Payroll Reporter
Can
R
Can
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adian adian a
www.payroll-reporter.com
May 2019
Federal budget proposes changes
aff ecting EI and stock option benefi ts
Employment insurance premiums could decrease to 1.61 per cent next year
BY SHEILA BRAWN
THE FEDERAL government is proposing
changes to employment insurance (EI) and
stock option benefits that may affect some
payroll professionals.
The budget, which Finance Minister Bill
Morneau tabled on March 19, included fig-
ures projecting that the employee EI premi-
um rate would decrease from $1.62 per $100
of insurable earnings to $1.61 for 2020.
The budget also included a proposal to
provide an EI premium rebate to small busi-
nesses that pay up to $20,000 a year in em-
ployer EI premiums, beginning in 2020.
The rebate is intended to "offset the up-
ward pressure on EI premiums resulting
from the introduction of a new EI Training
Support Benefit," budget documents said.
The EI benefit, also proposed in the bud-
get, would be part of a new Canada Training
Benefit to help workers upgrade and develop
new skills.
see ROUNDUP page 7
PM
#40065782
Legislative Roundup
Changes in payroll laws and regulations
from across Canada
see TAXABLE page 6
Credit:
Chris
Wattie
(Reuters)
see TRAINING page 2
News in Brief pg. 4
Ontario unveils self-audit tool for
employers | Men earn signifi cantly more
than women: Survey | Report highlights
trends in benefi t plans
Preparing for
payroll audits pg. 3
Is your department ready
for an audit? Many
employers are not
Ask an Expert pg. 5
Paying unused accumulated
sick pay credits | Recovering
outstanding source
deductions
Provincial budgets light
on payroll proposals
Manitoba, Quebec among jurisdictions
proposing payroll-related measures
BY SHEILA BRAWN
NO NEWS is sometimes good news. For payroll professionals, that is
certainly true when it comes to provincial/territorial annual budgets.
So far, only a few jurisdictions have announced payroll-related
changes in their budgets and the proposed measures do not involve
major adjustments affecting source deductions.
Federal
Stat holiday bill closer to becoming law
A private member's bill proposing to make Sept. 30 a statutory
holiday is a step closer to becoming law after recently passing third
reading in the House of Commons.
Bill C-369, An Act to amend the Bills of Exchange Act, the Inter-
pretation Act and the Canada Labour Code (National Day for Truth
and Reconciliation), which NDP MP Georgina Jolibois tabled in
2017, received third reading on March 20.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, shakes hands with Finance Minister Bill Morneau after Morneau
delivered the budget in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on March 19.