Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The minimum $5,000 income rule to qualify for CERB is cutting out Albertans who have struggled to find work because of the challenges facing the oil and gas industry.
Brenda is a constituent of mine who was laid off from her oil and gas job in 2018. She's been on EI from spring 2019 until earlier this year. As her EI doesn't count as income under the program, she doesn't qualify for CERB. She has been trying her best to find work, but like other former industry workers, she's had a tough time. The challenge of building pipelines, compounded with the current pandemic, has only made the job search harder.
Why is the government cutting out unemployed oil and gas workers like Brenda from receiving CERB?