Mr. Chair and members of the committee, thank you and good morning.
My name is Rutha Astravas.
I'm the director of special benefits for employment insurance policy at the Department of Employment and Social Development. As you said, joining me is Mike MacPhee, my colleague from Service Canada.
I am thankful for the opportunity to appear again before the committee to address this very important issue and build on previous discussions.
I sympathize with Canadians who lose an infant child to sudden or unexpected causes, including in the case of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS. It is hard to imagine the suffering families experience when they lose a child suddenly or unexpectedly, yet some share their deeply personal experiences at this committee.
We've paid close attention to these hearings focusing on supporting families after the loss of a child and we're thankful for the evidence shared by families; non-governmental organizations, including support networks across Canada; and Canadian and international researchers. We've shared the concerns and suggestions with our service delivery counterparts.
In particular, we acknowledge the challenges that parents must face in grieving the loss of their child and maintaining their emotional and physical well-being while trying to return to work. It's tragic to consider that in 2014 alone, there were approximately 1,800 total infant deaths and 3,200 stillbirths, according to Statistics Canada.
During a previous committee appearance, we presented an overview of employment insurance benefits that could support parents who lost their child, as well as recent changes to make the El program more flexible and inclusive for maternity, parental and caregiving benefits.
We explained that EI maternity benefits continue to be payable in the tragic event that a child passes away, because they're paid in relation to the mother's recovery from pregnancy and childbirth. We also explained that parental benefits payments end in the week of the death of the child, as care for the child is no longer required. We heard concerns about that policy, which is reflected in the Employment Insurance Act.
We also highlighted that the sickness benefit provides income support to claimants who are unable to work due to illness or injury, including incapacity due to emotional or psychological distress that a parent may suffer following the death of a child.
While there are no EI benefits specifically to cover a period of bereavement, grieving parents are eligible to receive up to 15 weeks of EI sickness benefits provided they obtain a medical note. The note must be signed by a medical practitioner and indicate the period during which the claimant is unable to work. This is separate from existing unpaid bereavement leave under federal, provincial or territorial labour codes or employer-paid leaves.
Other supports are available to parents and families through federal initiatives promoting public health of Canadian workers, parents and children; information campaigns and research regarding SIDS, infant health and safety; occupational health and safety programs for workers overall; and during pregnancy and nursing.
We heard from witnesses about the importance of easy-to-find information of what to do when a family member dies and making the reporting process simpler and less intrusive.
Service Canada is the main point of contact to report a death to the federal government, or that a death occurred in the territories or outside of Canada. On its website, you can find information on what to do in the event of the loss of a family member. Families residing in one of the provinces also need to notify the province where they reside.
We've heard how traumatic the loss of a child may be for families. We also know that it takes a variety of supports to respond to their needs. That may include community supports and grief counselling, as well as government programs. As we've described, the EI program provides a range of supports to qualifying workers, and changes have been made to make them more flexible.
With that, I look forward to your questions on the program and its delivery, as well as any suggestions for improvement.
Thank you.