Bill C-111

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First Reading

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	Special Benefits
Illness, etc. - minor attachment claimants	21. (1) A minor attachment claimant who ceases work because of illness, injury or quarantine is not entitled to receive benefits while unable to work for that reason.
Limitation	(2) If benefits are payable to a claimant for unemployment caused by illness, injury or quarantine and any allowances, money or other benefits are payable to the claimant for that illness, injury or quarantine under a provincial law, the benefits payable to the claimant under this Act shall be reduced or eliminated as prescribed.
Deduction	(3) If earnings are received by a claimant for a period in a week of unemployment during which the claimant is incapable of work because of illness, injury or quarantine, subsection 19(2) does not apply and, subject to subsection 19(3), all those earnings shall be deducted from the benefits payable for that week.
Pregnancy	22. (1) Notwithstanding section 18, but subject to this section, benefits are payable to a major attachment claimant who proves her pregnancy.
Weeks for which benefits may be paid	(2) Subject to section 12, benefits are payable to a major attachment claimant under this section for each week of unemployment in the period
	(a) that begins the earlier of
	(i) eight weeks before the week in which her confinement is expected, and
	(ii) the week in which her confinement occurs; and
	(b) that ends 17 weeks after the later of
	(i) the week in which her confinement is expected, and
	(ii) the week in which her confinement occurs.
Limitation	(3) When benefits are payable to a claimant for unemployment caused by pregnancy and any allowances, money or other benefits are payable to the claimant for that pregnancy under a provincial law, the benefits payable to the claimant under this Act shall be reduced or eliminated as prescribed.
Application of section 18	(4) For the purposes of section 13, the provisions of section 18 do not apply to the two week period that immediately precedes the period described in subsection (2).
Earnings deducted	(5) If benefits are payable under this section to a major attachment claimant who receives earnings for a period that falls in a week in the period described in subsection (2), the provisions of subsection 19(2) do not apply and, subject to subsection 19(3), all those earnings shall be deducted from the benefits paid for that week.
Extension of period	(6) If a child who is born of the claimant's pregnancy is hospitalized, the period during which benefits are payable under subsection (2) shall be extended by the number of weeks during which the child is hospitalized.
Limitation	(7) The extended period shall end no later than 52 weeks after the week of confinement.
Parental benefits	23. (1) Notwithstanding section 18, but subject to this section, benefits are payable to a major attachment claimant to care for one or more new-born children of the claimant or one or more children placed with the claimant for the purpose of adoption under the laws governing adoption in the province in which the claimant resides.
Weeks for which benefits may be paid	(2) Subject to section 12, benefits under this section are payable for each week of unemployment in the period
	(a) that begins with the week in which the child or children of the claimant are born or the child or children are actually placed with the claimant for the purpose of adoption; and
	(b) that ends 52 weeks after the week in which the child or children of the claimant are born or the child or children are actually placed with the claimant for the purpose of adoption.
Earnings deducted	(3) If benefits are payable to a major attachment claimant under this section and earnings are received by the claimant for a period that falls in a week in the period described in subsection (2), the provisions of subsection 19(2) do not apply and, subject to subsection 19(3), all those earnings shall be deducted from the benefits payable for that week.
Division of weeks of benefits	(4) Weeks of benefits payable under this section may be divided between the parents of the child or children.
	Work-Sharing
Regulations for work-sharing benefits	24. (1) The Commission may, with the approval of the Governor in Council, make regulations providing for the payment of work-sharing benefits to claimants who are qualified to receive benefits under this Act and are employed under a work-sharing agreement that has been approved for the purposes of this section by special or general direction of the Commission, including regulations
	(a) defining and determining the nature of work-sharing employment for which benefits may be paid;
	(b) prescribing the maximum number of weeks for which benefits may be paid;
	(c) prescribing the method of paying benefits;
	(d) prescribing the rate of weekly benefits;
	(e) providing a method for setting the amount that is the weekly insurable earnings of a claimant employed in work-sharing employment for the purposes of section 14;
	(f) prescribing the manner of treating, for benefit purposes, earnings received from the claimant's employer or from other sources;
	(g) providing for the extension of a claimant's qualifying period or benefit period for a number of weeks not exceeding the number of weeks of work-sharing employment;
	(h) deferring service by a claimant of all or any part of their waiting period until their work-sharing employment has ended; and
	(i) providing for any other matters necessary to carry out the purposes and provisions of this section.
No appeal	(2) A special or general direction of the Commission approving or disapproving a work sharing agreement for the purposes of subsection (1) is not subject to appeal under section 114 or 115.
Presumption	(3) For the purposes of this Part, a claimant is unemployed and capable of and available for work during a week when the claimant works in work-sharing employment.
	Courses, Programs and Employment Benefits
Status of claimants	25. For the purposes of this Part, a claimant is unemployed and capable of and available for work during a period when the claimant is
	(a) attending a course or program of instruction or training at the claimant's own expense, or under employment benefits, to which the Commission, or an authority that the Commission designates, has referred the claimant; or
	(b) participating in any other employment activity for which assistance has been provided for the claimant under prescribed employment benefits and to which the Commission, or an authority that the Commission designates, has referred the claimant.
Benefits not earnings	26. For the purposes of this Part, Part IV, the Income Tax Act and the Canada Pension Plan, benefits paid to a claimant while employed under employment benefits are not earnings from employment.
	Disqualification and Disentitlement
Disqualificati on - general	27. (1) A claimant is disqualified from receiving benefits under this Part if, without good cause since the interruption of earnings giving rise to the claim, the claimant
	(a) has not applied for a suitable employment that is vacant after becoming aware that it is vacant or becoming vacant, or has failed to accept the employment after it has been offered to the claimant;
	(b) has not taken advantage of an opportunity for suitable employment;
	(c) has not carried out a written direction given to the claimant by the Commission with a view to assisting the claimant to find suitable employment, if the direction was reasonable having regard both to the claimant's circumstances and to the usual means of obtaining that employment;
	(d) has not attended an interview that the Commission has directed the claimant to attend to enable the Commission or another appropriate agency
	(i) to provide information and instruction to help the claimant find employment, or
	(ii) to identify whether the claimant might be assisted by job training or other employment assistance; or
	(e) has not attended or participated in, or has withdrawn from, a course or program of instruction or training, or any other employment activity,
	(i) for which assistance has been provided for the claimant under employment benefits, and
	(ii) to which the claimant has, with their agreement, been referred by the Commission or an authority that the Commission designates.
Employment not suitable	(2) For the purposes of this section, employment is not suitable employment for a claimant if
	(a) it arises in consequence of a stoppage of work attributable to a labour dispute;
	(b) it is in the claimant's usual occupation either at a lower rate of earnings or on conditions less favourable than those observed by agreement between employers and employees, or in the absence of any such agreement, than those recognized by good employers; or
	(c) it is not in the claimant's usual occupation or is either at a lower rate of earnings or on conditions less favourable than those that the claimant might reasonably expect to obtain, having regard to the conditions that the claimant usually obtained in that occupation, or would have obtained if the claimant had continued to be so employed.
Reasonable interval	(3) After a lapse of a reasonable interval from the date on which an insured person becomes unemployed, paragraph (2)(c) does not apply to the employment described in that paragraph if it is employment at a rate of earnings not lower and on conditions not less favourable than those observed by agreement between employers and employees or, in the absence of any such agreement, than those recognized by good employers.
Duration of disqualificatio n	28. (1) A disqualification under section 27 is for the number of weeks that the Commission may determine, but
	(a) the number of weeks of a disqualification arising under paragraph 27(1)(a) or (b) shall be not fewer than 7 or more than 12; and
	(b) the number of weeks of a disqualification arising under paragraph 27(1)(c), (d) or (e) shall be not more than 6.
When disqualificatio n is to be served	(2) Subject to subsections (3) to (5), the weeks of disqualification are to be served during the weeks following the waiting period for which benefits would otherwise be payable if the disqualification had not been imposed and, for greater certainty, the length of the disqualification is not affected by any subsequent loss of employment by the claimant during the benefit period.
Disqualificati on to be carried forward	(3) Any portion of the disqualification that has not been served when the claimant's benefit period ends shall, subject to subsections (4) and (5), be served in any benefit period subsequently established within two years after the event giving rise to the disqualification.
Limitation	(4) No weeks of disqualification shall be carried forward against a claimant who has had 700 or more hours of insurable employment since the event giving rise to the disqualification.
Deferral	(5) The Commission shall defer the serving of the disqualification if the claimant is otherwise entitled to special benefits or benefits by virtue of section 25.
Presumption	(6) For the purposes of this Part, other than section 15, benefits are deemed to be paid for the weeks of disqualification.
Exception	(7) Subsection (6) does not apply to prevent a claimant from requesting that a benefit period established for the claimant as a minor attachment claimant be cancelled under subsection 10(6) and that a benefit period be established for the claimant as a major attachment claimant to enable the claimant to receive special benefits.
Interpretation	29. For the purposes of sections 30 to 33,
	(a) ``employment'' refers to the claimant's last employment before their claim for benefits is made, other than an initial claim for benefits, unless otherwise prescribed;
	(b) loss of employment includes a suspension from employment, but does not include loss of, or suspension from, employment on account of membership in, or lawful activity connected with, an association, organization or union of workers; and
	(c) just cause for voluntarily leaving an employment or taking leave from an employment exists if the claimant had no reasonable alternative to leaving or taking leave, having regard to all the circumstances, including any of the following:
	(i) sexual or other harassment,
	(ii) obligation to accompany a spouse or dependent child to another residence,
	(iii) discrimination on a prohibited ground of discrimination within the meaning of the Canadian Human Rights Act,
	(iv) working conditions that constitute a danger to health or safety,
	(v) obligation to care for a child or a member of the immediate family,
	(vi) reasonable assurance of another employment in the immediate future,
	(vii) significant modification of terms and conditions respecting wages or salary,
	(viii) excessive overtime work or refusal to pay for overtime work,
	(ix) significant changes in work duties,
	(x) antagonism with a supervisor if the claimant is not primarily responsible for the antagonism,
	(xi) practices of an employer that are contrary to law,
	(xii) discrimination with regard to employment because of membership in an association, organization or union of workers,
	(xiii) undue pressure by an employer on the claimant to leave their employment, and
	(xiv) any other reasonable circumstances that are prescribed.
Disqualificati on - misconduct or leaving without just cause	30. (1) A claimant is disqualified from receiving any benefits if the claimant lost their employment because of their misconduct or voluntarily left their employment without just cause, unless the claimant is disentitled under sections 31 to 33.
Disqualificati on - disentitled claimants	(2) A claimant who is disentitled under sections 31 to 33 is also disqualified from receiving benefits if the claimant loses or voluntarily leaves an employment, other than the employment on which the disentitlement is based.
Length of disqualificatio n	(3) The disqualification is for each week of the claimant's benefit period following the waiting period and, for greater certainty, the length of the disqualification is not affected by any subsequent loss of employment by the claimant during the benefit period.
Not retroactive	(4) If the event giving rise to the disqualification occurs during a benefit period of the claimant, the disqualification does not include any week in that benefit period before the week in which the event occurs.
Suspension	(5) Notwithstanding subsection (7), the disqualification is suspended during any week for which the claimant is otherwise entitled to special benefits.
Restriction on qualifying for benefits	(6) If the disqualified claimant makes an initial claim for benefits, the following hours may not be used to qualify to receive benefits under subsection 7(2) or (3):

Bill C-111

Special Benefits

Work-Sharing

Courses, Programs and Employment Benefits

Disqualification and Disentitlement