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.
In 2023, all the example households in Manitoba received additional payments from the federal government related to the increased cost of living due to high inflation. These payments are included where applicable in the table below.
Although past reports have shown four households in Manitoba, as of this edition of Welfare in Canada, we have added an additional household to our analysis. Manitoba introduced its new Manitoba Supports for Persons with Disabilities (MSPD) program on January 1, 2023, and the additional household reflects the total welfare income of an unattached single person who qualified for benefits from this program.
Table 1MB shows the value of the welfare income components of the five example household types in Manitoba in 2023. 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, 2023
*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 2023 ranged from $11,277 for the unattached single considered employable to $35,269 for the couple with two children. The unattached single with a disability who qualified for MBFE benefits received $14,957, the unattached single with a disability who qualified for MSPD benefits received $16,197, and the single parent with one child received $26,239.
Basic social assistance: Monthly Basic Necessities amounts for all households and associated additional benefit amounts for the single with a disability (MBFE) and the single parent with one child did not change in 2023.
The Manitoba Supports for Persons with Disabilities (MSPD) program was introduced on January 1, 2023. The new unattached single with a disability (MSPD) household is assumed to be receiving benefits from this program. For the first three months of 2023, only prescribed classes of those receiving Employment and Income Assistance (EIA) benefits were eligible. As such, this household is assumed to have received MBFE Basic Necessities and associated additional amounts for the first three months of 2023, followed by the program’s initial Monthly Income Support rate in April through June. Starting in July, the Monthly Income Support rate increased due to inflation indexing.
Rent Assist saw two increases tied to inflation. The first was in January, when the indexation formula changed from 75 to 77 per cent of median market rent. The second was in July, reflecting the regular indexation schedule. As a result, the unattached single considered employable received $612 per month for the first six months of the year and $616 per month for the last six months, the two unattached single with a disability households received $691 and $705, and the single parent with one child and the couple with two children received $996 and $1,020.
Additional social assistance: The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) received the Income Assistance for Persons with Disabilities benefit of $1,260 ($105 per month) for all twelve months of the year, whereas the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) received that benefit for the first three months. 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 2023.
Federal child benefits: Both households with children received the Canada Child Benefit (CCB), which increased with inflation in July 2023 from $583.08 to $619.75 per month for a child under six years of age and from $491.91 to $522.91 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 in July 2023 with inflation. All three unattached single households received $315.50 in basic GST/HST credit, while the single parent with one child received $631, and the couple with two children received $963.
Three households also received the GST/HST credit supplement. Both unattached single with a disability households received $45.15 while the single parent with one child received the maximum amount of $166.
All five households received the Grocery Rebate, which was an additional one-time GST credit payment related to the increased cost of living due to high inflation, paid in July 2023. The unattached single considered employable received $153 and both unattached single with a disability households received $183.51. The single parent with one child received $386.50, and the couple with two children received $467.
All five households received the federal climate action incentive (CAI) payment. The three unattached single households received $500, the single parent with one child received $750, and the couple with two children received $1,000. All CAI benefit amounts received by these households increased in 2023.
Provincial tax credits/benefits: No provincial tax credits or benefits were available to the five households in 2023.
Cost-of-living payments
As mentioned earlier, all five households received payments from the federal government related to the increased cost of living resulting from high inflation in 2023. The federal Grocery Rebate was paid in July 2023 and was equivalent to the two regular GST credit (and credit supplement if applicable) payments received in the first half of 2023. These amounts are included in, and are not in addition to, the benefits described in the Components section above.
Table 2MB: Cost-of-living payments for all example households in Manitoba, 2023
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. The income of the unattached single with a disability eligible for benefits from the new MSPD program is represented by the single 2023 value.
Note that the values are in 2023 constant dollars, not current dollars, 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 result in a slightly different trendline.
Figure 1MB: Welfare incomes for example unattached single households in Manitoba 1986–2023, in 2023 constant dollars
The total welfare income of the unattached single considered employable began the time series at $12,214 and 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 that were due largely to enhancements to Manitoba’s Rent Assist program followed until 2018. The increase in 2020 was largely due to the federal climate action incentive and federal 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 to $11,277 in 2023 was mostly the result of higher Rent Assist and federal climate action incentive amounts. Overall, in constant 2023 dollars, the total welfare income of this household declined by 8 per cent since the start of the time series but increased by 6 per cent between 2022 and 2023.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MBFE) followed a similar trajectory, starting at $13,893 in 1989 followed by a high point in 1992 and 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 climate action incentive, while the decreases in 2021 and 2022 were largely due to the loss of pandemic-related payments and the effects of high inflation, especially in 2022. The increase to $14,957 in 2023 was largely the result of higher Rent Assist and federal climate action incentive amounts. Overall, in constant 2023 dollars, the total welfare income of this household increased by 8 per cent since the start of the time series but only 2 per cent between 2022 and 2023 in constant dollars.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) was $16,197 in 2023, which was the first year this program was in effect.
Figure 2MB: Welfare incomes for example households with children in Manitoba 1986–2023, in 2023 constant dollars
The welfare income of the single parent with one child saw a peak in 1992, 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 COVID-19 pandemic-related payments and the federal climate action incentive benefit. The decline in 2021 and 2022 to was mostly due to the loss of pandemic-related payments as well as the effects of high inflation. A very small increase to $26,239 in 2023 was mainly due to a combination of the loss of a one-time inflation-related benefit and the impact of inflation, despite constant dollar increases to other benefits. Overall, in constant 2023 dollars, the total welfare income of this household increased by 22 per cent across the entire time series, but between 2022 and 2023 their income was effectively the same, increasing by only 0.3 per cent.
The total welfare income of the couple with two children followed a similar trajectory across the time series, although at a much higher level and with a more variable trendline between 1986 and 1997. A high through the 1990s was followed by a lengthy period of relative stasis until 2014, at which point increases that were largely due to changes to federal child benefits continued through 2017. 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. The very slight decline to $35,269 in 2023 was mainly due to the loss of a one-time inflation-related benefit and the impact of continuing high inflation, despite increases to other benefits. Overall, in constant 2023 dollars, the total welfare income of this household increased by 5 per cent across the time series, but between 2022 and 2023 their income was effectively the same, decreasing by only 0.5 per cent.
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 2023 are estimates based on increasing the 2022 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 2023, 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 2023, but in deep poverty.
Figures 3MB and 4MB compare 2023 welfare incomes for the five example household types to the 2023 MBM and MBM-DIP thresholds for Winnipeg.
Figure 3MB: Welfare incomes and poverty thresholds for example unattached single households in Manitoba, 2023
The unattached single considered employable had the least adequate income relative to the poverty thresholds. Their income was $8,622 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $15,255 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was only 57 per cent of the MBM-DIP and only 43 per cent of the MBM.
The unattached single with a disability (MBFE) fared better, with an income that was $4,942 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $11,575 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 $3,702 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $10,335 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 81 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 61 per cent of the MBM.
Note that the poverty experienced by people with disabilities is underrepresented because neither the MBM nor the MBM-DIP account 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, 2023
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 $1,903 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $11,283 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 93 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 70 per cent of the MBM.
The income of the couple with two children was less adequate, at $4,529 below the Deep Income Poverty threshold and $17,795 below the Poverty Line. This means their income was 89 per cent of the MBM-DIP and 66 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 above.
The least adequate income relative to the thresholds was that of the unattached single considered employable, whose total welfare income was only 38 per cent of the LIM and 45 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 50 per cent of the LIM and 59 per cent of the LICO. The unattached single with a disability (MSPD) had an income of only 54 per cent of the LIM and 64 per cent of the LICO. The income of the couple with two children was 59 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), starting in 2002. Note that the calculation for the unattached single with a disability who was eligible for benefits from the new MSPD program is represented by the single 2023 value.
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 22 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 22 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 MBM thresholds vary by province and community size. The MBM thresholds used here are for Winnipeg. More information is in the methodology section.
Figure 5MB: Welfare incomes as a percentage of the MBM for example unattached single households in Manitoba, 2002–2023
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 saw a decline to 40 per cent in 2022. Their income ended the time series in 2023 at 43 per cent of the Poverty Line.
Overall, the total welfare income of the unattached single considered employable was 2 percentage points lower relative to the Poverty Line in 2023 than it was in 2002, meaning that this household was living in deeper poverty than they were 22 years ago. Their income was also well below the Deep Income Poverty threshold across the entire time series, meaning that they would have consistently lived in deep poverty for the last 22 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 2023 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, which represents a deepening of their poverty over the past 22 years. As well, their income was below the Deep Income Poverty threshold across the entire time series, meaning that they would have consistently lived in deep poverty for the last 22 years.
The welfare income of the unattached single with a disability (MSPD) was 61 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2023, which was the first year this program was in effect. This means that they were living not only in poverty in 2023, but in deep poverty.
Figure 6MB: Welfare incomes as a percentage of the MBM for example households with children in Manitoba, 2002–2023
The total welfare income of the single parent with one child started the time series at 73 per cent of the Poverty Line. After rebasing in 2008, 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 70 per cent of the Poverty Line in both 2022 and 2023.
Overall, the total welfare income of the single parent with one child declined relative to the Poverty Line by 3 percentage points, meaning that they were living in worse circumstances in 2023 than they were in 2002. In addition, the income of the single parent with one child was below the Deep Income Poverty threshold in all but three years across the time series, meaning that they would have consistently lived in deep poverty for most of the last 22 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 virtually 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 66 per cent of the Poverty Line in 2023.
Overall, the total welfare income of the couple with two children was 7 percentage points lower at the end of the time series relative to the Poverty Line than it was at the start, which means this household was living in deeper poverty in 2023 than it was in 2002. As well, the income of the couple with two children was below the Deep Income Poverty threshold for all but five years of the time series, meaning that they would have lived in deep poverty for most of the last 22 years.
Access to data
The data for Manitoba is available for download, including:
- Components of welfare income for all households, with a breakdown of cost-of-living payments.
- Welfare incomes in 2023 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 2002–2023.