The Department of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment was established by the Dominion Government of Canada in 1918 to handle the major problem of returning

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

servicemen to civilian life after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In 1928 it merged with the Department of Health to form the

Department of Pensions and National Health Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

, with its former responsibilities being carried out by the Pensions Division (later Pensions Branch). The Department employed 9,035 staff in March 1920, its peak period of operation, rapidly reducing to 5,485 by March 1921.

Medical facilities

The Department took over responsibility for the Military Hospitals Commission, which ran

convalescent hospital Convalescence is the gradual recovery of health and strength after illness or injury. It refers to the later stage of an infectious disease or illness when the patient recovers and returns to previous health, but may continue to be a source of ...

s and homes for wounded soldiers. On 31 March 1921, the Commission's hospitals were caring for 6,264 in-patients (of whom 889 were being treated for mental problems and 1,376 for

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

) and 540 out-patients. It directly or indirectly operated 31 hospitals and sanatoria, with total bed provision of 6,781. These included two psychopathic institutions for mental cases. The Department's Medical Branch also operated a Social Service Section to care for out-patients who had tuberculosis, neurological or mental conditions, could not work, or were disadvantaged in the labour market because of their injuries. The Foreign Relations Section dealt with former members of the Canadian forces receiving treatment abroad and former members of British or

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

forces being treated in Canada. The Department also had a Dental Branch which worked in the treatment of men with jaw injuries and others in need of major dental care.

Care and retraining of disabled men

The Department also paid disability allowances: initially $33 per month for a man without dependants, and $73 for a married man with no children, with extra allowances for children. On 1 September 1920, these sums were increased to $45 and $86 respectively. Canada was one of the first Allied countries to implement a system of retraining for its wounded soldiers. Drawing from the experience of Belgium and France in 1914, in 1915 the Military Hospitals Commission was authorised to provide facilities for vocational training in cooperation a network of provincial commissions. At the peak of the program March 1920, 26,000 men were undergoing such training, 11,500 who had enlisted as minors in the

Canadian Expeditionary Force The Canadian Expeditionary Force (CEF) was the expeditionary field force of Canada during the First World War. It was formed following Britain’s declaration of war on Germany on 15 August 1914, with an initial strength of one infantry division ...

. Occupational therapy was also being pioneered in the hospitals. By March 1921, 51,000 men had undertaken training in 421 occupations, of whom 72 per cent had since found work in that occupation. In general, men were trained in a trade related to their previous trade, but which they were able to do with their particular disability. 1,966 Canadian servicemen had their sight affected in the war, of whom 110 had been completely or nearly completely blinded. Those in this condition were offered retraining at St Dunstan's Hostel,

Regent's Park Regent's Park (officially The Regent's Park) is one of the Royal Parks of London. It occupies of high ground in north-west Inner London, administratively split between the City of Westminster and the Borough of Camden (and historically betwee ...

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, or at the

Canadian National Institute for the Blind The CNIB Foundation (french: Fondation INCA) is a volunteer agency and charitable organization dedicated to assisting Canadians who are blind or living with vision loss, and to provide information about vision health for all Canadians. Founded ...

, Pearson Hall,

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, at which further courses and the provision of aftercare were also available. Blind soldiers were trained in massage,

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farming,

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, broom-making, and

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. The Department operated a large artificial limb and surgical appliance factory, mainly employing disabled ex-servicemen, at 47 Buchanan Street, Toronto, with fitting depots in all the major cities. There was also an experimental branch which developed new designs and improvements.

Employment facilities

350,000 men returned to the employment market in 1918 and 1919. The Department assisted them with finding jobs. The Provincial Governments and the Dominion

Department of Labour The Ministry of Labour ('' UK''), or Labor ('' US''), also known as the Department of Labour, or Labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, a ...

worked to establish at least one employment office in every city in Canada, and information on vacancies was exchanged between areas for men willing to travel. A special fare rate of ¢1 per mile was arranged with the railways. Men were also assisted with adjustments in business and family affairs. All this assistance ended in June 1920, except in regards to disabled men.

Monetary relief and loans

Parliament voted nearly $5 million for winter unemployment relief to returned soldiers in 1919. The distribution was administered jointly by the Department and the Canadian Patriotic Fund, and the first payments were made at Christmas 1919. More limited grants were also made in the winter of 1920–1921, mainly to sick, disabled or pensioned men or those with dependants. The maximum monthly allowance was $50 to a single man and $75 to a married man, with $12 for the first child and $10 for the second (boys under 16 or girls under 17). The Department also made loans of up to $500 (interest free, repayable within 5 years) to disabled ex-servicemen who had been retrained (for the purchase of tools and other equipment), and to those who had not been retrained (to enable them to follow a training or educational course interrupted by the war, if their disability made such assistance necessary). This was administered by a special division of the Vocational Branch. These loans had been taken up by 1,630 men by March 1921.

Ministers of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment

The office of Minister of Soldiers' Civil Re-establishment was created by Order in Council dated 21 February 1918, pursuant to the War Measures Act. Statutory provision for the office was made by Statute 8-9 Geo. V, c. 42, and assented to on 24 May 1918.

References