In this section you will find:
Components of welfare incomes
In Manitoba, households that qualify for basic social assistance payments also qualify for:
- Recurring additional social assistance payments from the province,
- Federal child benefits for households with children, and
- Federal tax credits and/or benefits.
Together, these components form a household’s total welfare income. Households may receive less if they have income from other sources, or more if they have special health- or disability-related needs.
Table 1MB shows the value of the welfare income components of the five example household types in Manitoba in 2024. All five households are assumed to be living in Winnipeg, receiving provincial social assistance starting January 1 and for the entire year, and earning no employment income. The child in the single-parent household is two years old and the children in the couple household are ten and 15. Other assumptions for calculating incomes are in the Methodology section.
Table 1MB: Components of welfare incomes for all example households in Manitoba, 2024
*Note: Amounts in the table are rounded to the nearest dollar and as such totals may not exactly add up.
*The Barriers to Full Employment (MBFE) category of Manitoba’s Employment and Income Assistance (EIA) program provides the unattached single with a disability with slightly higher basic benefits than those provided to the unattached single considered employable. To access MBFE, an applicant must show evidence that they have a medical condition that prevents them from working for more than one year.
**The Manitoba Supports for Persons with Disabilities (MSPD) program provides recipients with higher benefits than the MBFE category of the EIA program. Recipients are also entitled to higher earned income exemptions and ongoing health benefits for 24 months after exiting the program. To access MSPD, an applicant must show evidence through a disability impact assessment that they have a “severe and prolonged” disability, as defined in the program regulations. Individuals who are part of certain prescribed classes do not have to participate in this assessment.
Total annual welfare incomes in 2024 ranged from $11,379 for the unattached single considered employable to $36,093 for the couple with two children. The unattached single with a disability who qualified for MBFE benefits received $15,122, the unattached single with a disability who qualified for MSPD benefits received $16,934, and the single parent with one child received $26,821.
Note that this is the second year that Welfare in Canada has included a fifth Manitoba household – an unattached single with a disability who qualified for benefits from the Manitoba Supports for Persons with Disabilities (MSPD) program, which was introduced in 2023 and through which eligible households began receiving benefits in April of that year.
Basic social assistance: Monthly Basic Necessities amounts for all households receiving Employment and Income Assistance (EIA) benefits did not change in 2024. The value of supplementary benefit amounts available to the unattached single with a disability (MBFE) and the single parent with one child households also did not change in 2024.
In 2024, the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) household received a full year of Monthly Income Support from the MSPD program. The Monthly Income Support rate increased by about $4, or 1 per cent, in July due to annual inflation indexing. This household also continued to receive one supplementary benefit amount, which did not change in value in 2024.
Rent Assist amounts for all households increased in July, reflecting the regular indexation schedule. As a result, the unattached single considered employable received $616 per month for the first six months of the year and $638 per month for the last six months of the year, the two unattached single with a disability households received $705 and $735, and the single parent with one child and the couple with two children both received $1,020 and $1,064.
Additional social assistance: The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) received the Income Assistance for Persons with Disabilities benefit of $105 per month. The couple with two children received the annual School Supplies Allowance of $60 for the ten-year-old and $100 for the 15-year-old. These amounts remained unchanged in 2024.
Federal child benefits: Both households with children received the Canada Child Benefit (CCB), which increased with inflation in July from $619.75 to $648.92 per month for a child under six years of age and from $522.92 to $547.50 per month for a child aged six to 17.
Provincial child benefits: Neither of the example households with children received the Manitoba Child Benefit because parents receiving social assistance in Manitoba are categorically ineligible.
Federal tax credits/benefits: All five households received the GST/HST credit, which increased with inflation in July. All three unattached single households received $332.50 in basic GST/HST credit, the single parent with one child received $665, and the couple with two children received $1,015.
Three households also received the GST/HST credit supplement. The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) received $30.77, the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) received $52.62, and the single parent with one child received $175.
The federal Grocery Rebate, which was provided as a one-time GST/HST credit payment in response to high inflation in 2023, was not available in 2024.
All five households received the federal Canada Carbon Rebate (CCR), previously known as the climate action incentive (CAI) payment. The three unattached single households received $582, the single parent with one child received $873, and the couple with two children received $1,164. These amounts reflected an increase over 2023.
Provincial tax credits/benefits: No provincial tax credits or benefits were available to the five households in 2024.
Cost-of-living payments: Several jurisdictions, including the federal government, provided additional payments in 2022 and 2023 related to the increased cost of living resulting from high inflation. Although four provincial/territorial jurisdictions continued to provide inflation-related payments in 2024, neither Manitoba nor the federal government did so. See the Overview section for more information.
Changes to welfare incomes
Figures 1MB and 2MB show how the total welfare incomes for each of the five example household types in Manitoba have changed over time.
Note that the values are in 2024 constant dollars, not current dollars, and are calculated using the Canada CPI. Using constant dollars takes into account the effect of inflation given that inflation reduces current dollar values over time. Also note that using the CPI for Manitoba would have resulted in a slightly different trendline.
Figure 1MB: Welfare incomes for example unattached single households in Manitoba 1986–2024, in 2024 constant dollars
The total welfare income of the unattached single considered employable declined steadily from its peak in 1992 until 2007. Two years of increases were followed by a small decline through to 2012, after which increases – largely due to enhancements to Manitoba’s Rent Assist program – followed until 2018. The increase in 2020 was largely due to the federal climate action incentive (CAI) and COVID-19 pandemic-related payments. The declines in 2021 and 2022 were primarily due to the loss of pandemic-related payments and the effects of high inflation. The increase in 2023 was mostly the result of higher Rent Assist and federal CAI amounts. Finally, the decrease to $11,379 in 2024 was largely the result of losing the 2023 temporary inflation-related cost-of-living payments from the federal government. Overall, the total welfare income of this household declined by 1 per cent since 2023 and by 12 per cent across the time series, in constant 2024 dollars.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MBFE) followed a similar trajectory, reaching a high point in 1992 and following a decreasing trend through to 2012. Increases thereafter were primarily the result of enhancements to Manitoba’s Rent Assist program. The sharper increase in 2020 was due to pandemic-related payments and the federal CAI payment, with the decrease since then largely due to the loss of pandemic-related payments and the effects of high inflation. The slight decrease to $15,122 in 2024 was largely the result of losing the 2023 temporary federal inflation-related cost-of-living payments. Overall, the total welfare income of this household declined by 1 per cent since 2023 but increased by 6 per cent since the start of the time series, in constant 2024 dollars.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) was $16,934 in 2024, which was the second year this program was in effect. The total welfare income of this household increased by 2 per cent in constant 2024 dollars since 2023, which was largely due to the household receiving MSPD for the full 12 months of 2024.
Figure 2MB: Welfare incomes for example households with children in Manitoba 1986–2024, in 2024 constant dollars
The welfare income of the single parent with one child saw a small peak in 1992 and a sharp drop in 1993, followed by a lengthy period of relative stasis until 2014. Starting in 2015, their income began to increase, largely due to changes to federal child benefits. The sharp increase in 2020, which represents the high point across the time series, was primarily due to federal climate action incentive (CAI) and COVID-19 pandemic-related payments. The decline from 2020 to 2022 was largely due to the loss of pandemic-related payments as well as the effects of high inflation. Welfare incomes remained essentially unchanged in 2023 and 2024. Overall, the total welfare income of this household decreased by 0.2 per cent since 2023 and increased by 18 per cent across the time series, in constant 2024 dollars.
The total welfare income of the couple with two children reached a peak in 1992, dropped significantly in 1993, then levelled out for many years. Large increases from 2014 to 2017 were largely due to changes to federal child benefits. The high point in 2020, resulting largely from COVID-19 pandemic-related payments, was followed by declines in 2021 and 2022 that were primarily due to the loss of those payments and the effects of high inflation. Welfare incomes remained essentially unchanged in 2023 and 2024. Overall, the total welfare income of this household decreased by 0.1 per cent since 2023 but increased by 0.8 per cent across the time series, in constant 2024 dollars.
Adequacy of welfare incomes
The adequacy of a household’s total welfare income can be assessed by comparing it to established thresholds of poverty and/or low income.
Two measures of poverty are commonly used in Canada:
- The Market Basket Measure (MBM), Canada’s Official Poverty Line, identifies households whose disposable income is less than the cost of a “basket” of goods and services that represents a basic standard of living.
- The Deep Income Poverty (MBM-DIP) threshold identifies households whose disposable income is less than 75 per cent of the MBM.
Two measures of low income are also commonly used:
- The Low Income Measure (LIM) identifies households whose income is substantially below what is typical in society (i.e., less than half of the median income).
- The Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) identifies households that are likely to spend a disproportionately large share of their income on food, clothing, and shelter.
Note that MBM thresholds vary by province and community size, and LICO thresholds vary by community size. As such, we use the thresholds for the province’s largest city, Winnipeg, in the analysis below. Note also that we use after-tax LIM and LICO thresholds, and that the LIM thresholds for 2024 are estimates based on increasing the 2023 thresholds to account for inflation.
Also note that none of the poverty or low-income measures currently in use in Canada accounts for the higher cost of living faced by people with disabilities, and that these additional costs are not reflected in our analysis.
More information about the thresholds is available in the Methodology section.
A table containing comparisons of the welfare incomes of the five example household types in Manitoba with all four poverty/low-income thresholds is available for download.
Poverty threshold comparisons
The welfare incomes of all five example household types in Manitoba were below, and in at least one case far below, Canada’s Official Poverty Line (MBM) in 2024, and all five were below the Deep Income Poverty threshold (MBM-DIP). This means that all five Manitoba households were living not only in poverty in 2024, but also in deep poverty.
Figures 3MB and 4MB compare 2024 welfare incomes for the five example household types to the 2024 MBM and MBM-DIP thresholds for Winnipeg.
Figure 3MB: Welfare incomes and poverty thresholds for example unattached single households in Manitoba, 2024
The unattached single considered employable had the least adequate income relative to the poverty thresholds. Their income was $8,715 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $15,413 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was only 57 per cent of the MBM-DIP and only 42 per cent of the MBM.
The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) fared slightly better, with an income that was $4,972 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $11,670 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 75 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 56 per cent of the MBM.
The income of the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) was more adequate relative to the poverty thresholds. Their income was $3,160 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $9,858 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 84 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 63 per cent of the MBM.
Note that the poverty experienced by people with disabilities is underrepresented because neither the MBM nor the MBM-DIP accounts for the additional costs associated with disability. See the Methodology section for more information.
Figure 4MB: Welfare incomes and poverty thresholds for example households with children in Manitoba, 2024
The incomes of households with children were more adequate relative to the poverty thresholds than those of the unattached single households.
The income of the single parent with one child was the most adequate of all five households relative to the poverty thresholds, at only $1,596 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $11,068 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 94 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 71 per cent of the MBM.
The income of the couple with two children was less adequate, at $4,095 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $17,490 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 90 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 67 per cent of the MBM.
Low-income threshold comparisons
The welfare incomes of the example households were also below, and in some instances less than half of, the low-income thresholds, as shown in the table linked below.
The least adequate income relative to the thresholds was that of the unattached single considered employable, whose total welfare income was only 37 per cent of the LIM and 44 per cent of the LICO. The most adequate relative to the thresholds was that of the single parent with one child, whose welfare income was only 62 per cent of the LIM and 85 per cent of the LICO.
The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) had an income of only 49 per cent of the LIM and 58 per cent of the LICO. The unattached single with a disability (MSPD) had an income of only 55 per cent of the LIM and 65 per cent of the LICO. The income of the couple with two children was 54 per cent of the LIM and 74 per cent of the LICO.
The LIM and LICO thresholds used are for after-tax income, as noted above.
Changes to adequacy of welfare incomes
Figures 5MB and 6MB show the total welfare incomes of each of the five example household types in Manitoba as a percentage of the Market Basket Measure (MBM) threshold for Winnipeg, starting in 2002.
The black line at the top of each graph (i.e., the 100 per cent threshold) represents Canada’s Official Poverty Line. This means that the graphs show how far below the Poverty Line the five households’ total welfare incomes have been in each year over the past 23 years.
The grey line indicates the Deep Income Poverty threshold, which is 75 per cent of the MBM. The graphs therefore also show the relationship between total welfare incomes and deep poverty in each year over the past 23 years.
Three trendlines for each household are shown in the graphs. These lines illustrate the relationship between welfare incomes and changes made to the MBM due to “rebasing.” The two rebasings, occurring in 2008 and 2018, are indicated with a dotted vertical line. Rebasing updates the measure, including the items and costs included in the basket, to better reflect contemporary circumstances and typically creates a higher poverty threshold than that of a previous base. The trendlines demonstrate changes to household poverty levels within the years in which each base is applied. A trendline rise within those periods indicates an improvement in a household’s level of poverty while a decline indicates a deepening of their poverty. For the years in which rebasing took place (2008 and 2018), we include the percentage of welfare income relative to the MBM using both the previous and the new base to show how rebasing affects adequacy.
Note that fluctuations in the graph trendlines are due to a combination of changes in welfare incomes and the cost of living. Both factors must be considered when analyzing trends.
Figure 5MB: Welfare incomes as a percentage of the MBM for example unattached single households in Manitoba, 2002–2024
The total welfare income of the unattached single considered employable began the time series at 45 per cent of the Poverty Line and hovered at around that level until 2016 and 2017, when it increased to just over 50 per cent. Their income returned to roughly 45 per cent after the 2018 rebasing and declined to 40 per cent in 2022. Their income ended the time series in 2024 at 42 per cent of the Poverty Line.
Overall, the total welfare income of the unattached single considered employable was 3 percentage points lower relative to the Poverty Line in 2024 than it was in 2002, meaning that households in these circumstances were living in deeper poverty than they were 23 years ago. Their income was also well below the Deep Income Poverty threshold across the entire time series, meaning that households living in these circumstances would have consistently lived in deep poverty for the last 23 years.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MBFE) started the time series at 67 per cent of the Poverty Line and followed virtually the same trendlines as the unattached single considered employable. After slight increases through the mid-2010s and declines in the early 2020s, the welfare income of this household ended the time series in 2024 at only 56 per cent of the Poverty Line.
Overall, the total welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MBFE) declined by 11 percentage points relative to the Poverty Line across the entire time series. Their income was also below the Deep Income Poverty threshold across the entire time series, meaning that households in these circumstances would have experienced a deepening of their already very deep poverty over the last 23 years.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) reached 63 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2024, up from 61 per cent in 2023. In both years, this household was living in deep poverty.
Figure 6MB: Welfare incomes as a percentage of the MBM for example households with children in Manitoba, 2002–2024
The total welfare income of the single parent with one child started the time series at 73 per cent of the Poverty Line. After the 2008 rebasing, their income declined to a low of 61 per cent in 2013 and 2014, then increased to a high of 83 per cent in 2017. Since 2018, their income increased to 76 per cent in 2020 and 2021 but declined to 71 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2024.
Overall, the total welfare income of the single parent with one child declined relative to the Poverty Line by 2 percentage points. Their income was also below the Deep Income Poverty threshold in all but three years across the time series, meaning that households in these circumstances would have consistently lived in deep poverty for most of the last 23 years.
The total welfare income of the couple with two children also started the time series at 73 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2002 and largely mirrored the trendline for the income of the single parent with one child across the entire time series. Their welfare income ended the time series at 67 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2024.
Overall, the total welfare income of the couple with two children was 6 percentage points lower at the end of the time series relative to the Poverty Line than it was at the start. Their income was also below the Deep Income Poverty threshold for all but five years of the time series, meaning that households in these circumstances would have experienced a deepening of their already deep poverty over the last 23 years.
Access to data
The data for Manitoba is available for download, including:
- Components of welfare income for all households.
- Welfare incomes in 2024 constant dollars over time for all households.
- Welfare incomes in current dollars over time for all households.
- Adequacy of welfare incomes: a comparison of each household’s welfare income with all four poverty and low-income thresholds.
- Adequacy over time: each household’s welfare income relative to the Official Poverty Line (MBM) from 2002–2024.