Over the weekend, the Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said the provincial government intends to examine the ramifications of disentangling Alberta from multiple federal cost-sharing programs. At a conference in Red Deer, Alta. on Saturday, he announced the formation of a panel that will consult on subjects such as whether the province should start its own pension system and […]
The Liberal Party announced a number of campaign promises this week, including making maternity and parental benefits tax-free, introducing a 15-week leave for adoptive parents, strengthening the old-age security benefit and increasing the Canada Pension Plan and Quebec Pension Plan survivor’s benefit. If re-elected, the Liberal government said it will work to establish guaranteed paid family […]
With the federal election about a month away, Canada’s political parties are rolling out their election platforms, making a host of promises to improve health care, employment insurance, the minimum wage and pension legislation. If elected, the Liberal Party of Canada, New Democratic Party and Green Party of Canada are all promising to implement a national pharmacare program. […]
Manitoba’s New Democratic Party and Liberal Party announced a host of worker-friendly campaign promises over the Labour Day weekend, with both parties committing to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour. The province’s minimum wage, one of the lowest in Canada, is currently $11.35 an hour. It’s set to increase to $11.65 on Oct. 1, […]
The federal Conservative Party is promising to make employment insurance maternity and parental benefits tax-free. The party is proposing a 15 per cent tax credit for any income earned under the two EI programs. “Parents should be able to put their energy toward those critical first few months, and not have to worry so much […]
The federal government is reforming the tribunal that handles appeals related to employment insurance, Canadian Pension Plan and old-age security payments. Currently, Canadians who disagree with decisions by Employment and Social Development Canada or the Canada Employment Insurance Commission relating to these payments, as well as CPP disability benefits, can appeal to the tribunal’s general division. […]
The union hoping to represent Foodora Inc.’s Toronto couriers has filed an unfair labour practice complaint with the Ontario Labour Relations Board, alleging the company is attempting to scare couriers into voting against unionization. Couriers are set to vote on whether to join the Canadian Union of Postal Workers on Friday. In a press release, the […]
An evaluation of a federal benefit to help parents take time off work to care for critically ill children says fewer people have used it than expected because they didn’t know about it or didn’t understand how it worked. Annual applications for the benefit, delivered through the employment insurance system, have been well below the […]
The ways that Canadians partner up is changing, leading to questions about how different types of families access parental benefits. “When we think about Canada, and we think about families, we think about diversity,” said Nora Spinks, chief executive officer of the Vanier Institute of the Family, in a webinar on Tuesday. “And we want to make sure […]
The number of people who received regular employment insurance benefits increased by 4,400 in February, a rise of one per cent since January, according to new data from Statistics Canada. Most of the increase was observed among those employed in manufacturing and utilities, which rose 4.7 per cent, while there was a smaller increase of 1.6 […]