The House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities met Thursday and, at that meeting, heard from a variety of departmental officials at Human Resources, the department that administers Canada's employment insurance system. Some numbers that popped out at me during that meeting:
- Mike Savage, the Liberal MP from Dartmouth-Cole Harbour noted that, according to a Caledon Institute commentary [PDF}, fewer unemployed Canadians than ever qualify for employment insurance benefits. The Institute said that in 1976, 84 per cent of unemployed Canadians could expect financial help from the federal government in the form of employment insurance. In 2007, that had fallen to just 44 per cent. Mind you, it was the Liberal governments of Jean Chretien that largely changed the eligibility rules on EI that has resulted in so few unemployed now being eligible.
- Departmental officials told me that, at the end of January, total number of claims for employment insurance was up 14 per cent compared to January, 2008.
- In 2008 — a year of remarkable job creation, notwithstanding the 100,000 jobs lost in the final two months — the department had 2.6 million applications for employment insurance; it processed 22 million cheques that were sent to 2.1 million Canadians.
- As of December, the department says it was meeting its service standard of ensuring that 80 per cent of applicants received their first benefit cheque within 28 days of applying. One should note that 28 day period generally begins the day after losing your job. EI requires a two-week waiting period during which you cannot receive benefits. That two-week waiting period is also within that 28 day waiting period.