The federal government’s Employment Insurance (EI) program doesn’t treat all unemployed workers the same. People with identical jobs and identical work histories can receive very different levels of support – or in some cases, nothing at all – depending on where they live.

The federal government has divided Canada into 58 different EI economic regions. Many have different eligibility requirements and benefit periods. As a result, EI benefits can vary greatly:

• from province to province,
• between cities and towns in the same province, and
• even between towns and communities next to each other.

The following scenarios show how the EI program doesn’t treat all workers fairly. Although the people and stories are not real, the rules are.

Two workers with the same job history at the same company: one gets help, the other, nothing.

Two workers with the same job history at the same company: both get help, but one receives better benefits than the other.

Two workers with the same job history at the same company: one gets help, the other doesn’t – because they applied at different times.