Ontario Nonprofit Network (ONN) published the Care Scorecard for Ontario, which reports on care policy areas related to both unpaid and paid care work. ONN highlights eight policy areas, each with a set of indicators, and the most relevant policy, action plan, program, and/or framework for each indicator was chosen to score. According to the report, the scoring and analysis reveal that care policies in Ontario are not transformative, which means that policies do not transform the unequal and gendered distribution of care work or correct the devaluation of care and care work.
Why care policies in Ontario are failing:
- Care systems are operating at unsustainable levels.
- Housing precarity and cost of living create high care needs that cannot be met by the current system.
- Strong physical infrastructure enables good care, but deregulating and privatizing it creates a greater burden of care.
- Privatization of care services undermines the essential delivery of nonprofit services.
- Punishment and criminalization are the response to care needs when the appropriate services and support are not available.
- Weak employment legislation leaves care workers vulnerable to workplace abuse and exploitation.
For further information, access the Care Scorecard for Ontario.
