years and over in Canada, 2022

Again this year, we’re delving into disability and intersectionality to close out the show for our 2025 season.

It’s a broad topic — there are many directions to approach it from.

In part one of our two-part season ending series, we’re exploring the intersection of disability, Blackness and gender.

It’s a convergence that makes for a compelling conversation.

One published report said, “little is known about the experiences of Black Canadians with disabilities who will experience disparities in education, employment and entrepreneurship based on the intersection of anti-Black racism and ableism.”

Then there’s their experiences within the Black community itself.

When you role all of these things together, what are the main challenges, or barriers to inclusion, faced by Black Canadians who have a disability?

And how significant is the gender aspect in all of that?

How much does access to employment supports depend on whether you’re a Black man, or a Black woman, who has a disability?

And how much does history and colonialism play in all of this?

What needs to change?

These are just some of the questions we explore with our guest Ingrid Palmer.

Ingrid is a passionate human rights advocate, an inspirational speaker on diversity, equity and inclusion, and the Principal IDEAL (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility Leading to belonging) Advocate for Realize Canada.

Catch this compelling conversation with Ingrid!

SHOW NOTES

• Episode 39 transcript (PDF)
• Realize Canada website
• Ingrid Palmer’s speaker website
• Report — The Intersection of Blackness and Disability in Canada: A Brief Overview and a Call to Action
• Prioritizing Black Canadians with Disabilities in Bill C-22, Canada Disability Benefit Act — Submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology

October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month. Or NDEAM, as it's known for short.

This month across Canada, NDEAM campaigns are focusing on raising awareness about disability-inclusive hiring…disability inclusion throughout the employment cycle…breaking down barriers to employment for people who have a disability…and creating a disability-inclusive workplace and culture.

So every season, we like to tie our October episode to NDEAM.

This episode, we’re delving into an aspect of disability and employment that seems to be not talked about a whole lot in the conversation about disability and employment.

We’re exploring the self-employment journey for people who have a disability.

There isn’t a lot of research or statistics about it.

And there isn’t a lot of data on why people who have a disability go the self-employment route.

Are there unique challenges faced by people who have a disability, who opt for self-employment?

What supports are out there compared to supports for traditional job seekers?

Some of the questions we’re exploring with our two guests as they share their self-employment journeys and experiences with us in this episode.

Catch this conversation with Margaux Wosk and Jeff Tiessen.

SHOW NOTES

• Episode 38 transcript (PDF)
• Find Margaux Wosk on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok: @retrophiliac
• Margaux Wosk’s websites: Etsy Store | Shop Retrophiliac
• Get in touch with Jeff Tiessen by email
• Disability Today Magazine
• Jeff’s LinkedIn profile
• Margaux’s LinkedIn profile