The federal government has taken a baby step toward make Canada’s parental leave program more flexible. On Thursday it announced it is changing the rules on parental leave to allow parents to receive up to 18 months of Employment Insurance benefits after the birth of a child. It turns out the changes won’t help many parents and they underscore the government’s overall lack of thinking about what it will take to truly help them out. First, the government isn’t extending existing EI benefits over 18 months. It’s difficult enough to sustain a household for 12 months under the current rules; doing without a full income for even longer will be a struggle for many.

Source: thestar November 09, 2017 22:07 UTC