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Undeserving poor - People designated as deserving poor are seen as being of good moral character and only temporarily out of luck due to no fault of their own. This is an historical concept that arose with the early poor laws but still informs income security today.

Unemployment - Unemployment is an involuntary loss of wage income. Official unemployment, or those counted in the unemployment statistics are those who cannot find paid employment, and are actively looking for a job. If a person has given up the search for a job they are not considered to be part of the labour force, and are not included in the statistics.

Unemployment rate - The percentage of individuals who are actively looking for work and are able to work but do not have a job, i.e., the number of unemployed individuals, divided by the total number of people 15 years of age and older who have a job or are actively looking for work expressed as a percentage.

Universal benefits - Universal benefits are available to everyone in a specific category, such as people over age sixty-five or children, on the same terms and as a right of citizenship. The idea is that all persons regardless of income and financial situation are equally eligible to receive program benefits.

Universal public health care - Canadians have not always had ready access to quality health care. Prior to the late 1940s, access to health care was based solely on one's ability to pay. Universal public health care, quality health care for everyone in Canada, took over five decades to evolve.

Universality - Section 10 of the Canada Health Act requires that 100 percent of the insured persons of a province be entitled to the insured health services provided for by the plan on uniform terms and conditions.

User fees - An extra fee above the scale, small charges directly to the patient for hospital and physician services.

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