The Fraser Institute is where you'll find the Bible of absolute poverty measurement in Canada, by Chris Sarlo.
Below, you'll find links to the second edition (1996) of the report and to the updates released in 2001 and 2006

• Poverty in Canada - 2nd Edition, 1996
  (First published 1992)
  By Christopher A. Sarlo
  NOTE: I couldn't find this report on the Fraser Institute's website, so I went to The Internet Archive and searched earlier "snapshots" of the Fraser website for the report.
  - incl. links to all chapters of the report (except, curiously enough, Chapter 10: "Social Assistance and Poverty")
• 2001 Update: Measuring Poverty in Canada
  July 2001
  Chris Sarlo
  • Executive summary
  • Report Part I (PDF file - 236K, 10 pages) - cover, table of contents, executive summary
  • Report Part II (PDF file - 982K, 50 pages) - main chapters of the report
  • Report Part III (PDF file - 284K, 22 pages) - appendices
• 2006 Update: Poverty in Canada: 2006 Update
  Christopher Sarlo
  • Highlights
  • Complete update (PDF file - 580K, 7 pages)
    "This Fraser Alert uses the most recent data available (2004) to update the basic needs poverty lines and estimates poverty in Canada."
• How is poverty measured in the U.S. and elsewhere in the world?
  (American poverty thresholds and poverty guidelines, also includes some links to poverty measures in the U.K. and a few other selected countries)