Seniors housing in Toronto has a language problem. Experts say it’s getting more urgent

In 2009, 82-year-old Al Gosling was evicted by Toronto Community Housing and died within months after catching an infection in a homeless shelter.

A city probe revealed language and communication failures were at the core of the long-time tenant's eviction.

Gosling's death caused a public uproar. It also sparked a series of reviews and discussion around the treatment of low-income seniors that led to the 2022 creation of the Toronto Seniors Housing Corporation (TSHC) — specifically for older people to make sure they are cared for.

Great strides have been made in the 14 years since Gosling's death, experts say, but communication remains a struggle — one they say requires urgent attention as Canada's immigrant population ages and the number of seniors in Toronto's social housing grows increasingly diverse.

"There is a sign on our door, but it is in English. I looked it up. It actually reads, 'Have you turned off your stove yet?'" An 83-year-old Chinese-speaking woman told researchers at the Wellesley Institute, who were working on a fall 2022 report on language barriers in Toronto social housing

"I changed the sign myself by crossing out the text and replacing it with the drawing of a flame."

Over 5,000 TSHC seniors speak ESL

When tenants can't understand the often-extensive amount of paperwork needed to retain their housing, or they can't communicate with staff who only speak English, it contributes to housing instability, the Wellesley report found.

"It can put you at risk for evictions, predominantly for things like rent arrears, which can happen when you have challenges doing the paperwork," said researcher Christine Sheppard.

He has co-authored several reports, including one showing that lower-income seniors who've been evicted are at a higher risk of homelessness.

"Eviction is always the last resort," a TSHC spokesperson said via email. "We want to help tenants stay in their homes by working together to prevent evictions."

The corporation, which manages 83 buildings, says that one-third of their tenants — over 5,000 seniors — speak English as a Second Language (ESL).

TSHC says its objectives focus on maintaining tenancies and prioritizing translation services. It also has a complex tenancies team designed to support seniors struggling to keep up with rent and other documents.

Seniors are currently protected through policies that include requiring TSHC to refer them to the Office of the Commissioner of Housing Equity twice before putting in an eviction notice, TSHC said in a statement. The office is meant to help those who are vulnerable and behind on rent.

Office data shows the majority of cases dealt with are from seniors. According to its 2020 annual report, 66 per cent of 425 total rental arrear cases were from seniors.

Sheppard says she thinks the corporation is taking the many challenges seriously. However, it's admittedly not an easy task. She says language supports are complex because they require keeping a close eye on every building and understanding who is moving in.

More multilingual supports needed

Sheppard and her team interviewed 58 older social housing tenants and 58 local community health providers who support them for the Wellesley Institute's fall 2022 report.

They found those tenants relied on children or neighbours who could speak both languages to communicate with housing staff and fill out paperwork.

According to a city strategy, Toronto is expecting the number of seniors to double between 2016 and 2041, at which point roughly 828,000 seniors will make up 20 per cent of the city's population.

Support workers who speak languages other than English are crucial, said Veronica Macdonald, the vice president of independent living and seniors with community organization The Neighbourhood Group.

"There's a team of personal support workers … who are aware that if they don't see so-and-so on a particular day, let's check in on them," she said.

Sheppard says her research team is looking at ways to create stronger connections between staff and tenants, by encouraging them to spend time together in informal ways.

That could "really help promote a sense of community and help promote high quality of life and connection to one another within the building," she said.