November 16, 2011
The Final Recommendations of the Mowat Centre EI Task Force
The paper proposes a blueprint for a strengthened national program to support the unemployed. Its recommendations focus on the architecture of support for the unemployed and the principles that should drive reform.
Executive Summary
The Task Force’s mandate was to review the current Employment Insurance (EI) system, consult about its relevance to contemporary realities, and make recommendations about improving Canada’s support system for the unemployed.
At the outset, we committed that any recommendations would be evidence-based and principled. We also committed that this process would be transparent, non-partisan, and incorporate a diversity of perspectives.
To this end, we held extensive consultations with employers, workers, and civil society. We commissioned research from Canada’s top experts. We hosted a series of technical consultations to vet our proposals. Meanwhile, we reached out to current and former government officials, inviting their comments and keeping them informed of our progress. Finally, using the best data available, we costed our proposals so that Canadians and governments can understand the fiscal implications of our recommendations.
Based on our research and consultation, we propose a blueprint for a strengthened national program to support the unemployed. Our recommendations focus on the architecture of support for the unemployed and the principles that should drive reform. Our goal is to improve the overall design of the system.
Our 18 recommendations are organized around four themes: a nationally standardized system, active employment measures (i.e. training), special benefits, and financing and management. We recommend transformational changes, as well as smaller changes that address long-standing irritants in the EI system.
Visit www.mowateitaskforce.ca for more research from the Mowat Centre EI Task Force.
View PDFAuthors
Mary Davis, Josh Hjartarson & Jon Medow
Release Date
November 16, 2011
ISBN
978-1-927350-09-6
Mowat Publication
No. 41