Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Monday, October 01, 2012

New EI benefits for parents of sick kids won’t protect jobs

Prime Minister Harper’s recent announcement of up to 35 weeks of Employment Insurance benefits for parents of critically ill children beginning in June 2013 is laudable. However, unless parallel changes to provincial labour standards are made, parents who are off work to care for sick children may not have a job to go back to.

Since 2004, Canadians have had access to up to six weeks of Compassionate Care Benefits from EI after a two-week waiting period if they have to be away from work temporarily to provide care or support to a family member who is gravely ill.

Shortly after EI Compassionate Care Benefits were announced, Ontario passed legislation allowing employees to take Family Medical Leave in the same circumstances for up to eight weeks in a 26-week period without losing their jobs.

However, few employees have applied for EI Compassionate Care Benefits and Ontario’s Family Medical Leave because to be eligible for both, claimants need a doctor’s certificate that the patient they are caring for has a specified, serious medical condition with a significant risk of death occurring within six months. This has been a particular problem for parents with seriously ill children.

In an attempt to partially remedy this problem, the Ontario government introduced Bill 30 in June 2011 to establish a new eight week Family Caregiver Leave that offers job protection (but no compensation) for family members who need time off to take care of sick, but not necessarily dying relatives.

The idea was that Family Caregiver Leave would be separate from and in addition to the current Family Medical Leave. If a family member’s condition becomes terminal while the employee is on leave, the caregiver will be entitled to an absence of an additional eight weeks of Family Medical Leave (and EI Compassionate Care Benefits) based on a doctor’s certification.

Now Harper has trumped McGuinty at least in part, by offering 35 weeks of EI benefits for parents of seriously ill children who need time off work. It is expected that about 6,000 families with seriously ill children per year will be eligible to claim up to 35 weeks of the new EI benefits. As a result, the ball is in Ontario’s court to increase the new Family Caregiver Leave in Bill 30 to 35 weeks of job protection for parents in these circumstances. Otherwise, taking more than eight weeks off could still put their jobs at risk.

It is also important to recognize that Harper’s recent announcement does nothing to correct the fatal flaw in the EI Compassionate Care Benefits program as it applies to non-parents who need time to care for ailing loved ones.

If the federal government is serious about offering support to family caregivers, the requirement for medical certification of imminent death should also be eliminated so non-parents can more readily claim up to the six weeks of compassionate care benefits currently available.

Original Article
Source: money ville.
Author: Sheryl Smolkin

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