Mr. Speaker, the tariff war is ramping up, but Ottawa is abandoning workers in rural areas as if the dispute were over.
Starting October 11, the federal government is cutting back on temporary employment insurance measures and lowering the unemployment rate that is used to determine eligibility. Worse still, it is creating two classes of workers by favouring those whom Ottawa describes as “long-tenured” workers over seasonal workers and workers in more volatile industries.
Once again, we need to remind the people in Ottawa that seasonal workers are “long-tenured” workers. Their jobs are seasonal, but the workers themselves are permanent, as are the needs of their families.
On October 11, instead of copying Stephen Harper's measures and depriving rural workers of EI, the Liberals must renew all the flexible measures for workers. Above all, they need to bring in the comprehensive EI reform they have been promising for more than 10 years.