DURHAM -- Regional councillors want federal election candidates to make social issues a priority during this campaign.
The health and social services committee will ask council to endorse a motion asking for Employment Insurance (EI) reform and national strategies for childcare and social housing. They want their request to go out to all the local candidates in the federal election.
A report from the Region's social services department released Wednesday says taxpayers are forking over $2.3 million annually to cover a gap in EI coverage. In Durham, only 26 per cent of unemployed workers are eligible to collect EI payments should they lose their jobs. In other provinces, as much as 74 per cent can collect EI benefits. At that rate, Durham taxpayers would pay $1.5 million less.
The difference is that the hours of work required to receive EI vary based on the regional unemployment rate. In Durham, workers need 665 hours to qualify while in other parts of Canada it's as little as 420 hours. Part-time and contract workers may not have the necessary hours to collect EI, even though they pay into the system. When they lose their jobs, they turn to social assistance, a fifth of which is funded by property taxpayers.
Oshawa Councillor Robert Lutczyk wants to see the eligibility criteria for EI revisited and he wants EI recipients to receive at least the same benefits that Ontario Works recipients get.
He described one family's difficult situation: when their jobs disappeared, so did their benefits and they couldn't afford a new pair of glasses for their visually impaired daughter.
"Right now if you work at Lear or GM or anywhere else, as soon as you go on EI you've got a waiting period of six weeks (for payment), your pay is cut and your benefits disappear," he said.
Ajax. Coun. Colleen Jordan pointed out the Region passed a motion asking for EI criteria to be re-examined, but said she thought the issue needed to be highlighted again.
"Make it known in Durham Region, particularly with the loss of manufacturing jobs, we're heading for a crisis," she said.
Brock Mayor Larry O'Connor suggested raising the issue not only with the federal government, but also with all election candidates.
He also suggested raising the issue of the rising cost of social housing and childcare in municipalities. He wants a national strategy on both issues and said the federal government should put in place the universal childcare program promised by the Paul Martin government and then scrapped by Stephen Harper's.
"We can't just simply let them walk away from those responsibilities, there's too many families affected by it," he said.
The municipalities pay 20 per cent of the cost of subsidized childcares spaces. The rest comes from Ontario. As of Sept. 15, there were 2,079 children waiting for subsidized daycare spaces in Durham.
The health and social services committee will finalize the wording of their request at a meeting before Regional Council on Oct. 8.
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