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For too long, tricks and traps in mortgages, credit cards, and other financial transactions have stripped wealth from working families.

Being able to save, make non-cash payments, send or receive remittances, get credit, or get insurance can be instrumental in raising living standards and helping businesses prosper. It helps people to invest more in education or health care.

For people on social assistance, the loss of free dental care, prescription drugs and subsidized housing can greatly outweigh additional income from working. We've all heard the stories.

An improving credit landscape means fewer loans are delinquent - and fewer people are needed to service these loans.

It is critical that low-income consumers have access to alternative products and services such as rent-to-own. It gives working-class families opportunities to obtain decent household items without incurring the burden of debt.

For many women, the on-time payments of domestic support obligations are essential to economic survival.

Experience taught me that working families are often just one pay check away from economic disaster. And it showed me first-hand the importance of every family having access to good health care.

You have to remember: what are incomes to banks are outgoes to families.

Unless they have disabilities to cope with, no family should get more from living on benefits than the average family gets from going out to work. No more open-ended chequebook.

Bankruptcy exposes the economic vulnerability and insecurity of middle class women.