Government of Canada temporarily sets a minimum unemployment rate for the Employment Insurance program

August 16, 2020

ince the beginning of the pandemic the Government of Canada has taken action to provide Canadians with the health and financial support needed to help contain the spread of COVID-19. Since it was launched, the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) has been an important income support for over 8.5 million Canadians and their families, who have had to stop working due to the pandemic. As the country continues to gradually and safely restart the economy, over 1.6 million Canadians have been able to return to work. However, we know that not all sectors are re-opening at the same pace. That’s why the Government is preparing to transition as many Canadians as possible back to the Employment Insurance (EI) system at the end of month.

Today, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, announced that effective August 9, 2020 a minimum unemployment rate of 13.1% will be applied temporarily for all EI economic regions across Canada.

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