2014 maximum insurable earnings announced • Ottawa freezes EI premiums for 3 years • Fourth quarter prescribed interest rates set • Temp foreign worker program changes • Manitoba minimum wage increases in October • Nova Scotia WCB sets 2014 maximum insurable earnings • Ontario WSIB sets 2014 maximum insurable earning
Canada
2014 maximum insurable earnings announced
The Canada Employment Insurance Commission (CEIC) announced that the maximum insurable earnings (MIE) for 2014 will increase to $48,600 from $47,400 in 2013. In accordance with the Employment Insurance Act, the MIE is indexed on an annual basis and represents the ceiling up to which employment insurance (EI) premiums are collected and the maximum amount considered in applications for EI benefits.
For residents of Quebec covered under the Quebec Parental Insurance Plan (QPIP), the premium reduction will be $0.35 per $100 of insurable earnings. As such, they will pay $1.53 per $100 of insurable earnings.
There will also be reductions for the employers registered under the Premium Reduction Program (PRP). The reductions for these employers will range from $0.22 to $0.37 per $100 of insurable earnings, providing $852 million in premium relief. Registered employers will be notified individually, as individual premium reductions may vary.
For self-employed Canadians who have opted in to the EI program, the annual earnings required to qualify for special benefits will increase to $6,515 on January 1, 2014, up from $6,342 for 2013.
Ottawa freezes EI premiums for 3 years
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty reversed his decision to raise the amount employers and workers pay into the country’s employment insurance (EI) program, a move that offers a break to small businesses as economic uncertainty lingers.
The EI premium rate will be frozen at 2013 levels through 2016, instead of rising every year as outlined in the government’s March budget.
The change will save employers, who pay 60 per cent of the premiums, and workers a combined $660 million in 2014 and will have no impact on government finances, Flaherty said.
Flaherty had projected in his budget that the EI premium rate would increase by the maximum five cents per year to reach $1.93 per $100 of insurable earnings by 2016, up from $1.88 in 2013. This means the rate will hold steady instead at $1.88 through 2016. Starting in 2017, the rate will be set annually at a seven-year break-even rate.
Fourth quarter prescribed interest rates set
The prescribed rate for taxable benefits to employees and shareholders from interest-free and low-interest loans is two per cent from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31. The rate is up one per cent from the previous quarter.
The increase in the prescribed rate in October 2013 is the first time this rate has increased since it dropped to a historic low of one per cent in April 2009.
Temp foreign worker program changes
The federal government has implemented changes to its Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) to address concerns that some employers have used the program to hire workers from other countries instead of Canadian employees.
The changes, which took effect July 31, 2013, include the following new requirements:
• Employers applying to hire temporary foreign workers through the government’s labour market opinion (LMO) process must now pay a processing fee of $275 for each temporary foreign worker position they request.
• Before applying to the program, employers must advertise the needed position in Canada for at least four weeks, an increase of two weeks over the previous requirement. Employers must also advertise for the job in Canada using the federal government’s national job bank as well as two other recruitment methods. For high-skill positions, one of the recruitment methods must be done on a national basis. For low-skill positions, employers must show they targeted young people and people with disabilities, as well as other groups of Canadians not well represented in the workforce. Employers must also continue to actively try to recruit Canadian workers while the government is assessing their LMO.
• In ads and the LMO application, the only languages employers can require from potential workers are English and French, except in special circumstances where the employer can show that another language is essential for the job.
• The application for an LMO now has additional questions on how the employer plans to use temporary foreign workers to help the government determine what impact the hiring of temporary foreign workers will have on Canada’s job market.
MANITOBA
Reminder: Minimum wage increases in October
Effective Oct. 1, the minimum wage rate in Manitoba increases from $10.25 per hour to $10.45.
NOVA SCOTIA
WCB sets 2014 maximum insurable earnings
The Nova Scotia Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) has set the maximum insurable earnings ceiling for 2014 at $56,000. The maximum is currently $54,400.
Ontario
WSIB sets 2014 maximum insurable earnings
Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has set its maximum assessable/insurable earnings for 2014 at $84,100. The maximum is currently $83,200.
