Canada cancelling wage subsidy, announces $7.4B in new COVID-19 supports – National | Globalnews.ca

The federal government is spending $7.4 billion to extend and create new COVID-19 supports for hard-hit businesses and workers through programs that will carry into the spring.

Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said on Thursday that as of Sunday, new measures will be put in place to replace the broad Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) and the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS), which expire on Saturday.

The new Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program, Hardest Hit Business Recovery Program, Lockdown Support Program and the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit will start on Sunday and run until May 7, 2022, Freeland said.

“Today, our support needs to be more narrow, more targeted and less expensive and we need to look forward to the day, now not too far off, when we will be able to bring it to an end entirely,” she said.

The Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program will provide help through a wage and rent subsidy programs for hotels, tour operators, travel agencies and restaurants with a subsidy rate of up to 75 per cent, the government said in a news release.

The Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program will provide support through the wage and rent subsidy programs for other businesses that have faced deep losses, with a subsidy rate of up to 50 per cent.

For those two programs, eligibility will be a two-key system, Freeland said. First, the government will consider whether an employer has faced significant revenue loss over the course of 12 months during the pandemic. The second key is revenue loss in the current month of application.

Also, the Lockdown Support Program has been created in case the pandemic requires further lockdowns in parts of the country, Freeland said.

For those businesses that face lockdowns, the federal government will make the wage and rent subsidy available up to the maximum amount for the duration of the shutdown.

4:38
Pandemic rent and wage subsidies coming to an end

Those proposed subsidy rates will be available through to March 13, and will then decrease by half until expiry on May 7.

Like the Canada Emergency Response Benefit, the new Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit would provide $300 a week to workers who are subject to a lockdown, including those ineligible for employment insurance.

Freeland also said the government is extending the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit and Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit until May 7 and will increase the maximum duration of each benefit by two additional weeks.

Furthermore, the government is extending the Canada Recovery Hiring Program until May 7 for eligible employers with current revenue losses above 10 per cent. It will also increase the subsidy rate to 50 per cent.

“Our unrelenting objective is to protect and create jobs and to drive economic growth,” Freeland said. “It is to ensure the strongest possible recovery for everyone.”

Several federal programs created as a way to support Canadians and Canadian businesses during the pandemic will expire on Saturday.

On Oct. 23, benefits such as the CEWS, the CERS and Lockdown Support will no longer be active.

With the wage subsidy, the government said it has paid out more than $95 billion to date to help employers re-hire workers and avoid layoffs.

The rent subsidy and Lockdown Support have helped more than 210,600 organizations with more than $6.8 billion in support for rent, mortgage, and other expense, the government said.

View link »