Mr. Speaker, more than seven months have passed since the announcement of measures to help workers affected by the softwood lumber crisis, but we are still waiting for the second phase of the aid package.
In the meantime, sawmills are closing their doors; people are losing their jobs and are doubly penalized by the government's lack of empathy and the rigidity of the Employment Insurance Act, which does not recognize seasonal work at all.
The Minister of Human Resources Development should demonstrate some interest in these workers who are asking nothing less than for the seasonal nature of their employment to be recognized and the employment insurance rules to be relaxed during the softwood lumber crisis.
By refusing to recognize the very existence of seasonal work, and by dragging its feet on implementing the second phase of the aid package, the federal government is directly contributing to the impoverishment of the affected communities.