In the News July 12
Truth on the Ground in Quebec
Crisis Deepens in Employment Insurance Regime
France Simard is the coordinator of the Unemployment Action Movement in Lac Saint-Jean, Quebec.
Workers’ Forum: The last time we interviewed you, in February of this year, you mentioned the huge delays people face before receiving their Employment Insurance (EI) benefits. [1] One of the factors was the large amount of EI recipient identity thefts, which create fraudulent claims. It seems that the crisis has persisted since then. Can you tell us more?
France Simard: The situation has not really changed. If I talk about our situation in Lac-Saint-Jean, at least 85 of the files have been delayed. I am talking about those files that are not automatically settled through the computer system. I’m talking about files that require the intervention of a Service Canada agent.
When the ministry provides statistics to us, they are based on files without any problems, that are resolved within 30 days, as they are supposed to be. We are told that everything is fine, that 80 per cent of the files are resolved within 28 days. Maybe, but that is 80 per cent of the files that are handled by the computer system, where everything is fine and there are no snags. It’s the other files that pose the problems, such as, for example, when a worker voluntarily leaves his or her job, or in the case of an allegation of worker misconduct, or any other issue that requires the intervention of a Service Canada agent.
What we see on the ground are all the cases that require the intervention of an agent. It is in these cases that the wait times can be extensive. I had one case that took six months to resolve. There are also all the fraud cases that result from identity theft. There was a lot of identity theft, and there still is, so all the agents were put on those cases. Meanwhile other files that require their involvement, such as for applicants who have quit their job for various reasons, are not considered urgent. Those that are considered urgent are those involving fraud as a result of identity theft. They put more people on those cases but didn’t hire more agents. They just moved agents around from one station to another.
It gets even worse in the case of, say, an applicant who is going to begin working part-time. His or her case is considered even less urgent, not deemed an emergency situation. The same goes for workers who are not in an economic situation whereby they’re going to lose their home or who don’t have children. All of this is taken into account to determine whether or not their claim is urgent.
It’s gotten to the point where when claimants call us and their case is pending, we’re forced to ask indiscreet questions because that’s the only way we can move the case forward. That’s not what we’re here for. It’s not our job to do credit checks, to ask them if they are able to pay for everything they need, if they have enough to eat, if they have children. If they do, or if they are a single parent, they’re going to be considered a little bit more important. One case I had was a single parent and it was resolved very quickly because hers was considered a humanitarian case.
WF: What are your immediate demands for speeding up the processing of claims to ensure that those who are unemployed receive their benefits?
FS: The EI computer system needs to be improved immediately. It’s a real sieve for fraud with regard to claimant identity theft.
There are people who work at Service Canada who propose solutions to the higher-ups, but apparently, solutions must come from the top, not the bottom. For example, an in-house agent had proposed that “are you a robot?” be added to the EI application. This could have stopped some of the fraudsters. But no, they’re told that the system is not set up to do that. People on the ground are proposing solutions but those are not accepted.
The government has been talking about reforming the employment insurance regime for two years. The first year was supposed to be dedicated to improving the computer system because they said it was outdated. This was supposed to allow for the second year to be devoted to reforms to improve the employment insurance regime. We have no clue where they put the money to improve the computer system.
We are asking for measures to make the computer system more efficient. We are also asking that agents be hired, as the solution is not simply to move agents around from one station to another. That’s not the way to solve the problem. There is also the need for a thorough reform of the employment insurance regime, to make it accessible, fair, universal and non-discriminatory. The rumour now is that the plan for the reform has been postponed until next October. Organizations on the ground have been making demands for fundamental reform of the system for years. [2]
What must also be recognized is that the current crisis is forcing us to act well beyond our mandate.
We have been in Lac-Saint-Jean for 21 years, and until now we have never been involved in any food assistance. Now we’re required to do it. Distress is very great amongst the unemployed. Our daily workload is getting heavier. We accompany people and have to speak with them longer to reassure them and calm them down. Sometimes, when their psychological distress is too great, we must refer them to organizations that will deal with their problems because we don’t have the skills to do so. But we can’t leave people in distress.
I don’t understand why the ministry and the minister are denying the situation. I invite them, as well as the people at the top of the Service Canada pyramid, to come and meet with us, meet with the grassroots organizations, on the ground. Instead of giving the impression that we are complainers because we say that things are not working, they should come to the field. They’ll see that things are not going well.
Notes
1. Read Defending the Dignity and Rights of All Unemployed Workers – Interview, France Simard, Workers’ Forum, February 18, 2022.
2. The demands of the Unemployment Action Movement in Lac Saint-Jean are the same as those of the Autonomous and Solidarity Movement of the Unemployed, of which it is a part.
They are:
– a single 350-hour or 13 week eligibility threshold;
– a benefit rate of at least 70 per cent of insurable earnings, based on the best 12 weeks worked;
– a minimum threshold of 35 weeks of benefits;
– the abolition of all EI exclusions for workers who voluntarily leave their job or are fired;
– access to regular EI benefits in the case of losing one’s job, irrespective of maternity/parental/paternity benefits received.
Workers’ Forum, posted July 12, 2022.
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