Employment Insurance and Section 25 Referral Authority

1. Employment Insurance and Section 25 Referral Authority A Guide for Aboriginal Skills and Employment Training Strategy (ASETS) Agreement Holders and Designated Sub-Agreement Holders

2. Agenda • Section 1: Employment Insurance basics • Section 2: EIBIS • Verification of EI client status • Section 25 Module: • input of training

3. Section 1 • Employment Insurance Basics • Employment Insurance Act Parts I and II • History of Employment Insurance • Part I EI Benefits Eligible Criteria • Part II EI Act Employment Benefits Support Measures

4. Employment Insurance Act: Parts I and II The EI Act (1996) has two relevant parts to consider: • Part I Unemployment Benefits • income support during an interruption in earnings • Delivered by Service Canada • Part II Benefits -Employment Benefits and Support Measures • Active measures to help clients return to work • Delivered by Provinces, Territories and Indigenous Organizations through their signed Agreements

5. History of Employment Insurance • Unemployment Insurance Actpassed in 1940 (1996 name change to Employment Insurance) • National system financed through employee, employer, and the Government of Canada contributions • Since 1990, the entire cost of unemployment insurance is shared between employees and employers. (The federal government is responsible for surpluses and deficits)

6. Part I EI Benefits: Eligibility Criteria You may be entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) regular benefits if you: • were employed in insurable employment; • lost your job through no fault of your own; • have been without work and without pay for at least seven consecutive days in the last 52 weeks; • have worked for the required number of insurable employment hours in the last 52 weeks or since the start of your last EI claim, whichever is shorter; • are ready, willing and capable of working each day; • are actively looking for work (you must keep a written record of employers you contact, including when you contacted them).

7. Part I EI Benefits: Eligibility Criteria Number of hours of insurable employment required depends on your situation. hours of insurable employment that are used to calculate your benefit must have been accumulated during your qualifying period. between 420 and 700 hours of insurable employment during the qualifying period to be entitled to receive EI regular benefits. If you received a notice of violation regarding prior EI benefit periods, the number of insurable hours required to qualify is increased.

8. Part I EI Benefits: Eligibility Criteria • The qualifying period is the shorter of: • the 52-week period immediately before the start date of your claim; or • the period from the start of a previous benefit period to the start of your new benefit period, if you applied for benefits earlier and your application was approved in the last 52 weeks. • Exception: In some cases, the qualifying period may be extended to a maximum of 104 weeks if you were not employed in insurable employment or if you were not receiving EI benefits.

9. Part I EI Benefits: Claim Processing • Factors affecting the processing of an EI claim: • When the client applies • Reason for leaving • Hours worked • Response to questions in the application • Submission of ROE • Payment can be received within 28 days of the date the application and all required documents are received • Payment can be delayed if documentation is not submitted in a timely manner or if there are considerations, such as reason for separation.

10. Part I: Availability and Training Section 18 To receive EI Part I benefits once a claim has been established, the EI claimant must prove that he or she is: • Capable of and available for work and unable to find employment, or • Unable to work because of illness, injury or quarantine, and would otherwise be available for work; or engaged in jury duty.

11. Part I Section 25 – Courses, Programs and Employment Benefits Section 25 Allows claimants to continue receiving EI Part I benefits while participating in an approved training or employment activity. • If a claimant is participating in approved training or employment, he or she is deemed “available for work” and is still entitled to Part I benefits. .

12. Part II Section 63 - Payment of contributions Section 63 of the Employment Insurance Act is ESDC’s authority to enter into ASETS agreements with Indigenous organizations to provide EI Part II funding for the delivery of labour market programs.

13. Part II Referral Authority • Schedule H of the ASETS Agreement designates ASETS agreement holders as a Section 25 referral authority. • Authorizes ASETS agreement holders to refer active EI claimants to: • Attend training programs at the claimant’s own expense, or under ASETS approved employment benefits; or • Participate in any other employment activity for which assistance has been provided to the claimants under ASETS approved activities.

14. Part II Referral Authority Assessment Prior to referrals, the Section 25 referral authority must: • Assess client to determine needs; • Determine what programs/services are necessary to meet those needs (including referrals to other organizations); and • Determine whether or not these programs/services are eligible under ASETS Annual Operational Plans.

15. Part I - Authorization to Leave Employment • Designated authority may counsel a client to quit their employment to attend an approved funded intervention (or training program).  • An Authorization To Leave Employmentis only considered before the client quits their job; not retroactively. • The designated authority will provide written documentation to support their decision to avoid risk of client being disqualified from EI benefits • Authorization to quit should be no more than 2 weeks before the training start

16. Example of an exceptional circumstance for Authorisation to Leave Employment • Clients working no more than 15 hours per week and paid low wages, AND • Demonstrate that they are actively seeking full-time employment, AND • Are unable to support themselves/family financially with the income from their employment; OR • Are in receipt of notice of imminent lay-off, OR • Must leave current employment due to documented medical reasons and required occupational skills training to find employment.

17. Important Employment Insurance Changes Recent Changes: July 2016 – Eliminated higher number of insured hours needed for those new to or re-entering the labour market. July 2016 – Simplified job search responsibilities July 2016 – Training while on special benefits Aug 2016 – Extended the working while on Claim Pilot Jan 2017 - One week waiting period April 2018 - Employment benefit and support services for more Canadians April 2018 – Support to employers wanting to upskill their employees to maintain current employment Fall 2018 - Pursuing full-time training

18. Part II EI Act: Insured Participant (EI Client) Section 58 of the EI Act defines an insured participant insured person who requests assistance under employment benefits and, when requesting the assistance, is an unemployed person for whom a benefit period is established or whose benefit period has ended within the previous 60 months.

19. Part II Employment Benefits & Support Measures (EBSMs) Enabling insured participants to obtain employment, including benefits to (a) encourage employers to hire them; (b) encourage them to accept employment by offering incentives such as temporary earnings supplements; (c) help them start businesses or become self-employed; (d) provide them with employment opportunities through which they can gain work experience to improve their long-term employment prospects; and (e) help them obtain skills for employment, ranging from basic to advanced skills.

20. Part II Employment Benefits ASETS can support interventions similar to: • Targeted Wage Subsidies • Job Creation Partnerships • Self Employment • Skills Development

21. Part II Support Measures • Support measures includes Employment Assistance Services (EAS) or Core Services • Clients include the general employed, regardless of EI eligibility • Equates to the minimum levels of service provided to all Indigenous people

22. Section 2 • EIBIS: Employment Insurance Benefits Information System • Background and login process • Verification of EI client status • LMDA Access Query Screen • Common Status messages • Section 25A authorization • Input of training referrals • Changes to referrals • EI Alerts • Resources

23. EIBIS • Agreement Holders and ESDC share client EI information • The Employment Insurance Benefit Information System (EIBIS) facilitates the exchange of this information. • EIBIS helps ASETS Holders perform EI enquiries and submit S25A referrals

24. EIBIS • Requires Federal Government reliability checks. • Preferable to be limited to ASETS agreement holders, but exceptions permitted. • ASETS agreement holders to notify Canada of any new information that could put into question a user’s reliability or use of the program. • ASETS agreement holders to abide by legislative and policy requirements regarding the collection, use, maintenance, storage, retention, disclosure and disposal of personal information.

25. EIBIS - Login process flow • Log on to ESDC network • NOTE: Select the Winnipeg ITC for clients in western provinces and territories • User logs on to EIBIS • Selects application • Queries and S25A referrals are submitted 1 2 3 4

26. LMDAAccess: Main Query Page

27. LMDAAccess: Claimant Information

28. EIBIS Query - Verify Clients EI status The agreement holder verifies the client’s EI status via EIBIS A client can be funded under the EI funding if they meet the definition of an insured participant/EI client. (S. 58 EI Act) • insured person who requests assistance under employment benefits and, when requesting the assistance, is an unemployed person for whom a benefit period is established or whose benefit period has ended within the previous 60 months

29. Common EI Status Messages • Active EI Part I Claimant: The client currently has an active Employment Insurance (EI) claim. The client is eligible for EI Part II programming, but to do so, an S25A transaction must be submitted to prevent a stoppage of his EI payments. • Active EI Part I Claimant – Manual Pay System (MPS): The client currently has an active Employment Insurance (EI) claim. However, it is being processed by the manual pay system (MPS), meaning an S25A transaction cannot be submitted from LMDAAccess. • Active EI Part I Claimant – Special benefits benefits and /or Active Provincial/Territorial parental benefits (PTPB) claimant: The client is or was recently on Special Benefits (Sickness, Maternal, Parental, Compassionate Care, Family Caregiver). An S25A transaction cannot be submitted from LMDAAccess. • Provincial/territorial parental benefit established - Payments not initiated : The client currently has an established Provincial/Territorial parental benefits (PTPB) claim but the payments are not initiated. • Former claimant eligibility: The client was on an active EI Part I claim within the last five (5) years.

30. Common EI Status Messages • Former claimant eligibility - EI Part I claim pending adjudication : The client was on an active EI Part I claim within the last five (5) years but there is a current claim awaiting adjudication. • Premiums paid eligibility - EI Part I claim pending adjudication: The client is eligible for EI Part II programming on the basis of the premiums paid eligibility; meaning he has paid EI premiums in at least five (5) of the last ten (10) years. However, the client also has an EI Part I claim which is pending adjudication. • Previous tax year information is not currently available to determine the client’s premiums paid eligibility: The system is unable to verify eligibility for the client, based on premiums paid, due to missing tax information for the previous calendar year. To serve the client using EI Part II funds, a manual validation is required to verify that EI premiums were paid in the previous calendar year. • Client does not meet the eligibility requirements: The client is ineligible for EI Part II programming since no eligibility requirements were met.

31. Common EI Status Messages May be eligible – reason: previous tax year information is not currently available to determine the client’s previous premiums paid eligibility. This means the client has not contributed to EI premiums in 5 out of the last 10 tax years.

32. Disentitlements / Disqualifications • Disentitlement is a denial of benefits for a definite or indefinite period • Disqualifications are a denial of benefits for definite or indefinite number of weeks

33. Section 25 Transactions Considerations: • Is the client an EI client/insured participant? • Will the client receive EI Part I benefits during the time period involved in the training course or other employment activity? • If the client is entitled to receive benefits, how much and for how long will the client receive benefits? • Is a training referral required? The Agreement Holder processes the Section 25 training referral for active claimants to allow clients to continue to receive Part I employment benefits while on a EI Part II intervention.

34. Section 25 Authorization (S25A) The Section 25 Authorization transactions screen is used to submit client intervention information to the Insurance System to request Section 25 referral in order for the client to continue to receive his/her EI Part I benefits while participating in training activities.

35. Section 25 Authorization (S25A) After searching for the client by their SIN, determine: Does the client have an established current benefit period? If yes, Click on the S25A Transactions link to begin to enter the training information. If there is no current EI claim, the client needs to have a claim before you can enter the training referral information.

36. Responsibility Centre (RC) Code This code is the first 4 digits of the user code and should prefill automatically. You can also find it by selecting user profile as shown below.

37. Intervention Type Drop-down list: T – Training J – Employment Partnership (Job Creation) (not typically used) S – Self-Employed

38. Training ID • When “T” is selected in Intervention Type a drop-down list will appear. • ASETS Agreement Holders will choose code 98 - ASETS

39. Start End Week • Start Week/Date • Intervention date must be after the claim start date (Benefit Period Commencement - BPC) and before the claim end date (Latest Renewable Week - LRW) • End Week/Date • Intervention date must be after the claim start date BPC (Benefit Period Commencement) and also after the Start Week/Date. Enter the actual Course End Week (CEW).

40. Week Code Calendars You can find the week code that corresponds to the training/intervention dates by clicking on Week Codes Guide then select appropriate year and dates.

41. Project Number • This will be your project number for EI Part II funded activity. • Total needs to be 10 characters • When agreement number is less than 10 numeric digits, input zeros before the entire project number to a total of 10 numeric digits, i.e. agreement number 1234567 must be input as 0001234567

42. Apprentice Indicator Leave this blank The authority for referrals to apprenticeship training rests with the Provincial/Territorial apprenticeship authority. Indigenous organizations do not have the authority to authorize apprenticeship training. A client wanting to attend apprenticeship training must register with Apprenticeship and Industry Training.

43. Break Start and End Date Indicate the start and end dates if training provider specifies a break period where the client will not perform training activities,. Must be later or equal to the intervention Start Week and Break Start Week. Must be earlier than or equal to the intervention End Week.

44. Institution Code • Because Training ID 98 is used, this is not a mandatory field - • Indigenous programs is not required to have Institution codes.

45. No CR Code: Leave this blank This field is for specific types of EI benefits that are not required to complete reports such as Special Benefits and Apprenticeship. As previously indicated, in ASETS agreement holders do not have referral authorization for clients attending Apprenticeship training.

46. Rate • This is a mandatory field • For initial transactions, either leave blank or enter 000 • To amend transactions 000 entry is mandatory

47. Completing the screen • Three buttons are available at the bottom of the page: • Cancel will exit the S25A Input page and return the user to the Query page. • Select Submit to transmit the Training information to ESDC. • Reset will erase all data except for the Project RC.

48. Data Processing Training referrals are processed by Service Canada overnight. • Users, who are responsible for the data entry, need to follow-up to ensure each transaction has been accepted, as entered.

49. Viewing S25A Transactions Pending – referral is still being processed. The transaction will be updated the next day. The “P” means that you cannot modify the transaction because it is not yet processed. Rejected - the last transaction was rejected. Select the “R” to see the details of the rejection. Review, modify and re-submit. Accepted (with) Warning - the last transaction sent was successfully processed with a warning message. Select the “AW” to see the details of the warning – Take action if required.

50. Common Error Codes and Fixes Refer to the Web Error Code System (WECS) for more detailed descriptions.