How to apply

The following provides instructions for employers completing the Work-Sharing application form EMP5100. The box numbers listed correspond to the box numbers on the application form.

Incomplete Work-Sharing applications can delay Service Canada's assessment of your application and the requested start date of the Work-Sharing agreement.

To amend an existing Work-Sharing agreement, please complete the Work-Sharing application form EMP5100. When the amendment is to add, remove or substitute participants from the Work-Sharing unit, employers must also include the revised Work-Sharing unit Attachment A form EMP5101.

General information - Boxes 1 to 3

Box 1: Type of application

Provide the type of Application to the Work-Sharing program you are submitting:

Work-Sharing

Note: Submit the application package at least 10 business days prior to the requested start date.

• Requested start date (must start on a Sunday)
• The Requested start date must be a Sunday, a minimum of 10 business days from the date the completed form is submitted
  All agreements must start on a Sunday to align with the Employment Insurance payment cycle
• Number of Work-Sharing weeks required (between 6 and 26 weeks)
  • The number of weeks Work-Sharing required is based on the expected duration of the work shortage your business is experiencing and the time required to return to normal working hours

Special measures

(Check the box if you wish to apply for any current Work-Sharing special measures).

• If you wish to apply for any current special measures, provide the details of your request in Box 24 below
• Multiple selection possible for type of Work-Sharing application to indicate special measures and confirm that the application is eligible

Extension (maximum total duration of 38 weeks)

Note: The documents required for the extension must be submitted at least 4 weeks prior to the original expiry date of the Work-Sharing agreement.

Retroactive start dates are not possible under the Work-Sharing Program.

Amendment (Complete Part 1 and Part 4).

Box 2: Active or previous Work-Sharing Agreement number or not applicable

Provide the Work-Sharing agreement number previously assigned to the employer and employee representative. If unknown or if this is a new application, indicate not applicable. If you have an active Work-Sharing agreement, you must provide the number of that agreement.

Box 3: Submit 1 application for all work locations impacted by the same work shortage. Indicate region(s) of work location below

In situations where employees in multiple regions are affected by the same work shortage under the same employer and Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) business number, indicate affected region(s) by checking the appropriate box(es).

• Atlantic region: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick
• Quebec region: Quebec
• Ontario region: Ontario
• Western Canada and Territories: Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Colombia, Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Yukon

Part 1: Employer information - Boxes 4 to 19

Box 4: Legal business name of employer

Enter the legal name of your business (organization). This is the name associated with your registration with the CRA.

Box 5: Business operating name of employer

Provide the name by which the business is commonly known (operating name).

Box 6: Canada Revenue Agency payroll account number (15 characters, for example, 123456789RP0002)

Enter the CRA payroll account number/payroll deductions account number you use to report employee payroll deductions to the Canada Revenue Agency.

The CRA payroll account number/payroll deductions account number consists of 9 numbers, followed by 2 letters (RP), and then 4 numbers. This field is mandatory and you must enter all 15 characters.

Important: We require that you submit a recent copy of a CRA document with information including your legal business name, legal business address and CRA payroll account number/payroll deductions account number (for example, Statement of account for current source deductions - PD7A).

Box 7: North American Industry Classification System code (optional - 2 to 6 digits)

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is an industry classification system developed by the statistical agencies of Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Providing a NAICS code can help us categorize your business type to aid in determining potential eligibility for special measures and potential suitability for other government resources. This statistical information can assist us to better understand economic trends affecting various sectors to further develop government policy and programs.

Providing this NAICS code information is optional.

For more information on the NAICS, please consult North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Canada 2022 Version 1.0 from Statistics Canada.

Box 8: Date business established in Canada (YYYY-MM-DD)

Enter the date the business was established in Canada (YYYY-MM-DD).

Box 9: Have you had employees in Canada for 2 years or more

Select Yes, if your business/organization has had employees for 2 or more years. If your business/organization has had employees for less than 2 years, select No.

Boxes 10 a. to 10. e.: Legal address of the employer, unit number city/town, province/territory and postal code

Enter the legal civic address of your business as registered with Canada Revenue Agency, including the street address, unit number (if applicable), the name of the city or town where the business is located, as well as the applicable province or territory, and postal code.

Box 11 a. to 11 e.: Mailing address (If different from employer's legal address)

If the mailing address is different from the legal address registered with the Canada Revenue Agency, enter the full mailing address to which all correspondence should be sent. Otherwise, check the box to indicate that the mailing address is the same as the legal address.

Box 12: Business telephone number (10-digits)

Enter the primary telephone number normally used for business purposes, including the area code.

Box 13: Business email address

Specify the business email address.

Box 14: Business website URL (if applicable)

If the business has a website, provide the URL address.

Box 15: Legal name of employer's representative

Note: The employer's representative must have signing authority for the business.

Please indicate the contact details for the employer representative indicating their title/position/occupation, email address and telephone number. The employer representative must not be part of the Work-Sharing unit due to their responsibilities related to the agreement. Review list of employer obligations (employer representative as their designate). Upon approval of the Work-Sharing application, the employer representative signs the Work-Sharing agreement.

Box 16: Legal name of employer representative (secondary - optional)

Note: Employer representative must have signing authority for the business.

Please provide the contact details of an optional secondary employer representative indicating their title/position/occupation, email address and telephone number.

Box 17: Legal name of primary employee representative

Please indicate the contact information of the primary employee representative of the non-unionized unit and/or workplace indicating their title/position/occupation, email address and telephone number.

Once the Work-Sharing application is approved, the primary employee representative signs the Work-Sharing agreement.

If you have multiple Work-Sharing units and multiple employee representatives, please provide the contact details for each on a separate piece of paper.

Note: The employee representative must be authorized to act on behalf of the employees participating in Work-Sharing. The members of the Work-Sharing Unit(s) must authorize employee representative(s) to enter into the Work-Sharing agreement on their behalf. The name of the representative must also be included in Attachment A EMP5101.

Box 18: Legal name of employee representative (secondary - optional)

Please provide the contact details of an optional secondary employee representative, including their title/position/occupation, email address and telephone number.

Box 19: Legal name of union representative

If the participating employees are members of a union, please provide the contact details of the employee representative of the unionized workplace indicating their title/position/occupation, email address and telephone number. Please include the union name and local bargaining unit.

The union representative is designated by the union and represents the interests of its members participating in Work-Sharing. The name of the representative must also be included on Attachment A EMP5101.

Part 2: Additional information - Boxes 20 to 27

Box 20: Type of business

Please check the appropriate box to indicate whether your business or organization is privately owned, public or non-profit. If the business is neither of these options, select "Other" and specify the nature of the business or organization in the space below.

Box 21: Are your employees unionized and/or non-unionized

Please check the appropriate box(es) to indicate whether the employees in the Work-sharing unit(s) are unionized and/or non-unionized. The box or boxes checked should reflect the information provided for the employee/union representative(s) from questions in box 17 to 19.

Box 22: Total number of employees at the business

Provide the total number of employees at your business or organization.

Box 23: Provide a description of your business including a brief history explaining the type of products/services offered with details on target clients/suppliers (You may include additional documentation to answer this question)

Provide a brief history of your business or organization, indicating products or services offered, along with some of your target clients and/or key suppliers. Ensure you describe the industry or sector that your business or organization operates within along with any broader ownership or organizational structure to which it may be attached.

Box 24: Detail the event(s) or factor(s) that led to your reduction in business activity and available work (You may include additional documentation to answer this question)

Please describe the events and/or factors that have resulted in a reduction in the activities of your business and work available to your employees. Explain the observed slowdown in your business or organization and the resulting effects. Provide details on the direct factors that caused this slowdown, and how it has disrupted your normal operations and reduced the workload of your employees.

Indicate and provide information about any current Work-Sharing special measures you are requesting.

Box 25: Describe recovery measures taken before applying to the Work-Sharing Program and explain results of these actions (You may include additional documentation to answer this question)

Before submitting an application to the Work-Sharing Program, provide an explanation of the various recovery measures taken in response to the reduction in business activities observed in your business or organization.

Box 26: Is the work shortage due to either a labour dispute, cyclical slowdown (for example, seasonal) and/or business restructuring

If you answered "Yes" for any of these situations, provide details that briefly explain your situation.

Select Yes, if the work shortage is due to a labour dispute, such as:

• a slowdown in work
• a strike
• a lockout
• a work stoppage:
  • within the business
  • with a client
  • with a supplier

Select Yes, if the work shortage is due to:

• a cyclical slowdown (for example, related to a seasonal cycle), or
• a business restructuring

Select No, if none of the above apply.

Business restructuring can refer to internal changes involving either the legal, ownership, financial and/or operations of the business or organization.

Box 27: Describe in detail each of your proposed recovery measures your business will undertake during the period of the Work-Sharing agreement to return to your normal level of business activity. Your recovery measures must be measurable, quantifiable and verifiable (You may include additional documentation to answer this question)

Provide a description of any recovery measures that you will take during the period of the Work-Sharing agreement to respond to the downturn in business activity. Explain what specific actions your business or organization will be taking to aid in the recovery of your business activity.

It is important that your recovery measures are measurable, realistic and verifiable for the duration of your proposed Work-Sharing agreement.

Part 3: Work-Sharing unit information - Boxes 28 to 38

Box 28: Average weekly earnings per Work-Sharing unit (include additional income per Work-Sharing unit when calculating earnings (for example, bonuses, tips). Please provide this information for each Work-Sharing unit if there is more than one using the formula

Enter the average weekly earnings (over the last 12 months) for all participating employees in each Work-Sharing unit. Please use the following formula:

• total weekly gross earnings and additional income of participating employees in the unit
• divided by the number of participating employees in the unit

Please provide this amount for each Work-Sharing unit, if you have more than one.

Box 29: The shortage of work is expected to be: temporary or permanent

Please indicate whether you believe the shortage of work will be temporary or permanent.

Box 30: Number of employees to be laid off from the Work-Sharing unit(s) if Work-Sharing agreement is not approved (anticipated)

Enter the number of employees from your Work-Sharing unit(s) that you estimate you will have to temporarily layoff if Work-Sharing agreement is not approved.

The layoffs in your workforce should be similar to the percentage of expected reduction in the hours of work.

For example:

• if an employer submits a request for a 40% reduction in the hours of work for their Work-Sharing unit(s)
• the employer must indicate there is a need to layoff around 40% of the workforce

Workforce is defined as total number of all employees who are working in the section(s)/division(s)/unit(s) of the company that are affected by the shortage of work, including those employees not participating in Work-Sharing.

Box 31: Number of weeks of layoffs from the Work-Sharing Unit(s) should Work-Sharing not be approved (anticipated)

Estimate the number of weeks employees in the Work-Sharing unit(s) will be laid-off, should Work-Sharing not be approved.

Box 32: Number of eligible employees participating in Work-Sharing (must match the list of employees in Attachment A EMP5101)

Specify the number of eligible employees to be included in Work-Sharing unit(s).

• The employees listed in Attachment A must be active and current employees. Employees on long-term leave, those who do not work the week of your implementation, or those not available to work their normal hours of work should not be included. Include any employees who will immediately be called back to work from a recent layoff

Box 33: Are multiple locations impacted by the same work shortage

Note: Address must match each Attachment A Work-Sharing unit address for multiple locations.

Indicate "Yes" if you have multiple work locations affected by the same reduction in work. Select "No" if you do not have multiple work locations. Ensure that the address of your Attachment A form(s) matches the valid address of each Work-Sharing unit.

Box 34: Are there employees who will not participate in Work-Sharing who perform the same duties as those participating

If there are employees who will not be included in Work-Sharing but have the same job duties as those included, please select "Yes".

If you select "Yes", specify the reason why the employee(s) were not included in the Work-Sharing unit (for example, ineligible employees, employees on long-term leave or that you will recall later, employees not available to work their normal hours of work).

Box 35 a: Do any participants in the Work-Sharing unit(s) have greater than 40% of shares/ownership of the business

Please select "Yes", if there are employees included in a Work-Sharing unit who are also major company shareholders. If not, please select No.

Box 35 b: Are any participants in the Work-Sharing unit(s): Sales employees/agents, specialized employees engaged in the product development, marketing agents or senior management responsible for the recovery of business operations

Select "Yes" if you have employees in your Work-Sharing unit(s) that are either sales employees/agents, specialized employees engaged in the product development, marketing agents or members of senior management responsible for the recovery of business operations. If not, please select "No".

Box 36: Does your business have any planned shutdowns

Indicate if you have any shutdowns planned for your business. If you select "Yes", provide the dates (YYYY-MM-DD to YYYY-MM-DD) which you expect the shutdown(s) to begin and end. Please provide an explanation and rationale for the shutdown(s).

Planned shutdowns must not exceed 4 weeks. Shutdowns do not extend a Work-Sharing agreement and must be approved in advance.

Box 37: How many hours/days/shifts of work per week can you offer each employee during the Work-Sharing agreement

Provide the approximate hours/days/shifts of work that you can offer each employee participating in Work-Sharing.

Box 38: What is the percentage reduction in employee hours per Work-Sharing unit (minimum of 10% and maximum of 60%)

Provide the estimated percentage of work reduction for employees per Work-Sharing unit for the duration of the agreement. The average reduction in business activity must be no less than 10% and no more than 60%.

For example, for a 40-hour work week:

• a 10% reduction represents half a day (4 hours)
• a 60% reduction represents 3 days (24 hours)

The average reduction should be similar to the percentage of expected layoffs within your workforce.

For example:

• if an employer submits a request for a 40% reduction in the hours of work
• the employer must indicate there is a need to layoff approximately 40% of the workforce

Workforce is defined as total number of all employees who are working in the section(s)/division(s)/unit(s) of the company that are affected by the shortage of work. Including those employees not participating in Work-Sharing.

In any given week, the work reduction can vary depending on available work. The work reduction on average over the life of the agreement must be between 10% and 60%.

Part 4: Amendment

Box 39: Describe the requested change to the agreement and the reason for the change. Please attach a revised Attachment A EMP5101 when there are requested changes such as additions, deletions and/or substitutions to the Work-Sharing unit or employee/union representative (Please indicate the effective date of each revision)

Describe the requested change(s) you want to make to your current Work-Sharing agreement. If you are requesting changes to the Work-Sharing unit (additions, deletions or substitutions), please attach a revised Attachment A EMP5101. Please provide the proposed date of the change for which you would like your amendment to be effective.

For requests to add Work-Sharing unit(s), please indicate the average weekly earnings for each Work-Sharing unit. Refer to the instructions in Box 28.

Amendment requests should be submitted at least 10 business days in advance of the change and should not be implemented until the employer receives confirmation of approval.

Extension application requests should be submitted at least 4 weeks in advance of the end date of the approved agreement.

Part 5: Attestations

By checking this box, the employer attests that they have experienced a minimum 10% reduction in their business activities within the last 6 months to establish a need for the Work-Sharing Program. Supporting documentation (for example sales or production figures) to demonstrate the 10% reduction in business activity must be provided upon request.

By submitting this application, the employer, employee representative and/or union representative confirm that they have read and understand that they accept and will comply with the conditions below and all requirements, and that they understand, accept and will comply with all requirements as specified in the Employment Insurance Act, Employment Insurance Regulations and Work-Sharing program website.

The employer agrees to provide such documentation as may be required by the Canada Employment Insurance Commission, including copies of sales/production figures and payroll records, for the purpose of verifying the information provided on this form and to assess the application.

The employer, employee representative and/or union representative understand that all their employees participating in Work-Sharing must experience a minimum 10% reduction in their normal weekly earnings because of the reduction in available work.

The employer, employee representative and/or union representative hereby apply to the Commission for approval of their Work-Sharing project in accordance with section 24 of the Employment Insurance Act and sections 42 to 49 of the Employment Insurance Regulations, but agree that the preparation and filing of this application does not create any obligation on the part of the employer/employer's representative, the employee representative and/or the union representative or the Canada Employment Insurance Commission.

Subject to the terms and conditions of the Work-Sharing agreement, all information contained in this application and provided by the employer/employer's representative, the employee representative and/or union representative will be treated as confidential in accordance with applicable legislation and used solely for the purpose of determining eligibility under the Work-Sharing initiative of the Work-Sharing project described in this application, and to support research and statistical collection activities.

It is understood that deliberately giving false or misleading information for the purpose of entering into a Work-Sharing agreement is punishable by penalties under the Employment Insurance Act.

The completed application package (forms EMP5100, EMP5101 and copy of CRA payroll deductions account document) must be sent to the respective regional Work-Sharing unit including an email confirmation from each of the representatives (named below) agreeing to the content of the application and the terms and conditions of the program.

Please note that missing or incomplete application information will result in the delay of the assessment of the application and may delay the requested start date.

The following provides instructions for employers completing the Work-Sharing Unit Attachment A form EMP5101. Please read the section "Work-Sharing Unit" before completing the Attachment A.

Eligible employees listed on your Attachment A must be active and current employees. Employees on long-term leave, employees not working the week of your implementation or those not available to work their normal hours of work must not be included.

• Enter the legal business name of the employer
• Provide the address of the location of the Work-Sharing unit
  • Please use a separate form for each Work-Sharing unit
• List employees on the Attachment A who will form the Work-Sharing unit:
  • there must be a minimum of 2 employees in a Work-Sharing unit
  • you may have more than 1 Work-Sharing unit
  • do not include any employees on long-term leave or that you will recall later
• Provide employees occupation/job description
• Indicate employees hiring date YYYY-MM-DD format
• Include each employee’s normal weekly hours (NWH):
  • NWH are determined based on the regular pattern of work for each individual (over the previous 2 years) prior to any reduction in work hours
  • if hours vary from week to week, determine an average over the last 2 years to come up with the NWH for each employee
  • employers must advise Service Canada of irregular work schedules. Service Canada will help to determine NWH when irregular work schedules exist
• Ensure that the employee or union representative name is included on the Attachment A
  • The employee or union representative appointed by the employees or the union to act as their representative confirms that all employees in the Work-Sharing unit agree to participate in Work-Sharing

Submit the Attachment A form, Application form and copy of CRA payroll deductions account document a minimum of 10 business days prior to the requested start date.

Note: If you do not have enough room on an Attachment A form, you may use as many copies of the form as required.