Centre for Policy on Ageing



The invisible poor — Canada's retired widows
Author(s)	Lynn McDonald
Journal title	Canadian Journal on Aging, vol 16, no 3, Autumn 1997
Pages	pp 553-583
Keywords	Widows ; Economic status [elderly] ; Poverty ; Social surveys ; Canada.
Annotation	The purpose of this research is to examine what factors influence the economic circumstances of Canadian widowed women who were in the labour force at some time in their lives. Using the Survey of Aging and Independence, widows are compared to the married, separated, divorced and the ever single who have retired. Widows above and below Statistics Canada Low Income Cut-Off (LICO) are also compared. Models predicting who falls below the LICO are estimated for all women and for widows. The findings indicate that 49% of the widows live below the LICO. Factors associated with living below the poverty line include widowhood, a smaller household, lower levels of education and an occupation at the bottom of the occupational hierarchy. Sources of income that would enhance the likelihood of being above the poverty line, such as RRSPs (registered retirement savings plans), investments and a job-related pension, are not common amongst these women, despite their previous attachment to the labour force. (RH).
Accession Number	CPA-980720213 A
Classmark	SP: F:W: W6: 3F: 7S
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...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing.