Today, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, welcomed the Royal Assent in Parliament of Bill C-2.

This bill ensures that workers and businesses have the urgent help they need to deal with the impact of the Omicron variant:

• The Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit,providing $300 a week in income support to eligible workers who are directly impacted by a COVID-19-related public health lockdown in their region up until May 7, 2022. Eligible workers can apply to receive this support retroactively from October 24, 
• TheLocal Lockdown Program, providing businesses that face temporary new local lockdowns up to the maximum amount available through the wage and rent subsidy programs.
• Extending the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefitand the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit until May 7, 2022, and increasing the maximum duration of benefits by 2 weeks. This extends the caregiving benefit from 42 to 44 weeks and the sickness benefit from 4 to 6 weeks.
• TheTourism and Hospitality Recovery Program, providing support through wage and rent subsidies to, for example, hotels, tour operators, travel agencies, and restaurants, with a subsidy rate of up to 75 per cent. The eligible types of businesses are detailed in the legislation and related backgrounder. 
• The Hardest-Hit Business Recovery Program,providing support through wage and rent subsidies to other businesses that have faced deep losses, with a subsidy rate of up to 50 per cent.
• Extending the Canada Recovery Hiring Programuntil May 7, 2022, for eligible employers with current revenue losses above 10 per cent and increasing the subsidy rate to 50 per cent. This extension will help businesses continue to hire back workers, increase hours, and create the additional jobs Canada needs for a robust recovery.

The measures in this bill will help us finish the fight against COVID-19 and invest in support for Canadians and Canadian businesses that will make life safer and more affordable.

If you have questions about Bill C-2 or would like to learn more about the help it provides, you can access that information here. You may also contact our office at 604-501-5900 or by email at [email protected].

To access a translated version of this article in Chinese, click here.