GAP BETWEEN RICH AND POOR
How big is the gap between the richest Torontonians and the rest?
The gap between the top 1% income earners and the rest in the Toronto Region is the 2nd largest in Canada:
> The top 1% (66,840 people) of individual tax filers in the Region shared 17.4% of declared income.
> Calgary had the largest gap between the top 1% and the rest.
Income inequality among Toronto households is growing:
> At 31%, Toronto’s income inequality growth rate over 25 years was more than double the national (14%) rate.
> Average household incomes in the poorest 10% of Toronto neighbourhoods increased 2%, whereas in the richest 10% of neighbourhoods, they increased 80%.
> Toronto is becoming Canada’s working poverty capital, with working poverty increasing from 8.2% of the working-age population in the Region in 2006 to 10.7% in 2012 – the highest among Canada’s 10 largest metros.
How are working families faring?
Working families are having trouble making ends meet:
> Two working parents with 2 young children need to each earn at least $18.52 per hour just to make ends meet in Toronto.
> Since 2008, the cost of childcare has increased 30%, rent 13%, and public transit 36%.
> Over 1.5 million people in the Region earn less than $21 per hour.
Toronto is experiencing a “hidden epidemic” of child and family poverty:
> The number of children living in low-income families increased by over 10,000 between 2010 and 2012 to 29% of Toronto’s children.
What does food insecurity look like in Toronto?
There were more than 890,000 visits to Toronto food banks last year:
> While food bank use in the core decreased 16%, in the inner suburbs visits have increased 45% since 2008.