As Canada heads toward what is likely to be another recession, the country’s Employment Insurance (EI) program seems no more ready to deal with the expected increase in demand for benefits than it was when the pandemic hit in early 2020. The federal government has indicated that it will announce changes to EI following a two-year consultation process that concluded in the summer of 2022.  

The IRPP has hosted a series of workshops and undertaken its own analysis to inform these choices. A first report, How to Modernize Employment Insurance: Toward a Simpler, More Generous and Responsive Program, focused on EI modernization. A follow-up report, Financing Employment Insurance Reform, and related commentary, Building a Package of Compromise Solutions for EI Reform, looks at how to finance modernization costs.