Highlights

The Employment Insurance Monitoring and Assessment Report presents the analysis of the impact and effectiveness of the benefits and other assistance provided under the Employment Insurance Act. The reporting period is the fiscal year starting on April 1, 2024 and ending on March 31, 2025 (referred to as 2024-25). The highlights below relate to this period or reflect changes between 2023-24 and 2024-25.

In 2024-25, Canada experienced a resilient growth alongside a significant decline in inflation, which reached the Bank of Canada's target of 2%, despite heightened trade policy uncertainty and geopolitical tensions. Population growth also slowed significantly due to the implementation of new federal immigration policies and had notable impacts on Canada's labour market.

• The real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 2.5% in 2024-25 compared to 1.4% in 2023-24 while the consumer price index (CPI) inflation fell from 2.5% in April 2024 to 1.9% in March 2025
• Canada's population growth slowed from 3.2% in 2023-24 to 1.5% in the current reporting period. Despite this slowdown, the working-age population increased at a faster pace than total employment during this period, resulting in a 1.0 percentage point decline in the employment rate. This contributed to higher youth and national unemployment rate, ongoing declines in job vacancies and looser labour market conditions. The average unemployment rate rose from 5.6% in 2023-24 to 6.6% in 2024-25 while youth unemployment rate increased from 11.1% to 13.5% over the same period
• The average duration of being unemployed increased by approximately 3 weeks, and the share of long-term unemployment rose to 10.9% in 2024-25 compared to 8.0% in the previous fiscal year
• Job vacancies and job vacancy rates continued to decrease between the last quarters of 2023-24 and 2024-25, while the unemployment-vacancy ratio increased steadily, further indicating looser labour market conditions
• At the regional level, all provinces and territories except the Northwest Territories recorded employment growth in 2024-25. Conversely, unemployment rates increased in all regions, except Nunavut and the Northwest Territories while job vacancies continued to decline

The number of new EI claims established for regular benefits slightly increased in 2024-25 compared to 2023-24, while the amount paid for these benefits increased significantly.

• In 2024-25, a total of 1.40 million EI regular claims were established in Canada, slightly higher than the 1.37 million regular claims established in 2023-24 (+2.0%). This increase was mostly driven by an additional 23,400 claims established by claimants from Ontario compared to the previous fiscal year, while all Atlantic provinces and territories registered decreases over the same period
• The total amount paid in EI regular benefits increased by 11.5% in 2024-25, reaching $14.3 billion. This increase can be partially attributed to a higher average number of beneficiaries receiving EI regular benefits each month and the higher average weekly benefit rate during this fiscal year. Excluding the pandemic years, the amount paid in 2024-25 represents a historical high
• Under the temporary legislated measure for seasonal workers in effect in 13 targeted EI regions, 68,400 claims established by eligible seasonal claimants received additional weeks of EI regular benefits in 2024-25. Among them, 25,200 claims received up to 5 additional weeks, while 43,200 claims received between 6 and 9 additional weeks of EI regular benefits under Pilot Project No. 22^{Footnote 1}
  • From the introduction of the measure in August 2018 to March 31, 2025,^{Footnote 2} 294,000 claims established by eligible seasonal claimants have received additional weeks of EI regular benefits, and a total of $635.6 million in additional benefits have been paid to these claimants. The temporary measure is in place until October 24, 2026

The eligibility rate for EI regular benefits remained unchanged in 2024 compared to 2023.

• Among unemployed individuals who had contributed EI premiums in the previous 52 weeks and had a valid job separation, 83.1% were eligible to receive EI regular benefits in 2024, unchanged from 2023
• As in the past, the eligibility rate for men in 2024 (86.6%) was higher than the one for women (78.4%)

The number of new EI claims established for fishing benefits and the total amount paid for these benefits increased in 2024-25.

• In 2024-25, 28,300 new claims for EI fishing benefits were established in Canada, an increase of 3.2% from 2023-24, driven almost entirely by a significant rise in claims from fishers in Newfoundland and Labrador. Despite this increase, the total number of EI fishing claims established remained below the average level observed over the past decade
• The total amount paid in EI fishing benefits increased by 5.8%, reaching $375.6 million in 2024-25, returning to a level similar to the one reported in 2022-23 following a decline in 2023-24

The number of Work-Sharing agreements and of new Work-Sharing claims established in 2024-25 increased compared to 2023-24.

• Uptake of the Work-Sharing program has increased, with 805 Work-Sharing agreements established in 2024-25 compared to 683 agreements in 2023-24
• The number of EI claims from workers participating in a Work-Sharing agreement increased by 22.8% to reach 21,500 in 2024-25. The total amount paid increased by 34.7% to reach $53.3 million in 2024-25
• In March 2025, Work-Sharing temporary specials measure were introduced to support businesses affected by the threat or potential realization of tariffs. Results on those temporary special measures will be presented in future EI Monitoring and Assessment reports

The number of new claims established for EI special benefits and the total amount paid for these benefits increased in 2024-25.

• The number of new claims established for EI special benefits increased by 2.3%, reaching 691,600 in 2024-25. The largest increases relative to the previous fiscal year were for parental (+5.1%) and maternity (+3.1%) claims
• The total amount paid in EI special benefits increased to $8.4 billion in 2024-25, compared to $7.8 billion in 2023-24, largely driven by an increase in the number of new claims established and a higher average weekly benefit rate
• Claims for EI sickness benefits continued to represent almost two-thirds of EI special benefit claims in 2024-25. Nearly one-fifth (17.9%) of all sickness claims completed in 2024-25 used the maximum of 26 weeks of benefits while about a third of all sickness claims used the maximum of 15 weeks before the extension on December 18, 2022

In 2024-25, Labour Market Development Agreements (LMDAs) continued to support workers and employers across Canada in obtaining skills training and employment support services.

• 2024-25 marked the end of 7 years of temporary additional LMDA investments. In 2024-25, EI Part II delivered nearly 848,000 Employment Benefits and Support Measures (EBSM) services—2.7% fewer than the roughly 872,000 provided the previous year, and supported more than 502,000 clients across the country. Total LMDA investments reached $2.1B, complemented by $181M in pan-Canadian programming that continued to expand national reach and capability
• LMDAs generated strong labour market outcomes: of those supported, more than 169,000 EI-insured clients^{Footnote 3} and close to 61,000 non-insured clients returned to work within 6 months of receiving service, as did more than 12,700 Pan-Canadian clients. These returns produced $1.1B in unpaid EI Part I benefits, representing a 51% return on investment and a 15.7% increase in EI savings compared to the previous year
• Service delivery patterns shifted considerably as jurisdictions adjusted to reduced funding. Intensive Employment Benefits dropped 19.5% to about 155,000 services, but this was partly offset by a 1.8% increase in less-intensive Support Measures, which rose to roughly 639,000 services. Pan-Canadian Indigenous Skills and Employment Training (ISET) services also grew by 4.1% to about 54,000
• A major driver of early client engagement in 2024-25 was the continued expansion and integration of the Targeting, Referral and Feedback (TRF) system, which referred 44.9% of eligible EI Part I applicants (more than 674,000, in total) to provincial and territorial employment programs, up from 36.8% the previous year^{Footnote 4}. This allowed nearly 60% of active claimants to be served within the first 12 weeks of their benefit period. Together, these advancements illustrate how integrated federal-provincial systems and coordinated service delivery continue to enhance LMDA performance in a rapidly evolving labour market

Building on the work done in previous years, Service Canada continues to improve and enhance the administration of the EI program. The following are highlights and updates from 2024-25:

• The Department processed over 3.2 million claims for EI, and the vast majority of EI payments were issued within the 28-day standard
• Building on the Integrated Workload and Workforce project, more EI call centre and processing officers are being upskilled and cross trained, increasing the workforce capable of handling both calls and processing related activities
• As a result of the multi-year strategy to reduce the inventory of claims pending review and improve capacity to meet service standards, the Department achieved its goal of returning to a sustainable inventory of claims this fiscal year
• Fraudulent attempts to access EI benefits, including identity theft, remain a persistent threat. ESDC has responded by establishing two new fraud management teams:
  • a specialized fraud team, focused on prevention
  • an enforcement team, focused on investigating suspected fraud where criminal liability may be involved
• The Department successfully fulfilled its multi-year commitment to complete EI Emergency Response Benefit post-payment verifications by March 31, 2025
  • In 2024-25, 73,454 verifications were completed and approximately $166.6 million in savings were identified
  • Over the course of the 4-year period, over 164,000 verifications were conducted, resulting in estimated savings of $456.8 million
• The EI Call Centre exceeded its service level for the second consecutive year, answering over 87% of calls within 10 minutes of the caller entering the queue to speak to a representative, and over 94% of calls were resolved at the first point of contact, requiring no follow up
• Call centres replaced outdated teletypewriter (TTY) machines with a new TTY platform to improve accessibility for those with hearing and speech impairments
  • The platform has been successfully receiving calls in real time since its launch, improving the previous service which allowed clients to leave a message and be called back by a representative within 48 hours
• In 2024-25 the Department enhanced its social media management system's analytical and reporting functionalities
  • As a result, EI-related client traffic on social media platforms has been steadily increasing, reflecting a growing demand for timely, accessible information through these channels

Footnotes