Extra EI Weeks for Seasonal Workers

Summary#

The Regulations Amending the Employment Insurance Regulations (Pilot Project No. 22) create a temporary pilot that can give certain seasonal workers a few extra weeks of Employment Insurance (EI) regular benefits. The pilot applies to benefit periods established between September 10, 2023 and September 7, 2024, and the regulations came into force on registration (December 8, 2023).

What it does#

• Establishes Pilot Project No. 22 under the Employment Insurance Regulations to test whether some seasonal claimants need more weeks of EI because recent drops in local unemployment reduced their benefit entitlements.
• Adds up to 4 additional weeks of EI regular benefits on top of the existing up-to-5 additional weeks already available to seasonal claimants, while keeping the overall maximum at 45 weeks.
• Applies only to claimants who meet the seasonal-claimant criteria already in the EI rules and whose benefit period starts between September 10, 2023 and September 7, 2024.
• Targets the same 13 EI economic regions covered by the previous temporary seasonal measure (the pilot’s text sets a table of weeks by hours worked and regional unemployment to determine entitlement).
• Changes are implemented by the Canada Employment Insurance Commission and require modest IT and administrative updates at Service Canada.

Who's affected#

• Seasonal workers who:
  • live in the 13 targeted EI economic regions and
  • meet the seasonal claimant definition and
  • have a benefit period established between September 10, 2023 and September 7, 2024.
• The government estimates about 42,000 seasonal claimants will benefit and that they will use about 138,600 additional weeks in total (an average of 3.3 extra weeks per beneficiary).
• The pilot is expected to pay about $66.5 million in additional benefits and incur about $2.1 million in operating costs, for a total of roughly $68.63 million in increased EI premiums spread over several years.
• All workers and employers who pay EI premiums share the cost: the measure is estimated to put upward pressure on premiums by about 0.04 cents per $100 of insurable earnings.
• The regulations say small businesses will not face new administrative or compliance burdens.

Why it matters#

• Many seasonal workers rely on EI to bridge predictable off-season periods. Sudden drops in regional unemployment can reduce the number of weeks they qualify for, creating or lengthening an income gap between seasons. This pilot aims to reduce that risk for eligible seasonal claimants.
• For affected workers, the extra weeks can mean more stable income through an off-season and a lower chance of a temporary period with no earnings.
• For other Canadians, the cost is spread widely through a small rise in EI premiums rather than direct changes for employers or business practices.
• The pilot is time-limited and will also provide data to decide whether a longer-term fix is needed for seasonal workers in regions with changing labour markets.