Most employees qualify for government employment insurance (“EI”) that will pay them a salary while they are not working for some reason, including:

1. regular benefits for people whose employment was terminated without cause;
2. sickness benefits for people who are unable to work due to illness or injury;
3. maternity and parental benefits for pregnant women, individuals who have recently had a baby and individuals who have adopted a baby;
4. compassionate care benefits for people who have to leave work to care for a gravely ill family member.

Sometimes, however, individuals can be denied government employment insurance benefits. For example, you are only entitled to EI regular benefits if you:

• were employed;
• lost your job through no fault of your own;
• have worked for the required number of hours since your last EI claim;
• are ready, willing and capable of working every weak day; and
• are actively looking for work.

You may not be entitled for benefits:

• if you voluntarily left your job without just cause (unless you were constructively dismissed);
• if you were dismissed for just cause (this is usually easy to disprove unless it was very serious misconduct);
• if you are unemployed because you on strike.

If Service Canada denies EI benefits, or does something such as ordering that EI benefits received are to be repaid, or sends a warning letter, or imposes a penalty of any kind, you should contact an employment lawyer who specializes in EI disputes. They will handle the appeal for you, at a marginal cost, as these kind of disputes are not complicated and proceed to a hearing very quickly.

If you would like to learn more, please contact us.