The Trudeau government’s new proposed budget contains good news for unemployed people in the Flin Flon-Creighton region.
The budget would extend regular employment insurance benefits by five weeks for all eligible claimants in a dozen regions across Canada, including northern Manitoba and northern Saskatchewan.
The budget would also provide up to 20 additional weeks of regular EI benefits to older workers in those regions given that it often takes them more time to find a new job.
The added benefits would apply to 10 other regions with sustained increases in unemployment, including Saskatoon, Calgary and Newfoundland and Labrador.
“In these regions the unemployment rate increased by two percentage points or more for a sustained period between March 2015 and February 2016,” reads the budget, “compared to its lowest point between December 2014 and February 2015, without showing significant signs of recovery.”
The budget, introduced last week, is expected to pass a parliamentary vote given that the Trudeau Liberals hold a majority of seats.
