TORONTO -- New data from Statistics Canada鈥檚 revealed that 164,000 foodservice and accommodation jobs were recovered in June. Despite these gains, at least 400,000 people who were previously employed in the foodservice sector are still out of work.
Restaurants Canada, a national non-profit association representing Canada鈥檚 diverse foodservice industry is calling on the federal government to make changes to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program (CEWS) to aid businesses in their effort to rehire workers as they continue to recover.
The program was implemented at the height of the pandemic to help businesses subsidize their employee鈥檚 wages for up to 12 weeks, initially. Restaurants Canada is urging the government to keep the subsidy available for as long as pandemic restrictions are in place and to gradually reduce the subsidy as businesses achieve manageable levels of revenue.
To qualify, businesses must have experienced a 30-per-cent decline in revenue. The association is asking the government to scale the 30-per-cent threshold to support restaurants in their recovery.
鈥淩eforms to the federal wage subsidy are urgently needed to help foodservice businesses bring more Canadians back to work amid ongoing restrictions,鈥� said David Lefebvre, Restaurants Canada Vice President, Federal and Quebec in a press release. 鈥淔orty-four per cent of restaurant operators who responded to our latest survey said they did not apply for the subsidy for at least one of their establishments because it would not meet the requirements.鈥�
In May, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced that the federal government would extend the CEWS by an additional 12 weeks until the end of August.
When asked about any future changes, the minister鈥檚 office pointed to the Economic and Fiscal Snapshot released on Wednesday, which states: 鈥淎s economies reopen and business activity resumes, the government will soon announces changes to the CEWS to stimulate rehiring, provide support to businesses during reopening and help them adapt to the new normal. In anticipation of this forthcoming announcement, the government has set aside additional funding as part of the 2020 Economic and Fiscal Snapshot.鈥�
The minister鈥檚 office declined to share specific details about future changes to the program, but advocates remain hopeful as more businesses begin to reopen.
