Legislation Proposes Maternity, Parental Benefits For Self-Employed Canadians

November 2, 2009 6:21 a.m. EST

Ottawa, Ontario (AHN) - The federal government will propose changes to Canada's Employment Insurance Act which would grant 2.7 million self-employed Canadians maternity and parental benefits.

Among the features of the legislation the Conservative-led government will introduce on Tuesday are permitting the self-employed to just pay half the regular premiums to access the special benefits. The amendments are part of the campaign promises Prime Minister Stephen Harper made in 2008.

In effect, the self-employed would just pay the employee's share of the premium. Regular workers pay $1.73 per $100 income or a maximum of $731.79 for 2009, while their employers pay 1.4 times on top of the worker's premium.

To qualify for 15 weeks of maternity benefits or 35 week of parental leave, a self-employed worker must have been enrolled 12 months before they could file a claim. Receipt of benefits would tie the self-employed to the program, which means they cannot leave it.

According to a survey by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, many self-employed workers are willing to pay for higher premiums to qualify for extra benefits.