Trudeau Announces Rule Changes for the Wage Subsidy and Support for Students

Wednesday, 8 April 2020 11:47

Prime Minister Trudeau announced today they will be making it easier for businesses to access the 75 percent wage subsidy and support for students looking for summer jobs.

CANADA - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced today they are making the rules for businesses to access the wage subsidy more flexible.

Trudeau says they understand the current rules can be an issue for non profits, fast growing companies and new businesses.

"Companies will now have the option of using January and February of this year to show a 30 percent loss and businesses will only need to show a 15 percent decline for revenue in March instead of 30 percent, because most of us only felt the impact of COVID-19, about half way through the month. We understand that charities and non profits are experiencing different kinds of pressures when it comes to funding. For this reason, they will have the choice to include or exclude Government funding when calculating loss in revenue. If your company or organization has been impacted by COVID-19, the Government will give you up to $847 a week per employee and as we said before this subsidy will be retroactive to March 15th."

Trudeau is urging the opposition parties to join them and pass legislation this afternoon so that this support can get to Canadians as soon as possible. They are having a cabinet meeting this afternoon. Trudeau also announced measures to support students and young Canadians.

"To help young people and small businesses affected by COVID-19, we are making changes to the Canada Summer Jobs program this year. We will now give CSJ employers a subsidy of up to 100 percent to cover the cost of hiring students. We will also extend the time frame for job placement until the winter, because we know that some jobs will start later than usual and because many businesses have had to scale back their operations, they will be able to hire students part time."

Trudeau says he understands it is hard for all people to find work right now, and young people are especially vulnerable.