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How to complete your utilization report

From: Employment and Social Development Canada

Overview of the utilization report

As an employer participating in a work-sharing agreement, you’re required to complete a utilization report (UR) for every week of the agreement, including weeks:

  • of shutdown
  • with statutory holidays
  • during which no hours are missed due to work-sharing

URs are used to track the percentage of reduction in work hours each week. This information enables us to determine the Employment Insurance benefits payable to your employees.

Where to find the UR template

You’ll find a copy of the UR template in the email you received from the Employer Contact Centre when your Data Gateway account was set up. If you don’t have this email, contact the Employer Contact Centre to obtain the template.

One tab for each week

The UR template is an Excel document with a tab for each week of the work‑sharing agreement. Complete the “Week 1” tab for the first week, the “Week 2” tab for the second week and so on, for each week of your agreement. All weeks of your agreement must be completed in the same UR template Excel document.

Each week has a tab at the bottom. You can move between weeks by clicking on these tabs. If you wish, you may rename the tabs with the Sunday date of the week you’re reporting on. To do this, double-click on the tab and type the date.

Screenshot of four tabs, each one labelled for a different week.

Except for renaming the sheet tabs, don’t modify the UR template. Don’t change headings, move columns, add formulas, add sheets, extract sheets, link to other documents or add password protection. If you do, it will cause processing delays.

When and how to submit the UR

Submit your completed UR through Data Gateway on or after the Friday of the week you’re reporting on.

Instructions for completing the utilization report

In this section

“Agreement Number” and “Employer” fields

Enter the work-sharing agreement number and the company name at the top of the utilization report.

Screenshot of the form highlighting the location of the Agreement number and Employer fields.

The agreement number is the 7 to 10 digit number that is referred to as the “File No.” on the work-sharing agreement.

Note

The work-sharing agreement number is different from the reference code used by employees when they apply for Employment Insurance benefits.

Enter your company name in the “Employer” field. Make sure you use the same name as indicated on your work-sharing agreement and your Data Gateway account.

“Week starting date (Sunday)” field

In the left box of the “Week starting date (Sunday)” field, enter the start date (Sunday) of the week you’re reporting on.

There are several date formats that can be used. If the date appears in red, try entering it using a different format, for example, 6 Feb 2022; 2022/02/06; Feb 6, 2022.

Once the date is entered correctly, a number appears in the box to the right. Don’t change or delete this number.

Screenshot of the two Week start date fields, one filled with a date and one filled with a number.

Note

When you enter the date in the “Week starting date (Sunday)” field on the “Week 1” sheet, the template automatically fills in this field on the sheets for all following weeks.

“This column is no longer in use” field

Ignore this column and don’t delete it.

“SIN#”, “First Name” and “Last Name” fields

Enter each employee’s social insurance number (SIN), first name and last name in the appropriate fields. When you enter the SIN, you don’t need to enter spaces between numbers. The template will automatically add them when you move to another field.

The SIN will appear in red when you enter it in the field. When you move to the next field, the SIN will turn black. If it remains red, please correct the SIN.

Note

When you enter the SIN and first and last names in the appropriate fields on the “Week 1” sheet, the template automatically fills in these fields on the sheets for all following weeks.

If an employee leaves or a new employee joins the work‑sharing agreement

Inform a program officer of the change through your Regional Work-Sharing Unit inbox.

Refer to Employee leaves work-sharing employment or Employee joins work-sharing agreement for guidance.

“Normal Weekly Hours” and “Hours Worked” fields

In the “Normal Weekly Hours” field, enter each employee’s normal weekly hours as indicated on the Attachment “A” form submitted when you applied for Work-Sharing.

In the “Hours Worked” field, enter the number of hours the employee actually worked during the week you’re reporting on, including overtime.

Round down the hours worked to the nearest whole or half number (for example, round 37.25 hours to 37 hours).

Note

When you enter the normal weekly hours in the appropriate field on the “Week 1” sheet, the template automatically fills in this field on the sheets for all following weeks.

“If Hours Worked are 0, please complete” section

This section includes 4 fields:

  • “Days not available (excluding sick)”
  • “Days missed due to sick”
  • “Paid sick leave amount”
  • “All other paid amounts”

Complete these fields only if the “Hours Worked” are 0.

Screenshot of the fields that should be filled if no hours are worked.

Note

“Sickness” means unable to work for medical reasons. “Medical reasons” include illness, injury, quarantine or any medical condition that prevents an employee from working.

“Days not available (excluding sick)” field

Enter the number of days (1 to 5) the employee was not available to work for reasons other than sickness. Don’t include half days, statutory holidays or shutdown days.

To protect employees’ privacy, don’t include the reason they weren’t available in the “Comments” field (for example, due to lack of childcare, a medical appointment or vacation time).

“Days missed due to sick” field

Enter the number of days (1 to 5) the employee was unable to work due to sickness.

To protect employees’ privacy, don’t include the medical reasons in the “Comments” field.

“Paid sick leave amount” field

If you entered days in the “Days missed due to sick” field, enter the amount paid to the employee for sick leave. Include any workers’ compensation amounts, if known.

For example, enter “WCB”, “WSIB” or “CNESST” in the “Comments” field, if applicable.

“All other paid amounts” field

Enter the total of all other amounts paid to the employee for the week (vacation pay, statutory holiday pay, bonuses, etc.).

Detail the amount, date or date range and reason for the payment in the “Comments” field for each amount included in this total.

“Hours Missed Work-Sharing” field

To calculate “Hours Missed Work-sharing”, subtract the number in the “Hours Worked” field from the number in the “Normal Weekly Hours” field.

In your calculation, don’t include hours missed for any other reason, such as statutory holidays, vacation time, sickness or lack of childcare. Leave the “Comments” field blank.

Round up the hours to the nearest whole or half number (for example, round 37.25 hours up to 37.5 hours).

If the employee didn’t miss any of their normal weekly hours, enter “0” in this field. Don’t leave it blank.

Note

The “Hours Worked” and “Hours Missed Work-sharing” fields may not add up to the number of hours indicated in the “Normal Weekly Hours” field because of sick leave, statutory holidays, days not available, etc. This is normal and expected.

“Comments” field

In this field, enter any additional information you have to report for the employee.

Enter comments in the following situations:

  • employee leaves (layoff, quit, dismissal, etc.): enter the reason, the separation date, and the amount and type of money paid on separation. Refer to Employee leaves work-sharing employment for guidance
  • wage-loss insurance or workers’ compensation benefit payments: enter the payment type. Provide the dollar amount if known
  • planned shutdown: enter “Planned shutdown”. Refer to Planned shutdown for guidance
  • other payments (performance bonus, severance, etc.): enter the amount of money paid, the date or date range, and the reason for the payment

Don’t enter comments:

  • to explain why an employee was not available (for example, lack of childcare, a medical appointment or vacation time)
  • to provide the medical reasons when an employee misses work due to sickness
  • for statutory holidays. Refer to Week with a statutory holiday for guidance

“Totals” and “% of Utilization” fields

The “Totals” and “% of Utilization” fields are automatically filled in based on formulas in the template. Don’t modify these fields.

Screenshot of the form highlighting the location of the Percent reduction in work hours field.

“Certified by”, “Position”, “Date” and “Phone Number” fields

The “Certified by”, “Position”, “Date” and “Phone Number” fields come after the declaration:

I am aware that the information I provide is subject to verification. If I provide information or make a representation or declaration that I know is false or misleading, a penalty may be imposed. I declare that, to the best of my knowledge, the information provided on this form is true.

To confirm that you agree with the declaration, enter your name, phone number, position in the company and the date you completed the report. The date entered should be on or after the Friday of the week you’re reporting on.

We’ll use this information to contact you if we need more details.

You must complete these fields every week.

Common situations New

Find instructions on how to complete your utilization report if the following situations occur during the work‑sharing agreement.

In this section

Modify a submitted utilization report

To change information on a utilization report (UR) that you already submitted, you’ll need to complete and submit a UR amendment.

Where to find the UR amendment document

You’ll find the UR amendment document in the email sent to your business when your Data Gateway account was set up. If you don’t have this email, contact the Employer Contact Centre to request the document.

Complete all the same fields on the UR amendment that you would on the usual UR template and make the necessary changes. Submit the document through Data Gateway for processing.

Note

The UR amendment should only contain information of those employees whose information is being modified.

When the work-sharing agreement is longer than 38 weeks

The utilization report (UR) template is an Excel document with worksheets for 38 weeks. If your work-sharing agreement extends beyond 38 weeks, you’ll need to use a new UR template. Don’t add sheets to your first UR template.

Where to find the UR template

You’ll find the UR template in the email sent to your business when your Data Gateway account was set up. If you don’t have this email, or if you need assistance to set up the new UR template, please contact the Employer Contact Centre.

How to set up your new UR template

To set up your new UR template, you’ll need to:

  • transfer specific information from your first UR template to your new UR template, and
  • clean up the “Normal Weekly Hours” field in the new UR template

When following the steps below, have your first UR template and the new one opened at the same time.

1. Transfer totals

In your first UR template:

  • go to the “Additional weeks” sheet (last tab on the right)

Screenshot showing the location of the Additional weeks tab.

  • make note of the values in the 2 grey boxes shown below

Screenshot of the Additional weeks sheet showing the location of the cells where the values must be entered.

In your new UR template:

  • go to the “Week 1” sheet
  • enter the 2 values in the corresponding grey boxes. Don’t copy and paste these values. Type them manually

2. Transfer your employees’ information and their normal weekly hours

In your first UR template:

  • go to your “Week 1” sheet
  • copy the data from these 4 fields:
    • “SIN#”
    • “First Name”
    • “Last Name”
    • “Normal Weekly Hours”

Important

Copy these values from the “Week 1” sheet in the first UR template and not from any other page.

Make sure to copy the values for all employees who have participated in the work-sharing agreement, including those:

  • who were initially on the agreement but later left, and
  • who were added to the agreement after it started

In your new UR template:

  • go to your “Week 1” sheet
  • paste the data in the corresponding 4 fields

3. Clean up the “Normal Weekly Hours” field

In the “Normal Weekly Hours” field on the “Week 1” sheet:

  • delete the values for any employee who left the agreement

In the “Normal Weekly Hours” field on the sheets for all following weeks:

  • delete the values pre-filled for these employees in the sheets for all following weeks

In the “Week starting date (Sunday)” field on the “Week 1” sheet of the new UR template, enter the Sunday date of the week you’re reporting on in the left box. Refer to “Week starting date (Sunday)” field for more information.

Week with a statutory holiday

A statutory holiday is a legal holiday designated by the federal or provincial government. Payment for statutory holidays occurring within a work-sharing period is the responsibility of the employer. Employment Insurance benefits aren’t paid for statutory holidays.

If the employee worked on the statutory holiday
  • “Hours Worked”: enter the number of hours worked during the week, including the hours worked on the statutory holiday
  • “Hours Missed Work-sharing”: enter the number of hours missed due to work-sharing
  • “Comments”: leave this field blank. Don’t enter “statutory holiday”

If the employee didn’t work on the statutory holiday
  • “Hours Worked”: enter the number of hours worked during the week. Don’t include hours paid for the statutory holiday
  • “Hours Missed Work-sharing”: enter the number of hours missed due to Work-sharing. Don’t include hours missed due to the statutory holiday
  • “All other paid amounts”: if the employee worked “0” hours in the week, enter the total amount paid to the employee for the week (vacation pay, statutory holiday pay, bonus, etc.)
  • “Comments”: leave this field blank. Don’t enter “statutory holiday”

Note

The “Hours Worked” and “Hours Missed Work-sharing” fields may not equal the “Normal Weekly Hours” field due to sick leave, statutory holidays, days not available, etc. This is normal and expected.

Employee leaves work-sharing employment

If an employee leaves the work-sharing employment, you must inform a program officer of the separation through your Regional Work-Sharing Unit inbox.

The top reasons for separation are:

  • quitting
  • dismissal
  • illness or injury
  • maternity or parental leave
  • compassionate care or family caregiving
  • apprentice training
  • leave of absence
  • shortage of work (layoff) – requires prior approval from a program officer

Remember to issue a record of employment

When a separation from employment occurs, you must issue a record of employment (ROE) for the employee. This document is required to apply for Employment Insurance benefits. For more information, consult the guide How to complete the record of employment (ROE) form.

When completing the utilization report (UR), note the following:

  • “Hours Worked”: enter the number of hours worked by the employee prior to separation
  • “Hours Missed Work-sharing”: enter the number of hours missed due to work‑sharing prior to separation. Don’t include hours missed due to a statutory holiday, scheduled vacation or planned shutdown
  • “All other paid amounts”: enter the amount paid to the employee on separation (for example, vacation or severance pay)
  • “Comments”: indicate the type of money paid (for example, “vacation pay” or “severance pay") and include the date and reason for the separation

Don’t change or delete the information noted for the leaving employee on the “Week 1” sheet of the UR template.

Delete the leaving employee’s information from the “SIN#”, “First Name”, “Last Name” and “Normal Weekly Hours” fields on all the sheets following the week they left. Leave their row blank on these URs.

Employee joins work-sharing agreement

During the course of your work-sharing agreement, you may need to add an employee. If this happens, you must first get approval from a program officer.

If approved, update the utilization report as outlined below:

  • On the “Week 1” sheet, use the first empty row at the bottom of the original list of employees to add the new employee’s SIN, first name, last name and normal weekly hours in the appropriate fields
    • Don’t type over the names of the employees who are no longer part of the agreement and don’t insert rows to add new employees
  • In the “Comments” field, enter the date the employee was added to the agreement
  • Include the new employee in your report starting the week they join the work-sharing agreement

Note

When you add the information for the new employee on the “Week 1” sheet, the template automatically fills in the fields on the sheets for all following weeks.

Planned shutdown

During your work-sharing agreement, a work slowdown may require the temporary shutdown of a department or of your entire business.

Planned shutdowns must be approved in advance. If you think your business may need to shut down temporarily due to a work slowdown, contact a program officer through your Regional Work-Sharing Unit inbox.

Follow the instructions below to complete your utilization report during a shutdown period.

Full-week shutdown (Sunday to Saturday): employees didn’t work

  • “Hours Worked”: enter “0”
  • “Hours Missed Work-sharing”: enter “0”
  • “All other paid amounts”: enter the amounts paid to each employee, if applicable
  • “Comments”: enter “Planned shutdown”

Partial-week shutdown (Sunday to Saturday): employees worked at least 30 minutes
  • “Hours Worked”: enter the number of hours worked
  • “Hours Missed Work-sharing”: enter the number of hours missed due to work‑sharing, but don’t include hours missed due to a planned shutdown, statutory holiday or scheduled vacation
  • “All other paid amounts”: enter the amount paid to the employee, if applicable
  • “Comments”: enter “Planned shutdown” and include the dates of the shutdown

Finish and send your utilization report

Save the utilization report (UR) with a file name that identifies the week you’re reporting on. This will help if we contact you with follow-up questions. For the filename, use the date of the Sunday that begins the week of the report.

Go to Data Gateway to submit your UR for processing.

Contact us

If you have any questions about your work-sharing agreement, contact a program officer through your Regional Work-Sharing Unit inbox.

For questions about the utilization report or Data Gateway, contact the Employer Contact Centre.

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