1st Session, 37th Parliament,
49 Elizabeth II, 2001

House of Commons of Canada

BILL C-2

An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Employment Insurance (Fishing) Regulations

      Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1996, c. 23

EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ACT

1. (1) Subsection 2(5) of the Employment Insurance Act is replaced by the following:

Weeks of benefits paid

(5) For the purposes of subsection 7(4.1) and section 145, the Commission may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, make regulations for establishing how many weeks of benefits a claimant was paid, in order to take into account benefit reductions or deductions in the calculation or payment of those benefits.

(2) Regulations made under subsection 2(5) of the Act, as enacted by subsection (1), may, if they so provide, have effect with respect to any period before the commencement of this subsection.

2. Subsection 3(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Report

(2) The Commission shall report to the Minister on its assessment annually from 2001 to 2006 , no later than March 31 following the end of each of those years. The Commission shall make any additional reports at any other times, as the Minister may request.

3. (1) Section 4 of the Act is replaced by the following:

Maximum yearly insurable earnings

4. (1) For the purposes of subsection 14(1.1), section 17, subsection 82(2) and sections 95 and 145, the maximum yearly insurable earnings is $39,000 until the amount calculated in accordance with subsection (2) for a year, before rounding down under subsection (4), exceeds $39,000, in which case the maximum yearly insurable earnings for that year is that amount, rounded down under subsection (4).

Calculation of amount

(2) The amount referred to in subsection (1) is the amount equal to 52 times the product obtained by multiplying

    (a) the average for the twelve month period ending on June 30 in the preceding year of the Average Weekly Earnings for each month in that period

by

    (b) the ratio that the average for the twelve month period ending on June 30 in that preceding year of the Average Weekly Earnings for each month in that twelve month period bears to the average for the twelve month period ending twelve months prior to June 30 of that preceding year of the Average Weekly Earnings for each month in that twelve month period ending twelve months prior to June 30 of that preceding year.

Subsequent years

(3) For years subsequent to the year in which the maximum yearly insurable earnings exceeds $39,000, before rounding down under subsection (4), the maximum yearly insurable earnings is the maximum yearly insurable earnings for the preceding year, before rounding down under subsection (4), multiplied by the ratio that the average for the twelve month period ending on June 30 in that preceding year of the Average Weekly Earnings for each month in that twelve month period bears to the average for the twelve month period ending twelve months prior to June 30 of that preceding year of the Average Weekly Earnings for each month in that twelve month period ending twelve months prior to June 30 of that preceding year.

Rounding down

(4) If the amount calculated in accordance with subsection (2) or (3) is not a multiple of one hundred dollars, the amount of the maximum yearly insurable earnings is rounded down to the nearest multiple of one hundred dollars.

Average Weekly Earnings

(5) The Average Weekly Earnings for a month is the average weekly earnings of the Industrial Aggregate in Canada for the month as published by Statistics Canada under the authority of the Statistics Act.

(2) Section 4 of the Act, as enacted by subsection (1), applies in respect of the year 2002 and subsequent years.

4. (1) Section 7 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (4):

Exception

(4.1) An insured person is not a new entrant or a re-entrant if the person has been paid one or more weeks of special benefits referred to in paragraph 12(3)(a) or (b) in the period of 208 weeks preceding the period of 52 weeks before their qualifying period or in other circumstances, as prescribed by regulation, arising in that period of 208 weeks.

(2) Subsection 7(4.1) of the Act, as enacted by subsection (1), applies to a claimant in respect of a benefit period beginning on or after October 1, 2000.

5. Section 15 of the Act is repealed.

6. Section 17 of the Act is replaced by the following:

Maximum rate of weekly benefits

17. The maximum rate of weekly benefits is 55 % of the maximum yearly insurable earnings divided by 52.

7. Subsection 28(6) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Presumption

(6) For the purposes of this Part, benefits are deemed to be paid for the weeks of disqualification.

8. Subsection 38(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

Determina-
tion under subsection 145(2)

(3) For greater certainty, weeks of regular benefits that are repaid as a result of an act or omission mentioned in subsection (1) are deemed to be weeks of regular benefits paid for the purposes of the application of subsection 145(2).

9. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 66:

Premium rate for 2002 and 2003

66.1 Notwithstanding section 66, the premium rate for each of the years 2002 and 2003 is the rate set for the year by the Governor in Council on the recommendation of the Minister and the Minister of Finance.

10. Section 67 of the Act is replaced by the following:

Employee's premium

67. Subject to section 70, a person employed in insurable employment shall pay, by deduction as provided in subsection 82(1), a premium equal to their insurable earnings multiplied by the premium rate set under section 66 or 66.1, as the case may be.

11. (1) Paragraph 145(1)(a) of the Act is replaced by the following:

    (a) the total benefits, other than special benefits , paid to the claimant in the taxation year, and

1998, c. 19, s. 272(1)

(2) Subsections 145(2) to (8) of the Act are replaced by the following:

Exception

(2) Subsection (1) does not apply in respect of a claimant who was paid regular benefits for less than one week in the ten years before the taxation year referred to in that subsection.

Excluded benefits

(3 ) Regular benefits paid for weeks beginning before June 30, 1996 shall not be taken into account when applying subsection (2).

Time for repayment

(4 ) A repayment must be made

    (a) in the case of a claimant who dies after October in the year and before May in the next year, within six months after the day of death; and

    (b) in any other case, on or before April 30 in the next year.

Limitation

(5 ) For greater certainty, repayments under this section do not affect the determination under subsection (2) of regular benefits paid to a claimant.

(3) Paragraph 145(1)(a) and subsections 145(2) to (5) of the Act, as enacted by subsections (1) and (2), respectively, apply in respect of the taxation year 2000 and subsequent taxation years.

TRANSITIONAL PROVISION

12. The repeal of section 15 of the Employment Insurance Act, as enacted by section 5 of this Act, applies in respect of a claimant for any benefit period beginning on or after October 1, 2000 and, in respect of a claimant for whom a benefit period has not ended on September 30, 2000, the weekly rate of benefits established under section 14 of the Employment Insurance Act applies to weeks of benefits paid or payable on or after October 1, 2000.

EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE (FISHING) REGULATIONS

SOR/96-445

13. (1) Section 8 of the Employment Insurance (Fishing) Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (3):

(3.1) A fisher is not a new entrant or a re-entrant if the fisher has been paid one or more weeks of special benefits referred to in paragraph 12(3)(a) or (b) of the Act in the period of 208 weeks preceding the period of 52 weeks before their qualifying period or in other circumstances, as prescribed by regulation, arising in that period of 208 weeks.

(2) Section 8 of the Regulations is amended by adding the following after subsection (8):

(8.1) A fisher is not a new entrant or a re-entrant if the fisher has been paid one or more weeks of special benefits referred to in paragraph 12(3)(a) or (b) of the Act in the period of 208 weeks preceding the period of 52 weeks before their qualifying period or in other circumstances, as prescribed by regulation, arising in that period of 208 weeks.

(3) Subsections 8(3.1) and (8.1) of the Regulations, as enacted by subsections (1) and (2), respectively, apply to a fisher in respect of a benefit period beginning on or after October 1, 2000.

SOR/2001-74

14. Despite subsections 153(3) to (9) of the Employment Insurance Act, the Regulations Amending the Employment Insurance (Fishing) Regulations, made by the Canada Employment Insurance Commission on January 23, 2001, approved by Order in Council P.C. 2001-166 of January 30, 2001 and registered as SOR/2001-74, are deemed to have come into force on December 31, 2000.

COMING INTO FORCE

Coming into force

15. The provisions of this Act, and the provisions of the Employment Insurance Act as enacted by this Act, come into force, or are deemed to have come into force, on a day or days to be fixed by order of the Governor in Council.