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4d ago

Canada Extends Temporary Employment Insurance Unemployment Rate Adjustment to October 2025

Ministers preserved reduced qualification hours along with four extra weeks of benefits for roughly 290,000 Canadian workers facing disruption from US or other tariffs

A help wanted sign is pictured in a business window in Ottawa on Tuesday, July 12, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick
The employment insurance section of the Government of Canada website is shown on a laptop in Toronto on April 4, 2020. Canada’s emergency response benefits have become a flashpoint, as employers seek to recall workers who are still concerned about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jesse Johnston

Overview

  • On July 10, Employment Minister Patty Hajdu and Secretary of State John Zerucelli announced the one-point regional unemployment rate boost will run until October 11, 2025
  • The temporary measure raises all EI regional rates by one percentage point up to 13.1% while setting a minimum of 7.1%, cutting required insurable hours to 630
  • Eligible claimants will receive up to four additional weeks of regular EI benefits under the extended adjustment
  • Government estimates indicate approximately 290,000 workers will gain smoother access to benefits and longer entitlement through the extension
  • Expanded Work-Sharing special measures remain active, with over 700 agreements covering nearly 27,200 workers to help prevent more than 10,200 layoffs