Bill C-442

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First Reading

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	1st Session, 37th Parliament, 49-50-51 Elizabeth II, 2001-2002
	House of Commons of Canada
	BILL C-442
	An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act
1996, c. 23	Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:
	*1. Section 1 of the Employment Insurance Act* is replaced by the following:**
Short title	1. This Act may be cited as the Unemployment Insurance Act.
	2. (1) The definition ``Commission'' in subsection 2(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
``Commission '' « Commission »	``Commission'' means the Unemployment Insurance Commission established by section 71.1;
	(2) Subsection 2(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following in alphabetical order:
``earnings'' « rémunératio n »	``earnings'' does not include any amount received
	(a) as a pension, superannuation or retiring allowance,
	(b) in lieu of or in respect of vacation, or
	(c) in respect of severance;
	3. (1) Subsection 5(1) of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (a):
	(a.1) service by a person who, whether or not employed under a contract of employment, performs work or services for another person on such terms and conditions that they are in a position of economic dependence on, and under an obligation to perform duties for, that other person;
	(2) Paragraph 5(2)(i) of the Act is replaced by the following:
	(i) employment, if the Commission shows that the employer and employee are not dealing with each other at arm's length.
	4. (1) The definition ``waiting period'' in subsection 6(1) of the Act is repealed.
	(2) Section 6 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (2):
Week of employment	(2.1) In this Part, a reference to a week of employment means a week in which the claimant has at least 15 hours of insurable employment.
	5. Section 7 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Qualification requirement	7. An insured person qualifies if the person
	(a) has had an interruption of earnings from employment; and
	(b) has had during their qualifying period at least the lesser of:
	(i) 350 hours of insurable employment, or
	(ii) 20 weeks of insurable employment of not less than 15 hours a week.
	6. Subsection 7.1(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Increase in required hours	7.1 (1) The number of hours that an insured person, other than a new entrant or re-entrant to the labour force, requires under section 7 to qualify for benefits is increased to
	(a) 525 if the insured person accumulates one or more minor violations,
	(b) 700 if the insured person accumulates one or more serious violations,
	(c) 875 if the insured person accumulates one or more very serious violations, and
	(d) 1050 hours if the insured person accumulates one or more subsequent violations
	in the 260 weeks before making their initial claim for benefit.
	7. Subsection 10(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Length of benefit period	(2) Subject to subsection (2.1), the length of a benefit period is one week for every week of insurable employment in the qualifying period, up to a maximum of 52 weeks, except as otherwise provided in subsections (10) to (12) and section 24.
Determina- tion of weeks of insurable employment	(2.1) In determining the number of weeks of insurable employment for the purposes of subsection (2),
	(a) a week in which the claimant worked for 15 hours or more counts as a week of insurable employment; and
	(b) the number of weeks of insurable employment must not be less that the total number of hours worked in the period divided by 35.
Adjustment for unemploy- ment rate	(2.2) The period established by subsection (2) is increased by
	(a) 2 weeks for every 1% by which the regional rate of unemployment exceeds 4% but does not exceed 10%, and
	(b) 3 weeks for every 1% by which the regional rate of unemployment exceeds 10%,
	subject to a maximum period of 52 weeks.
Permanent layoffs	(2.3) The maximum period of 52 weeks established by subsection (2) shall be increased, on one occasion only, by 2 weeks for every year that a claimant has been in the labour force, up to a maximum of 13 years, where the claimant
	(a) becomes unemployed as a result of a permanent layoff by an employer;
	(b) has been in the labour force for 10 years or more; and
	(c) is 45 years of age or more.
	8. Section 13 of the Act is repealed.
	9. Subsections 14(1) to (2) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Rate of weekly benefits	14. (1) The rate of weekly benefits payable to a claimant is 66 % of their weekly insurable earnings, based on the average of the 10 weeks during the 12-month period preceding the week in which the interruption in earnings occurred in which the claimant received the highest earnings.
Maximum weekly insurable earnings	(1.1) The maximum weekly insurable earnings is
	(a) $750 for the year 2001 ; and
	(b) for each subsequent year, $750 adjusted by the change in maximum yearly insurable earnings for the year relative to the maximum yearly insurable earnings for 2001 .
	10. Section 18 of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (a):
	(a.1) engaged in training aimed at improving the claimant's ability to find employment;
	11. (1) Subsection 19(1) of the Act is repealed.
	(2) The portion of subsection 19(2) of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
Earnings in periods of unemploy- ment	(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), if the claimant has earnings during a week of unemployment, there shall be deducted from benefits payable in that week the amount, if any, of the earnings that exceeds
	12. Section 20 of the Act is repealed.
	13. Subsections 23(5) and (6) of the Act are repealed.
	14. Paragraph 24(1)(h) of the Act is repealed.
	15. Subsection 28(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
When disqualifi- cation is to be served	(2) Subject to subsections (3) to (5), the weeks of disqualification are to be served during the period for which benefits would otherwise be payable if the disqualification had not been imposed and, for greater certainty, the length of the disqualification is not affected by any subsequent loss of employment by the claimant during the benefit period.
	16. (1) Subsection 30(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Length of disqualifi- cation	(2) The disqualification is for each week of the claimant's benefit period and, for greater certainty, the length of the disqualification is not affected by any subsequent loss of employment by the claimant during the benefit period.
	(2) Section 30 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (7):
Burden of proof re leaving employment	(8) Where a claimant alleges that the employment was left voluntarily, but for just cause, the burden of showing that the leaving was not for just cause lies with the Commission and the employer, except where the reason relates to matters that are only within the knowledge of the claimant and are not related to the conditions of employment or events arising in or concerning the employment.
Burden of proof re dismissal	(9) Where an employer alleges that a claimant was dismissed for just cause and the claimant denies that there was just cause, the burden of showing that the dismissal was for just cause lies with the Commission and the employer.
	17. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 36:
Suspension or loss of benefits	36.1 No suspension or loss of benefits arising from the provisions of sections 27 to 36 shall exceed, in respect of one claim, a total of 8 weeks.
	18. Paragraph 54(a) of the Act is repealed.
	19. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 55:
Sufficient federal staff	55.1 The Minister shall ensure that there shall be available sufficient staff of the federal public service under the administration of the Minister to give assistance and advice to claimants without unreasonable delay during all operating hours of
	(a) every office that delivers services to members of the public attending in person who are or who represent or may become claimants under this Act, and
	(b) every telephone or other electronic service that delivers services to such members of the public
	that is established or operated to assist claimants.
Claimants' advocates	55.2 The Commission shall nominate a person to be located at every office referred to in section 55.1 whose duty it is to advise and assist claimants at that office and to act as an advocate for their claims, and shall ensure that every such person has sufficient staff to assist them to fulfill that duty.
	20. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 59:
Provision of training	59.1 (1) The Commission shall provide training for insured persons in accordance with this section.
Training entitlement	(2) An insured person who makes a request to their employer to receive training under this section is entitled to receive training that
	(a) is relevant to their employment;
	(b) meets the requirements set out in subsection (3);
	(c) does not exceed 5 weeks for every year that the person has been in insured employment with that employer;
	(d) does not exceed 52 weeks as a lifetime aggregate entitlement; and
	(e) conforms to the regulations.
Appropriate training	(3) Training provided under this section must
	(a) be appropriate for the insured person, given their experience and education;
	(b) be directed at providing skills that are relevant to the employment and advancement opportunities that are or are likely to become available to the insured person with their employer; and
	(c) reflect the career objectives of the insured person.
Regulations	(4) The Commission may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, make regulations for the purposes of subsections (1), (2) and (3).
	21. Section 71 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Unemployme nt Insurance Trust Fund established	71. (1) There is hereby established in the accounts of Canada an account to be known as the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund .
Transfer of assets and liabilities	(2) The assets and liabilities of the Employment Insurance Account immediately before the coming into force of this section become the assets and liabilities of the Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund.
Regulations	(3) The Governor in Council may make regulations to give effect to subsection (2) and to provide for a transition between the Account and the Fund and the handling of claims, payments, assessment, appeals and other financial processes that have been commenced but not completed at the time of transfer.
Unemployme nt Insurance Commission established	71.1 (1) There is hereby established a commission to be known as the Unemployment Insurance Commission.
Members nominated and appointed	(2) The members of the Commission are those persons appointed by the Governor in Council for terms not exceeding 5 years from lists of persons nominated by the labour organizations and employer organizations determined by the Minister to fairly represent labour and employers across Canada. Members of the Commission may be re-appointed for a second or third term.

Bill C-442

BILL C-442