With all the new programs being developed and rolled out these days – the revamped Employment Insurance, the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) and the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) for Canadian businesses – it’s hard to figure out where you stand and what is best for you.

At Air Canada, where Unifor represents Customer Service Agents, unionized workers are being given a choice: they can come back to work with their jobs subsidized by the government, or they can stay on furlough and collect the CERB, whichever is best for them.

In fact, the airline has developed a tool to help its workers compare and contrast the two options to help its workers make the best choice for them, and is putting together a Q&A about pensions and benefits under the two programs.

At WestJet, there is a somewhat similar process underway, with the company deciding which workers should come back to work with government subsidizing their pay or go on CERB, based on the company’s assessment of which is better for the workers. There will be a process for WestJet workers to then assess the situation for themselves, and switch from one program to the other.

All this is because unions, including Unifor, have been in constant contact with our employers, as well as the federal government and senior officials, about how all the new programs work and how workers can best benefit.

With each new announcement, Unifor’s leadership, researchers and various experts are immediately on the phone with federal officials to get a clearer picture of the situation and to ensure the programs actually work for workers, and working with employers to roll out the programs. Other unions, including those representing workers at WestJet, are doing much the same.

This is often the case with government programs. After all, getting any government program in place is only half the job. The other half is ensuring programs are implemented in the workplace as intended. This is true, of course, of any legislation. Labour laws, for instance, apply to all workers, but too often require a union in place to make sure they are enforced.

Unifor continues to update its COVID-19-related factsheets as they evolve and as more details about the programs come to light. Remember to keep checking the unifor.org/covid and unifor.org/westjet sites for updates.

Remember, as well, to share these factsheets with friends and family if you think they could benefit. We are all in this together. Stay safe, stay healthy.

If you have any questions, do not hesitate to reach out.

Ontario
Billy O'Neill, Unifor
[email protected] | 416-605-1443

Quebec
Ada Zampini, Unifor
[email protected] | 514-701-6227

Prairies
Bruce Fafard, Unifor
[email protected] | 587-341-0945

British Columbia
Simon Lau, Unifor
[email protected] | 778-928-9630

Atlantic
Patrick Murray, Unifor
[email protected] | 506-850-7996