Liberal government abandons employment insurance reform federal budget on concerns this week that reforming the program could drive up premiums for workers and employers amid a slowing economy.
This is according to a spokeswoman for Employment Minister Carla Qualttro, who said the federal government is “committed to modernizing the EI system.”
“However, the current and near-term economic context cautions against measures that could exert pressure EI Premium And we need to be careful about any decision that could create difficulties for workers and employers, the spokesperson said in an email.
Following the last federal election, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau handed a mandate to Qualttro to bring forward and implement a plan to “modernize the EI system for the 21st century” by the summer of 2022.
As summer was coming to an end, the minister promised that reform was coming soon. “By the end of the year, you’ll know what the outlook is for EI,” she said in September.
There was little expectation that several months into 2023, the federal budget would finally indicate the government’s plans. Certainly, its narrow focus on the clean economy and health care left other agenda items off the table.
The federal government, which is now expecting a mild recession this year, is holding off on EI reform for now so as not to increase program costs. A recession will likely come with job losses. Expanding eligibility now allows even more people to join the program.
But this latest delay is making labor groups and experts impatient.
There is a long list of complaints about the program’s current structure, its eligibility requirements, funding and administrative technology. But the central concern for workers is that too few can access the program.
In 2021, the Liberals campaigned on a promise to modernize EI and pledge to expand the program to cover self-employed workers and address gaps exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland hinted on Thursday that wider reforms are still coming.
“My colleague Carla Qualttro … is working hard on comprehensive EI reforms, and this is important work that needs to be done thoughtfully and carefully,” she told reporters in Surrey, B.C.
Freeland cited two changes to EI announced in the budget.
A measure introduced in 2018 proposes a temporary change to EI that increases the number of weeks available to seasonal workers. Others aim to strengthen prohibitions against employee misclassification for federally regulated gig workers.
The National Council of Unemployed Workers reacted to the budget by calling on the NDP to withdraw its support of a Liberal government through the parties’ supply-and-confidence agreement.
Pierre Serre, a spokesman for the group, said in a statement: “We are utterly disappointed that the government is betraying its commitment and choosing once again the status quo.”
“In light of this situation, we are asking the NDP to withdraw its confidence in the government and MPs to put their seats on the line on this issue.”
A member of the Employment Insurance Commission of Canada, which includes both labor and business voices and helps oversee and review the EI system, added to the criticism.
Its commissioner for workers, Pierre Laliberte, said it was “very disappointing” to see EI reform left out of the budget.
At the very least, the federal government could have included interim measures to address key gaps and expand access, he said. “It is really absolutely bizarre that the government would not have seen fit to plug at least … a few holes here and there.”
During the pandemic, the government expanded access to the EI system through temporary measures. They ended in September despite strong opposition from labor groups and the NDP.
Under the temporary measures, workers are eligible for EI based on the national requirement of working 420 insurable employment hours, while workers would normally need between 420 and 700 hours, depending on regional unemployment rates. And money paid when an employee is separated from a job, such as severance, was not deducted from benefits.
The lack of clarity on the future of EI reform comes as many economists forecast that the Canadian economy will enter a mild recession this year, with some job losses expected.
Canadian Labor Congress president Bea Bruske said enacting EI reform would help “recession-proof” the economy for workers by ensuring the social safety net can support those who face layoffs. have been
But Laliberte said EI reform does not appear to be a priority for the Liberals or the NDP. Both are more focused on delivering a federal dental care plan, he said, despite health care under provincial jurisdiction and the EI program being a federal responsibility.
“It’s not sexy,” Laliberte said of EI reform. “Declaring something new like dental care _ it’s glamorous, isn’t it?”
In a statement, the NDP’s deputy finance critic Peter Julian said the New Democrats are proud of what they achieved for Canadians in the budget, but they “are not satisfied.”
“It is shameful that the Liberals failed to include EI reform in the 2023 budget as economists are warning that we are headed for a recession,” Julian said.
“New Democrats will continue to push liberals to reform EI and make sure no worker is left behind.”
© 2023 The Canadian Press