BREAKING: CERB eligibility has been extended another 8 weeks
- Michael Kras
- 16 Jun 2020
Canada’s federal government has just announced that eligibility for the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) has been extended by another 8 weeks for those who are currently in their last month of support and still out of work.
The announcement, made by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday morning, was a follow up to Monday’s news that the CERB program would be extended in some form to continue aiding out-of-work Canadians.
Many in Canada’s workforce who began collecting CERB when it was first introduced have been nervously facing what would have been the final payments of their 16-week eligibility this month, regardless of whether or not a return to work was even in sight yet.
.@JustinTrudeau announces today he'll extend the $2,000 monthly #CERB for eight weeks. "We want to make sure this works effectively so Canadians can get back on their feet." #cdnpoli #covid19canada
— Steve Paikin (@spaikin) June 16, 2020
Indeed, though Canada’s economy is gradually and carefully being reopened amid the pandemic, a considerable amount of Canada’s workforce will still be out of work while prominent industries remain shuttered or greatly reduced for perhaps months to come, including the performing arts, live events, hospitality, travel & tourism, and more.
The extension of CERB eligibility from 16 to 24 total weeks of support not only buys time for more of the economy to reopen, but also gives Canadian workers a chance to seek alternative employment if their jobs and industries are forecasted to be impacted for much longer still to come.
Trudeau also said that the federal government will continue to monitor the situation internationally in the coming weeks, and make adjustments to financial supports as needed.
“Over the next few weeks, our government will look at international best practices, and monitor the economy and the progression of the virus to see what changes – if any – need to be made to the program so that more people are supported,” said Trudeau.
While the new extension is surely a relief for a large number of Canadian workers, it’s only a temporary solution for the problems lots of workers will continue to face even after the extended eligibility runs out.
In fact, many have considered the CERB program to be an inadvertent trial run for a permanent Universal Basic Income program; an issue which has been discussed and debated multiple times in the COVID-19 era, and certainly isn’t an idea that’s off the table.
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