Question Period Note: STUDENT ELIGIBILITY FOR EMPLOYMENT INSURANCE BENEFITS

Some students are being notified of their Employment Insurance benefit overpayments

• Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Government has been committed to financially support Canadians with ongoing benefits to help them get through this difficult time.
• One of the objectives of the EI Program is to support workers who have completed their transition from school to the labour market.
• In other words, the EI program is not intended to support students, but to support workers during periods of unemployment and facilitate transitions within the labour market.
• Students who are in the education system have access to government programs other than EI that provide financial assistance and that are specifically designed to support them.
• Under certain circumstances, students may receive EI regular benefits while they are attending school or training.
• While I cannot comment on individual cases, the Government understands there may be situations in which students received payments to which they were not eligible.

The EI program is designed to protect individuals against the unexpected temporary loss of income from employment. Employers and employees both pay premiums so that employees may collect benefits if they are unable to work, whether they are temporarily unemployed, sick, pregnant, caring for a newborn or newly adopted child, or providing care or support to a family member who is critically ill or injured.

Service Canada is bound by the Employment Insurance Act and Regulations, which establish the right to EI benefits based on specific legislated conditions.

To be eligible for EI regular benefits, claimants must demonstrate that they are unemployed, but able and willing to work, and actively looking for suitable employment.

EI claimants may take part in training opportunities while receiving benefits, either on their own or with permission from a Province/Territory, or Indigenous organization. Students who receive permission from a Provincial/Territorial Government, or Indigenous organization (under section 25 of the EI Act) are considered to have met the availability requirement.

However, students who decide to take training must declare their training and prove that they are still able and willing to work and are looking for a job to continue receiving EI benefits. Students must be ready to make arrangements to work if they receive a job offer, and to adjust or cancel their training, if necessary.

Students who have lost their jobs for reasons beyond their control, must be referred for training by a designated authority. Otherwise, they must demonstrate that they are unemployed, available and willing to work, and unable to obtain suitable employment, as with any other client receiving regular benefits.

Recent Media Coverage

On November 7, 2021 an article in the Le Soleil newspaper mentioned that a student was asked to repay $8,800 in Employment Insurance for benefits he should not have received, even though he was able and available to work, but could not because of the pandemic. The article stipulates that this particular case is far too common and puts students in precarious financial situations. The article mentions that the student had applied for a hearing before the Social Security Tribunal. A decision has since been issued in December 2021.

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