Feds Overhaul Employment Insurance Claim System

New Employment Insurance rules | BCBusiness
New Employment Insurance rules crack down on workers frequently receiving EI benefits.

New EI rules crack down on repeat claimants while creating more leeway for infrequent users.

Canadians who’ve been chronically unemployed in the last few years can expect EI’s purse strings to tighten in the near future.
 
The Conservative government announced the specifics of a significant overhaul to the Employment Insurance Act on Thursday, which creates a new tiered system for claimants which ultimately narrows job options for unemployed Canadians.
 
The reform targets claimants’ history and how frequently an unemployed worker has relied on EI. A sliding scale strengthens requirements and breaks workers into three categories based on how many weeks of benefits they’ve received over the last several years. The more often a worker has relied on EI, the broader their job search must become. Frequent EI users must also endure longer commutes and accept lower pay for prospective jobs.
 
The feds say less than one per cent of claimants will be kicked to the curb under the revised rules, but 58 per cent of those currently receiving EI benefits fall into the new “frequent user” category. With only six weeks to find a job in their field at 80 per cent of their previous pay, it’s likely most of these claimants will end up underemployed at menial jobs they’re overqualified to perform.