March 27, 2026
The Government of Ontario’s 2026-27 provincial budget continues the chronic underfunding of social services in our communities. The need for social services continues to grow, but without government funding to meet this need, this translates to cuts: Increased wait times and reduced service levels for vulnerable residents looking for mental health services, child care, developmental services, housing supports, social assistance and child protection.
CUPE members in social services see the impact of underfunding every day – growing waitlists and overstretched services, leaving vulnerable Ontario residents falling through the cracks. The political choice to underfund quality services and livable wages has also led to an understaffing crisis, exacerbating unhealthy workloads and poor retention in the sector.
This budget’s spending plans include:
- A 17.8% cut in real funding for social services from Ford’s election in 2018 through to planned spending in 2028. That creates a $4.5 billion hole in the annual budget for social services.*
- A failure to include any remedy for social services workers for wage suppression under Bill 124, which froze wages unconstitutionally at 1% for three years.
- A failure to include fair wages, benefits, and pensions for child care workers, who warn that a wage floor of $35 per hour is needed to address the recruitment and retention crisis.
On the frontlines, the impact is devastating.
“In my work, it is increasingly difficult to keep up with the housing crisis. The entire social services system is short on resources. Everything is interconnected, so the consequences ripple out,” said Kelly Poisson, a housing support worker and Chair of CUPE Ontario’s Social Services Workers Coordinating Committee. “When any service is underfunded, it puts more pressure on all the other services in our community. If someone I’m supporting is facing delays accessing Ontario Works, I can’t get them housing. If a client has no child care, they can’t go to work, aggravating their housing struggles.”
Too many social services workers face pressure from their employers to meet artificial targets and cut corners in service delivery. Employer reluctance to push for funding for quality services and livable wages maintains the crisis in the sector. Many frontline social services workers, who are predominantly women and often racialized, are struggling in poverty, often working two or three jobs and increasingly accessing food banks.
Decent public sector jobs, including those in social services, are economic drivers across Ontario. Social services workers spend their income in their local communities, so an increase in their capacity to spend boosts Ontario’s economic health. When the government underfunds and privatizes social services it pushes workers’ wages down and leads to layoffs, hurting the local economies they live in.
“Since employment services were outsourced to an American company, we’ve been feeling pressure to hit unrealistic targets and our case loads have exploded. This means less time with clients to do in-depth work,” said Kaley Williams, a justice worker in Niagara and Unit Vice President at CUPE 1287. “Due to funding cuts, our Fort Erie office closed and 13 positions were lost. Understaffing at our St. Catharines office, which used to be a safe space for people in need, has forced us to lock the doors and move to an appointment-only model. Clients are getting frustrated with not being able to reach us and staff are discouraged that we can’t provide the kind of supports we know our community needs.”
Social services workers are uniting in the Worth Fighting For campaign to keep pushing the Ontario government to reverse funding cuts and fund wage increases. Social services workers are proud of the work they do supporting the most vulnerable people in our communities. They deserve a government that gives them the resources they need to succeed.
Gains in services and wages have been made in this sector when workers organize and push back against underfunding. Knowing they don’t have to settle for less, social services workers are connecting with their colleagues and taking action in their workplaces and communities. Resources to support CUPE locals to get involved in the Worth Fighting For campaign are available here.
CUPE Ontario represents over 30,000 workers in social services – in child care, community agencies, developmental services, municipal social services, child protection, children’s mental health, shelters and hostels, and at the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.
*Adjusted for inflation using GDP deflator and for population. Based on Ontario Public Accounts, Statistics Canada and 2026 Ontario Budget.
