The Federal government has announced a new COVID-19 benefit which will replace the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) this week.
In a press conference Thursday, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced the Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit.
The benefit, which comes into effect on October 24th, will replace the CRB and provide $300 a week to workers who are subject to a COVID-19 lockdown.
“Temporary lockdowns are still a possibility in the months to come,” said Freeland said. “We want Canadians to know that we intend now to put in place measures that would snap into action immediately.”
The Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit replaces the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), which came into effect after the initial COVID-19 benefit available to Canadians, the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB).
Applications for the CERB opened in April 2020.
The benefit was created to support workers and help businesses keep their employees and included $2,000 per month for up to four months for workers who lose their income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In October 2020, the CERB came to an end with three new benefits to take its place:
The Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) which most closely resembled the CERB program, offered weekly payments of $500, for two-week periods over an eligibility period of 54 weeks.
The CRB applied to those not entitled to employment insurance benefits and was administered by the Canada Revenue Agency.
The Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) was similar to CRB but was intended for people who either contracted or may have contracted COVID-19.
The benefit offered a $500 payment for a maximum of two weeks to people who lost work due to self-isolating, contracting COVID-19 or from being more susceptible due to underlying conditions.
Finally, The Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB) which was targeted toward parents and caregivers of children and family members in need of supervised care. It offered $500 payments for single-week periods up to a maximum of 26 weeks. It expired on September 25th, 2021.
