Status of Women committee  The third recommendation is to restore the standard benefit to 67%, as it was in the early 1990s. Initiating such a change is vital for women with low earnings, whether or not they live in households with higher earnings, as it would make the family supplement less important. These are a few suggestions for priority items to address the gendered consequences and effects of EI, mounting after 1996, but which I believe have become more pressing in the current recession.

Status of Women committee  Thank you very much for providing me with the opportunity. I'm pleased that the Standing Committee on the Status of Women is devoting attention to the issue of employment insurance for women in Canada and to improving it. My remarks today will focus on the relationship between the design of EI and the changing nature of employment, particularly as it relates to the situation of women in precarious jobs.