Significant Influences



Running head: THE CANADA PENSION PLAN

An Examination of the Canada Pension Plan within the Context of the Welfare State

by

Janice Innes

10053679

SOWK 632

University of Calgary

Table of Contents

Introduction - Identification of Social Policy Being Examined…………………………………...3

Description of Policy Context…………………………………………………………………......3

Significant Influences

Economic Influence…………………………………………………………………….....5

Political Influence………………………………………………………………………....8

Social Influence………………………………………………………………………….13

Demographic Influence…………………………………………………………………..16

Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………………….21

References………………………………………………………………………………….…….22

Introduction - Identification of Social Policy Being Examined

This essay will examine the Canada Pension Plan in regards to social policy, policy context, economic influence, political influence, social influence, and demographic influence during the welfare state, as the creation of the Canada Pension Plan and the events leading up to the enactment of the Canada Pension Plan are the main focuses of this essay. Additionally, the social policy that the Canada Pension Plan was based upon was idea that Canadian citizens and their families should be financially supported upon retirement at age 65, disability, or death. This essay will demonstrate how the Canada Pension Plan sought to enforce and promote this social policy. Furthermore, it may be said that the Canada Pension Plan was based upon the social policy of finically supporting Canadian citizens and their families upon retirement at age 65, disability, or death, as the Canada Pension Plan’s main objective was to ensure a measure of protection to a contributor and his or her family against the loss of income due to retirement, disability, and death (Human Resources, 2005, p.18). Additionally, this essay will also outline the administration and operation of the Canada Pension Plan. Finally, this essay will illustrate how the social policy of financially supporting Canadian citizens and their families upon retirement at age 65, disability, or death was the governing principle that fostered the creation of the Canada Pension Plan.

Description of Policy Context

The Canada Pension Plan was enacted on April 3, 1965 and it was proclaimed on May 5, 1965 during the welfare state (Greenan, 2005, p.5). The collection of contributions under the Canada Pension Plan began in 1966 and retirement benefits became payable in 1967 (Gerig & Myers, 1965, p.4). When the Canada Pension Plan was enacted the Department of National Health and Welfare stated that it was the most complex social security development in Canada’s history to date (Department of National Health and Welfare, 1965, p.99). Furthermore, upon its creation, the Canada Pension Plan was as contributory plan and therefore it was financed through contributions from employees, employers, and self-employed persons as well as interest from the Canada Pension Plan Fund (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 19). The beneficiaries were employees who contributed to the Canada Pension Plan, in addition to their family members, including children, survivors, disabled, and widows (Human Resources, 1998, 22-32). Additionally, the objective of the Canada Pension Plan was to ensure a measure of protection to a contributor and his or her family against the loss of income due to retirement, disability, and death (Human Resources, 2005, p.18).

The Canada Pension Plan was created by the Federal Government of Canada, and since its creation in1965, it has undergone numerous changes. There were five significant changes to the Canada Pension Plan during the welfare state: (1) the introduction of full annual cost-of-living indexation, (2) the availability of the same benefits to male and female contributors as well as to their surviving spouses and dependent children, (3) the elimination of the retirement and employment earnings test for retirement pensions at age 65, (4) the exclusion of periods of zero or low earnings while caring for a child under the age of seven, and (5) the division of pension credits (credit splitting) between spouses if there was a marriage breakdown (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 18). Additionally, there were six significant changes to the Canada Pension Plan during the post-welfare state: (1) flexible retirement benefits payable as early as age 60, (2) increased disability pension, (3) continuation of survivor’s benefits if the survivor remarries, (4) sharing of retirement pensions between spouses or common-law partners, (5) expansion of credit splitting to cover the separation of married or common-law partners, and (6) benefits and rights were extended to same-sex common-law relationships (Service Canada, 2011).

Significant Influences

Economic Influence

Exposition of the Nature, Function, and Dynamic of the Economic Influence

In 1956, changing economic conditions, such as rising inflation, helped to make pension reform a top priority on the Federal Government’s political agenda (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p. 259). Rising inflation also helped left-leaning political parties and lobbyists to construct the need to reform the existing public pension system (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.261). Additionally, inflation was also a concern of Conservative Leader John Diefenbaker, who in 1956, out of concern for the negative impact of rising inflation on pensioners, stated: “No one can deny that the level is such that many of our old age pensioners find themselves in an impossible position. The reason for it, of course, is simply this: while Canada has in circulation more and more dollars, those dollars buy less and less” (House of Commons Debates, 1956). Therefore, the issue was that the pension plan, i.e. the Old Age Pension Act, did not increase as the cost of living increased. Thus, pensioners struggled to provide for themselves and their families, due to an Old Age Pension that did not reflect changes in the economy.

Explanation of the Importance of the Economic Influence to the Canada Pension Plan

The economic influence, i.e. rising inflation, helped to demonstrate the need for automatic indexation, or rather an increase in pension benefits equal to an increase in the cost of living, in the pension plan system, as automatic indexation was not a feature of the Old Age Pension Act. Spurr supports the notion that an absence of automatic indexation in the pension plan system was problematic as, “… fluctuations in the cost of living, a problem in the provision of pensions is that the value of the pension payment does not necessarily reflect the purchasing power of the premiums when they were paid” (Spurr, 1978, p. 2-9). Therefore, if pension reform in Canada was going to be successful it had to incorporate automatic indexation, as this absence of this was one of the major problems/limitations of the Old Age Pension Act. It may be said that economic changes, such as rising inflation, influenced the Federal Government when creating the Canada Pension Plan, as the plan was designed to “… vary pension benefits after retirement in accordance with increases in a Pension Index based on Consumer Price Index averages” (Spurr, 1978, p. 2-10). Therefore, the economic influence was of importance to the Canada Pension Plan because economic changes, such as rising inflation, helped to influence the Federal Government to vary pension benefits in accordance with increases in the cost of living.

Establishment and Demonstration of the Effects of the Economic Influence upon the Operation of the Canada Pension Plan

As previously stated, the main effect the economic influence, i.e. rising inflation, had on the operation/administration of the Canada Pension Plan was the incorporation of automatic indexation into the plan. Automatic indexation is important to pensioners, and therefore an important feature of the Canada Pension Plan because:

There is no statistical evidence to prove that the needs and desires of retired people reduce as they get older and it is now generally believed that some method of indexing should be found to increase the monthly pension payments in step with rising prices in order, as its has been well-said, to enable the pensioner to buy the same basket of groceries. (Spurr, 1990, p. 2-15).

Therefore, automatic indexation allowed pensioners to maintain a lifestyle that was similar to the lifestyle that they had led prior to retirement. Had the Canadian economy not experienced rising inflation during the 1950s and 1960s, automatic indexation may not have been incorporated into the plan, and resultantly the pension plan may not have undergone reform, as the financial needs of pensioners and their families would have been adequately met.

Assessment of the Impact of the Economic Influence on the Nature and Scope of Social Justice in Canadian Society

In the 1950s and 1960s, the consumer dollar had lost about one-fifth of its purchasing power in each decade (Little, 2008, p.4). Therefore, pensioners, disabled pensioners, and their families lacked sufficient financial support. During these two decades income security did not adequately financially provide for pensioners: “Old Age Security was providing some rudimentary income security for the elderly. In addition, the Blind Persons Act of 1951 and the Disabled Persons Act of 1954 were providing payments to those with disabilities, but these were increasingly seen as insufficient” (Little, 2008, p.23). Resultantly, inflation during the 1950s and 1960s helped to highlight social injustices experienced by pensioners, disabled pensioners, and their families. Furthermore, it may be said that the economic influence prior to the creation and enactment of the Canada Pension Plan helped to demonstrate that automatic indexation needed to be incorporated into the Canada Pension Plan in order to eradicate the negative effects of inflation on pensioners, thereby promoting social justice in Canadian society.

Assessment of the Impact of the Economic Influence upon the Structure and Function of Social Work Practice

The economic influence, i.e. rising inflation, during the 1950s and early 1960s would have impacted social work practice, as social workers would have had numerous clients, e.g. pensioners and disabled pensioners, who would have struggled to financially provide for themselves and their families, due to the rising cost of living and pensions that did not increase as the cost of living increased. Furthermore, economic influence prior to the enactment of the Canada Pension Plan helped to change Canadian citizens’ perception of social welfare, and therefore it also helped to change public perception of the value of social work. Following the Great Depression of the 1930s, a new consensus developed: “Canadians began to recognize that hard times could strike anyone through no personal fault. This new consensus led to the development of a comprehensive set of income security programs” (Hick, 2010, p.17). The Canada Pension Plan was one of these income security programs. Finally, social workers helped to administer services that were part of Canada’s growing welfare state, thereby serving a wide range of Canadian citizens and not strictly the poor.

Political Influence

Exposition of the Nature, Function, and Dynamic of the Political Influence

In 1954 the Canadian Congress of Labour asked the Federal Government of Canada to create an industrial pension plan that would allow employees to acquire pension plan credits regardless of how many employers they had worked for, as private pension plans (i.e. earnings related pensions and non-contributory pensions) restricted labour mobility and offered employees little security (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis, 2007, p.7). The Federal Government, led by the Liberal Party, largely ignored the Canadian Congress of Labour’s pleas for an industrial pension plan by placing the pension issue low on the Federal Government’s policy agenda; however, in 1956 the pension issue was placed at the forefront of the federal policy agenda due to growing electoral competition (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis, 2007, p.7). In June of 1957 the Liberal Party lost to the Progressive Conservative Party in the federal election and the Progressive Conservative Party formed a minority government until their victory in the 1958 federal election (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis, 2007, p.8).

As a result of its defeat, the Liberal Party was now in need of new policy ideas that would increase voter support. In order to create a platform for new social policy ideas, Liberal Party leader Lester Pearson, called for a conference, know as the Kingston Conference (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.261). At the conference, Tax Foundation Chair Monteath Douglas argued that old age assistance benefits should be expanded to include individuals under age 69 so that the elderly who were truly in need would be provided for (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.261). Additionally, the ideas that were put forth at the conference helped to shape the Liberal Party’s new social policy platform, which centered on old age pensions, for the 1962 and 1963 federal elections (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.262). In April of 1963 the Liberal Party won the federal election with a minority government and the Canada Pension Plan proposal, labeled a House of Commons White Paper, was presented in the House of Commons that same year (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.263). In 1964 the proposal became Bill C-75 and then Bill C-136 following an alteration. Finally, in 1965 the Canada Pension Plan was passed in the House of Commons (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.7).

Explanation of the Importance of the Political Influence to the Canada Pension Plan

The political influence of 1956 to 1965 was of importance to the Canada Pension Plan because the Federal Government of Canada used the Canada Pension Plan as one means by which to establish and grow Canada’s welfare state. The Canada Pension Plan, as part of the welfare state, also allowed the government to establish a sense of Canadian identity, “The welfare state was a powerful instrument for nation-building in the sense that it was able to assist in constructing a sense of Canadian identity and foster an allegiance to the state” (Ismael, 2006, p. 37). Thus, the Canada Pension Plan, not only provided the Liberal Party of 1963 with a social policy platform that helped them to win the federal election, but it also partially provided Canadian citizens with an identity that was centered around the Canadian welfare state. As stated by Ismael, the welfare state also helped to foster an allegiance to the state, and therefore the Canada Pension Plan was partially responsible for creating a strong allegiance to the state. Additionally, the political influence of 1956 to 1965 was of importance to the Canada Pension Plan because the Federal Government of Canada used the Canada Pension Plan as part of its strategy to combat poverty: “on April 5, 1965 the Liberal government’s throne speech declared Canada’s war on poverty with the announcement of two major social programs – the Canada Assistance Plan and the Canada Pension Plan” (Ismael, 2006, p.28). Therefore, the political influence of 1956 to 1965 helped to shape the Canada Pension Plan, by using it not only as a means of social security, but as part of nation-building, which sought to increase allegiance to the state.

Establishment and Demonstration of the Effects of the Political Influence upon the Operation of the Canada Pension Plan

The political influence of 1956 to 1965 greatly affected the operation and administration of the Canada Pension Plan, as it was the Federal Government, specifically the Liberal party, who dictated and determined the operation of the Canada Pension Plan in terms of coverage, funding, and administration. The Federal Government enacted the Canada Pension Plan in 1965 in an effort to provide citizens with retirement, disability and survivor pensions, and a lump sum death benefit (Ismael, 2006, p. 29). The Federal Government determined the coverage of the Canada Pension Plan: the plan covered nearly all employed and self-employed Canadian citizens who were between the ages of 18 and 70, who earned more than a minimum level of earnings in a year (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 19). The government determined the funding of the Canada Pension Plan: the plan was financed through contributions from employees, employers, self-employed, and the Canada Pension Plan Fund (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 19). Thus, the political influence of 1956 to 1965 greatly affected the operation of the Canada Pension Plan, as the Federal Government at the time determined the coverage, funding, and administration of the Canada Pension Plan.

Assessment of the Impact of the Political Influence on the Nature and Scope of Social Justice in Canadian Society

The political influence of 1956 to 1965 upon the Canada Pension Plan impacted both the nature and scope of social justice in Canadian society, as the Federal Government of 1965 created a public pension plan that provided not only retirement income, but also survivor, disability, and death benefits. Therefore, the Canada Pension Plan met its objective by ensuring a measure of protection to a contributor and his or her family against the loss of income due to retirement, disability, and death (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 18). Thus, the Canada Pension Plan provided Canadian citizens with a higher standard of social security, thereby demonstrating that the Federal Government had indeed taken action to promote social justice in Canadian society. Resultantly, it may be said that the Federal Government of 1965 greatly impacted social justice in Canadian society, as it used the Canada Pension Plan in an effort to create and maintain a welfare state that provided financial support to pensioners and their families. This demonstrated the Federal Government’s concern for seniors, disabled, and surviving family members, such as widows and orphans. However, it also demonstrated the Federal Government only provided for Canadian citizens who contributed to the workforce, and therefore the promoted of economic growth.

Assessment of the Impact of the Political Influence upon the Structure and Function of Social Work Practice

When the Canada Pension Plan was enacted in 1965, pensioners were not the only group to benefit. Social workers also benefited from the enactment of the Canada Pension Plan (in addition to the creation of Family Allowance and Old Age Pension, which were instated prior to the Canada Pension Plan), as the demand for skilled social work professionals increased, as they were needed to administer social services and programs (Hick, 2010, p.47). These social services and programs were part of Canada’s growing welfare state:

Many of these programs [such as pension and disability programs] led to the expansion of employment [of social workers] in the administration of these new services and programs, precipitating a fundamental change in the nature of Canadian social work and the emergence of a profession. (Hick, 2010, p.47)

Thus, the Federal Government’s efforts/influence between 1956 and 1965 helped to establish and maintain the welfare state, which in turn helped to increase the demand for social workers in the workforce. This increased demand in the government sector changed where social workers predominately found employment during the welfare state, as “social work opportunities were now shifting from mainly private, volunteer agencies to government departments or government financed agencies” (Hick, 2010, p.47). Thus, political influence between 1956-1965 increased the demand for social workers and dictated employment opportunities.

Social Influence

Exposition of the Nature, Function, and Dynamic of the Social Influence

In 1955, the Labour Gazette published a study which stated that 69% of Canadian workers were employed by establishments that had pension plans; however, these plans offered limited coverage, as they did not cover all employees, and they were restrictive in terms of portability (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.7). Babich and Beland state that this is one of the reasons why labour officials demanded that the Federal Government improve the protection that covered workers with a pension plan without restricting labour mobility (i.e. workers’ ability to change employers and maintain their pensions) (Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.7). As previously stated, in 1954 the Canadian Congress of Labour asked the Federal Government to create an industrial pension plan that would allow employees to acquire pension plan credits regardless of how many employers they had worked for (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.7). Despite pleas from the Canadian Congress of Labour, the Federal Government ignored the public pension issue until 1956, due to growing electoral competition.

Explanation of the Importance of the Social Influence to the Canada Pension Plan

The social influence, particularly the Canadian Congress of Labour’s influence, was important to the Canada Pension Plan because the Canadian Congress of Labour took action to influence pension policy-making in the 1960s. For example, the pro-labour party C.C.F., who primarily represented the interests of the Canadian Congress of Labour, presented a proposal in 1960 in the House of Commons, concerning a national earnings-related pension scheme, which received support from labour officials (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.11). Labour officials from the Canadian Congress of Labour actively supported this proposal, and this support was publically known. Additionally, the C.C. F. continued to argue against the Federal Government in an effort to increase Old Age Security, and in 1962 the Federal Government, which was Progressive Conservative at the time, increased Old Age Security to $65 a month, more than the C.C.F. had asked for (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.11). Furthermore, the Canadian Congress of Labour remained diligent in their support for the C.C.F., as both the C.C.F. and the Canadian Congress of Labour sought public pension reform, making both opinions valuable and influential during the creation of the Canada Pension Plan.

Establishment and Demonstration of the Effects of the Social Influence upon the Operation of the Canada Pension Plan

The Canadian Congress of Labour was not the only group who supported pension reform, as the Canadian Manufacturers’ Association also supported the development of an earnings-related pension scheme in Canada (Babich & Beland, “Policy change and the politics of ideas: The emergence of the Canada/Quebec pensions plans,” 2007, p.257). Thus, the Canadian Congress of Labour and the Canadian Manufacturers’ Association were both part of the labour movement for progressive pension reform. In 1956 the Canadian Congress of Labour had 377, 926 members (Urquhart & Buckley, 1965, p.106), thereby making the labour movement substantially large and powerful. Additionally, it may be said that the Canadian Congress of Labour helped to influence the Canada Pension Plan, as several of the Canadian Congress of Labour’s demands were incorporated into the operation/administration of the Canada Pension Plan. For example, the Canadian Congress of Labour asked the Federal Government to create a pension plan that would allow employees to acquire pension plan credits regardless of how many employers they had worked for, and this feature was incorporated into the Canada Pension Plan when it was enacted in 1965. It is difficult to determine whether or not the Canadian Congress of Labour was responsible for this feature, but they undoubtedly played an influential role regardless.

Assessment of the Impact of the Social Influence on the Nature and Scope of Social Justice in Canadian Society

The social influence, particularly the labour movement headed by the Canadian Congress of Labour, impacted social justice in Canadian society, as this movement lobbied the Federal Government in regards to progressive pension reform, in an effort to promote social justice for employees and their families. The Canadian Congress of Labour primarily lobbied the Federal Government in regards to pension reform because the pension system at the time, i.e. Old Age Pension Act, did not adequately financially provide for pensioners and their families, as coverage was limited and conditional. The Old Age Pension Act, enacted in 1927, created a federally-subsidized yet provincially administered means-test pension available only to needy British subjects aged 70 and older with at least 20 years residence in Canada (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p. 4). Thus, in order to receive a pension employees had to be age 70 or older, British subjects, needy, and have resided in Canada for 20 years or more. As a result, the Old Age Pension Act was a form of social injustice, as it did not equally provide for all Canadian citizens. The labour movement sought to ratify this social injustice by lobbying the Federal Government, and in 1965 their efforts proved fruitful, as the Canada Pension Plan was enacted. Unlike the Old Age Pension Act, the Canada Pension Plan covered all contributors, and was a step towards equality amongst contributors.

Assessment of the Impact of the Social Influence upon the Structure and Function of Social Work Practice

As the demand for trained social workers increased during the welfare state, due to the Federal Government’s need for trained social workers to administer social services and programs that were part of Canada’s growing welfare state, enrolment in college and university social work programs increased as well (Hick, 2010, p. 51). Considering the fact that the labour movement lobbied the Federal Government regarding pension reform, which eventually led to pension reform in the form of the Canada Pension Plan, the labour movement, and therefore social influence, may be partially credited with indirectly increasing enrolment in social work schools. Additionally, Canada’s growing welfare state changed Canadian citizens’, and therefore social workers’, attachment to the labour force, “Over the years, Canada has had a mix of selective and universal programs. Governments have moved away from a focus on citizenship rights and inclusion, to an anti-poverty strategy geared towards promoting attachment to the labour force” (Hick, 2010, p.22). Thus, social workers were now more attached to the labour force than ever, as attaching one’s self to the labour force partially ensured one’s financial security. Resultantly, social work moved away from it’s origins as charity work and towards federally and provincially funded employment.

Demographic Influence

Exposition of the Nature, Function, and Dynamic of the Demographic Influence

In 1959, Prime Minister Diefenbaker commissioned a study of the U.S. Social Security System, as he was concerned about the added costs to the Federal Treasury that would result from further Old Age Security benefit increases, which political parties would indorse in order to gain electoral support in the upcoming federal election (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.10). Dr. Robert Clark, an economist, was responsible for writing the report, which took a year to complete (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.10). One of Dr. Robert’s findings was that there were more people age 65 and over in Canada than in the U.S. (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.10). This was a significant finding, as it demonstrated that Canada had a large number of citizens age 65 and over and that this portion of the population was steadily growing; thus, the Federal Government needed to take action to financially support Canada’s growing number of Canadian citizens age 65 and over. Additionally, Dr. Roberts made this finding in 1956: however, this was not a trend that came about suddenly in the 1950s. This change in demographics had begun in the 1940s and it was a substantial change from the 1930s:

The percentage distribution of deaths has changed greatly since 1930-1932. The percentages of deaths at all ages up to 50 years have declined, and the percentages at ages over 50 have increased. The average age at death has gradually risen. The reduction in mortality rates in the early and middle years of life increases the number of people in the older age groups and raises the average age of the population as a whole. (Dominion Bureau of Statistics, 1950, p. 214)

Therefore, in the 1950s Canadian citizens were living longer than ever before and there was no exception in the 1960s, as there were 464,113 Canadian citizens between the ages of 65 and 69 and there were 779,825 Canadian citizens age 70 and over (Dominion Bureau of Statistics, 1960, p.188). In 1965, when the Canada Pension Plan was enacted, there were 487,102 Canadian citizens between the ages of 65 and 69 and there were 904,052 Canadian citizens age 70 and over (Dominion Bureau of Statistics, 1965, p.175). Thus, the number of Canadian citizens over age 65 was steadily growing each year, which may be said to be one of the influential factors of the creation and enactment of the Canada Pension Plan, as the Federal Government was in need of an income security program to finically provide for Canadian citizens age 65 and over.

Explanation of the Importance of the Demographic Influence to the Canada Pension Plan

As it has been shown, the number of Canadian citizens age 65 and over steadily grew between 1940 and 1965 when the Canada Pension Plan was enacted. Had this number remained consistent throughout these three decades, the Federal Government may not have seen a need to create the Canada Pension Plan, as there would have been fewer Canadian citizens to benefit from such a plan. However, as there were 1,243, 965 Canadian citizens over the age of 65 in 1960 (Dominion Bureau of Statistics, 1960, p.188), it was necessary to create a public pension plan that financially provided for Canadian citizens age 65 and over, as this portion of the population was going to steadily increase and these Canadian citizens would have little or no financial support if a public pension plan was not created. Additionally, the Canada Pension Plan was also one of the Liberal party’s strategies/action plans to “tackle the nation’s problems with vigor” (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.14). One of these problems was that the Old Age Pension Act was not adequately financially providing for Canadian citizens age 65 and over, as the Old Age Pension Act only provided for the those who were determined “needy” by the government (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis 2007, p.4). Thus, the Canada Pension Plan was enacted in order to bridge this gap in financial support by providing for all contributors and their families.

Establishment and Demonstration of the Effects of the Demographic Influence upon the Operation of the Canada Pension Plan

The main effect the demographic influence had upon the operation/administration of the Canada Pension Plan was the criteria (e.g. age) that Canadian citizens had to meet in order to be provided with a pension through the Canada Pension Plan upon retirement. As the number of Canadian citizens age 65 and over had steadily grown between 1940 and 1965 (Dominion Bureau of Statistics, 1965, p.175), it became an important priority of the Federal Government to finically provide for future citizens age 65 and over, as this age group currently did not receive sufficient financial support through the Old Age Pension Act. It is evident that financially providing for future citizens age 65 and over was a top priority of the Federal Government, as the public pension issue was at the forefront of the Federal Government’s priorities between 1960 and 1965 (Babich & Beland, Creating the Canada/Quebec pension plans: An historical and political analysis, 2007, p.7). Finally, the criteria to be eligible to receive a pension upon retirement (i.e. citizens must be 65 or over and must have paid into the Canada Pension Plan) reflected demographic changes in Canada’s population, as the Federal Government now saw that there was a gap in financial support for citizens age 65 and over.

Assessment of the Impact of the Demographic Influence on the Nature and Scope of Social Justice in Canadian Society

The Canada Pension Plan was a step towards a higher standard of social justice and equality for Canadian citizens, as the plan not only covered contributors, but their families as well. When the Canada Pension Plan was enacted in 1965 the Federal Government stated that the Canada Pension Plan would cover the families (e.g. widows, orphans, and survivors) of working Canadian citizens who had paid into the plan prior to their death, disability, or retirement (Human Resources Development Canada, 1998, p. 18-32). Thus, the demographic influence helped to promote social justice in Canadian society, as a growing number of citizens age 65 and over helped influence the Federal government to finically support contributors and their families. Therefore, widows, orphans, and children of contributors received a greater amount of financial support than they had prior to the enactment of the Canada Pension Plan. Finally, the population growth of citizens age 65 and over helped to promote social justice in Canadian Society, as it encouraged the Federal Government to finically provide for this growing portion of the population by creating the Canada Pension Plan.

Assessment of the Impact of the Demographic Influence upon the Structure and Function of Social Work Practice

In 1921, 4.8% of Canada’s population was age 65 and over and in 1951 that number increased to 7.8% (Hick, 2010, p.272). In the 1960s, the decade the Canada Pension Plan was enacted, the percentage of Canada’s population that was age 65 and over continued to rise. As previously stated, social workers were required to administer social programs and plans, which were created during the welfare state. A growing number of Canadian citizens age 65 and over meant that more and more social workers were needed in order to administer these services. In 1951 there were 3,495 social workers in Canada and in 1971 there were 30, 535 social workers (Hick, 2010, p.50). Hick notes that most of this increase took place between 1961 and 1971 (2010, p.50). Canada’s growing welfare state was partially responsible for this increase and Canada’s growing population of citizens age 65 and over may have influenced the Federal Government to grow the welfare state by creating services and programs such as the Canada Pension Plan. Therefore, social work was influenced by demographic changes in Canada’s population (i.e. a growing portion of population age 65 and over), as more social workers were needed to administer the services and programs that were part of Canada’s growing welfare state.

Conclusion

In 1965, the Canada Pension Plan was the most complex social security development in Canadian history. It was based upon the social policy that Canadian citizens should be financially supported upon retirement at age 65, disability, or death. Therefore, the Canada Pension Plan was enacted in an attempt to ensure that this social policy became a governing principle. Additionally, many influences, such as economic, political, social, and demographic, helped to foster the creation of the Canada Pension Plan. The Canada Pension Plan led to the promotion of social justice in Canadian society, as it helped to provide pensioners and their families with a higher standard of living through financial support. Furthermore, the Canada Pension Plan was one of the programs used by the Federal Government to grow Canada’s welfare state. The growing welfare state changed where social workers found employment, as employment opportunities were increasingly found in the government sector. This moved social work away from charity work and towards government funded employment. Finally, within the context of the welfare state, the administration and operation of the Canada Pension Plan reflected the social policy of financially supporting Canadian citizens upon retirement at age 65, disability, or death, which that the Federal Government sought to promote.

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