Bill C-308

2nd Session, 40th Parliament,

57-58 Elizabeth II, 2009

house of commons of canada

BILL C-308

An Act to amend the Employment Insurance Act (improvement of the employment insurance system)

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

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

(5) For the purposes of 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. (1) Subsection 4(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

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 $42,500 (indexed annually) until the amount calculated in accord­ance with subsection (2) for a year, before rounding down under subsection (4), exceeds $42,500 (indexed annually), in which case the maximum yearly insurable earnings for that year is that amount, rounded down under subsection (4).

(2) Subsection 4(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(3) For years subsequent to the year in which the maximum yearly insurable earnings exceeds $42,500 (indexed annually), 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.

(3) Section 4 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (5):

3. Paragraph 5(3)(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(b) if the employer is, within the meaning of that Act, related to the employee, they are deemed to deal with each other at arm’s length unless the Minister of National Revenue is satisfied that, having regard to all the circumstances of the employment, including the remuneration paid, the terms and conditions, the duration and the nature and importance of the work performed, it is reasonable to conclude that they would not have entered into a substantially similar contract of employment if they had been dealing with each other at arm’s length.

4. Subsections 7(2) to (5) of the Act are replaced by the following:

(2) 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 360 hours of insurable employment.

5. (1) Subsections 7.1(1) and (2) of the Act are replaced by the following:

7.1 (1) The number of hours that an insured person requires under section 7 to qualify for benefits is increased to the applicable number provided in paragraphs (a) to (d) if the insured person accumulates one or more violations in the 260 weeks before making their initial claim for benefit:

(d) 850 hours in the case of one or more subsequent violations.

(2) Subsection 7.1(3) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(3) A violation may not be taken into account under subsection (1) in more than two initial claims for benefits if the insured person qualified for benefits with the increased number of hours in each of those claims.

6. (1) Subsection 14(1) of the Act is replaced by the following:

14. (1) The rate of weekly benefits payable to a claimant is 60% of their weekly insurable earnings.

(2) Subsection 14(2) of the Act is repealed.

(3) Subsections 14(4) and (4.1) of the Act are replaced by the following:

(4) The rate calculation period is the period of 12 weeks, consecutive or not, during which the claimant received earnings greater than any other period of 12 weeks, consecutive or not.

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

17. The maximum rate of weekly benefits is 60 % of the maximum yearly insurable earnings divided by 52.

8. Paragraph 54(f) of the Act is replaced by the following:

(f) determining the amount to be deducted under section 20 from weekly benefits paid if the claimant normally works other than a five day week;

9. The Act is amended by adding the following after section 153:

10. Schedule I to the Act is replaced by Schedule I set out in the schedule to this Act.