Generally speaking, higher payroll taxes, such as EI premiums, discourage employment and diminish the ability of employers to pay higher wages. When employers have to pay more in payroll tax, it affects the wages they can afford to pay employees.
In the light of the recession, the government had decided to freeze premium rates for a certain period of time. Obviously, making accurate long-term forecasts is always a challenge, but we welcomed the freeze, as opposed to an increase, on EI premium rates at a time when the economy was already weak.
Now, it turns out that the rates were a bit higher. And when you look at the full cycle over a number of years, you see that, on average, it evens out. The government's desire to keep rates stable for a certain period of time, for instance, seven years, is a measure we welcomed.