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Work-Sharing program for those affected by COVID-19

Published on April 24, 2020 PDF(opens a new window)

Effective March 15, 2020 to March 14, 2021, and not limited to one specific sector or industry, the Government of Canada introduced temporary special measures to the Work-Sharing (WS) program to support employers and employees affected by COVID-19. These include extending the maximum duration of a WS agreement from 38 weeks to 76 weeks, waiving the mandatory cooling off period for those already using the WS program, easing recovery plan requirements, and expanding eligibility. PBO estimates total net cost of this measure to be $125 million in 2020-21. This includes an estimated program cost of $144 million and an estimated saving of $19 million from personal income taxes on the EI benefits. The EI Account is financed by employee and employer contributions; under legislation, any additional costs have to be recouped by contributions over the next seven years. The time horizon for this costing is aligned to the Economic and Fiscal Scenario PBO published on March 27, 2020, which only extends to 2020-21. There are likely fiscal impacts from this measure for subsequent years.

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