May 2008

We’ve updated our welfare publications

Two of our popular welfare booklets, Your Welfare Rights: A Guide to BC Employment and Assistance, and Social Assistance on Reserve in British Columbia have recently been updated and are now available for ordering (see below).

Your Welfare Rights is for people in BC who receive welfare, are applying for welfare, or are thinking of applying for welfare. It is a useful overview of welfare rights and responsibilities for advocates and others helping people to deal with the welfare system.

Your Welfare Rights explains:

• how to apply for welfare;
• how to become and stay eligible for welfare;
• what benefits are available;
• how to access other benefits, like crisis supplements, training supplements, and medical benefits;
• how to appeal a ministry decision; and
• how to get more information or help.

This booklet also highlights information about Persons with Disabilities benefits and contains useful tips throughout.

Social Assistance on Reserve in British Columbia has been updated to include new social assistance benefit rates as of February 2008. The publication describes the rules about social assistance for anyone who lives on reserve in BC, even if you aren’t a First Nations person.

The booklet also explains:

• how social assistance on reserve works,
• what social assistance benefits you can get on reserve,
• how to get social assistance on reserve,
• what to do if you are turned down for benefits, and
• how to get more information and help.

To read our publications online, go to the Publications section of the LSS website. To order a publication, e-mail Distribution. Please be sure to include the publication title(s), the number of copies, and a shipping address.