MP Nina Grewal (Fleetwood-Port Kells) today welcomed the introduction of the Fairness for the Self-Employed Act which provides self-employed Canadians with voluntary access to all EI special benefits – maternity and parental benefits, sickness benefits, and compassionate care benefits.

"Our Conservative government is not only delivering on our commitment to self-employed Canadians, we are exceeding it,” said Mrs. Grewal. “We know that families are the foundation of our great country.  We believe that self-employed Canadians should not have to choose between their family and their business responsibilities."

"Extending access to special benefits is the fair and right thing to do.  It is yet another way our government is supporting families and represents one of the most significant enhancements to the EI program in the last decade. Self-employed Canadians will now have the peace of mind knowing they can access special benefits to cope with major life events such as the birth of a child, an illness, or caring for a gravely ill family member."

This change compliments steps that our Conservative government has already taken to improve the Employment Insurance Program and help unemployed Canadians during the current economic difficulties. These steps include:

• Legislation to extend EI regular benefits for unemployed long-tenured workers.  
• Through Canada’s Economic Action Plan, our government is providing longer EI benefits while protecting jobs through Work-Sharing agreements.

"There are approximately 2.6 million self-employed Canadians who have long asked for this support.  They include small business owners, farmers, construction workers, professionals, and those who own a home business, among many others. The previous Liberal government completely ignored these Canadians for 13 years. Our government has listened and has delivered results for self-employed Canadians who are an integral part of our economy and economic recovery," concluded Mrs. Grewal.