Canada's Economic Action Plan helps Canadians through Work-Sharing

June 20, 2009

BOIS-FRANC, QUEBEC, June 20, 2009—Canada’s Economic Action Plan is helping workers and businesses by extending and easing access to WorkSharing agreements, so more Canadians can keep their jobs while companies experience a temporary slowdown.

“Our Government knows that, by keeping Quebeckers, and indeed all Canadians, working, we can minimize the impact of this difficult economic time,” said the Honourable Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister responsible for the Outaouais region. “Improvements to the Work-Sharing program provide companies like Louisiana-Pacific Canada and their employees with easier and extended access to Work-Sharing agreements while these companies recover from temporary slowdowns.”

Minister Cannon made the statement on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, in an address to employees at Louisiana-Pacific.

Work-Sharing, an element of the Employment Insurance (EI) program, can be instrumental in assisting businesses experiencing a temporary slowdown caused by factors beyond their control. It is designed to avoid layoffs by offering EI income support to qualifying workers willing to work a reduced work week while their employer recovers. Under Work-Sharing, employers can retain employees and avoid expensive re-hiring and re-training costs, and employees are able to continue working and keep their skills up to date.

Companies in key sectors of Canada’s economy, such as forestry and manufacturing, are already using the Work-Sharing program. As of June 14, 2009, Work-Sharing was benefiting over 31,000 Quebeckers and more than 135,000 Canadians. In Quebec, there were over 750 agreements, with 64 of them directly helping the forestry sector. There are seven active Work-Sharing agreements in the Outaouais region involving over 250 employees, including more than 70 at Louisiana-Pacific.

Recognizing the current level of uncertainty facing many businesses, the Government is extending, over the next two years, Work-Sharing agreements to a maximum of 52 weeks and increasing access to Work-Sharing by providing greater flexibility in the qualifying criteria and streamlining processes for employers.

These measures are estimated to cost $200 million over two years and will minimize the financial impact of the economic downturn by helping companies avoid layoffs while their industry recovers.