Speak out & picket MP Chrystia Freeland's office

Tell Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland to preserve access to Employment Insurance! Stop the September 24 Benefit Cliff!

If we don’t act now, Employment Insurance (EI) is going to be much harder to access from September 25 onward.

That’s because the federal government has signalled its intention to revert to the old EI rules that put EI benefits out of reach for so many of us. For example, in Toronto, instead of 420 hours to access regular benefits and special benefits (like sickness and parental benefits), on September 25, we will need 700 hours to get regular benefits and 600 hours to get special benefits! 

Help us send a message to the federal government to extend the temporary measures as a bridge to permanent improvements in access to EI.

We're meeting at Matt Cohen Park (Southeast corner of Bloor and Spadina).

Sign the petition here

Workers are calling on the government to: 

➡️ Extend the temporary measures that make it easier for us to get Employment Insurance.

THEN ACT TO:
➡️ Expand EI access:

• A 360-hour or 12-week qualifying rule with 50 weeks of income support
• An end to harsh disqualification rules
• Ensure migrant workers have access to EI
• End misclassification, a practice where employers falsely label their employees as self-employed independent contractors to avoid paying their fair share of EI and CPP.

➡️ Improve the weekly benefit rate and include a guaranteed weekly minimum
➡️ Fund a new, annual federal government contribution to EI to help pay for improvements, provide adequate staffing with fair pay, and ensure EI acts as an effective economic stabilizer at times of crisis.