Brothers and Sisters,
Many people have received a letter from the Integrity Office of Service Canada asking to explain a discrepancy in reporting from 2020.
If you receive a Request for Clarification letter, it is important that you respond.
For almost all, the period in question are for lay-off weeks that Ford Motor Company later paid CEWS monies in September of 2020; Note: this was the beginning of the COVID-19 Pandemic in 2020 (from the period of April 12 through to June 6, 2020).
I have already posted a letter to help explain this on our website with an example of how to respond. (See attached link)
Even if you have repaid the monies, you may still get a Request for Clarification letter, asking to explain the discrepancy in your reports. Just mention this in your response that you have repaid or have tried to repay your overpayment. Again, make sure that if you get a letter from the Integrity Office that you respond to it.
Penalties and Fines
Thus far, there have been a few members that had a penalty imposed for incorrect reporting, even after they answered the Integrity letter. If this happens to you, please let the Union Benefit Ofiice know immediately. There are ongoing discussions with the government in regard to these penalties and we are working to get them resolved.
Dispite ongoing discussions with the government, it is still essential for you to take steps to try to correct this on your own. If your receive a penalty or fine, take the following steps:
- Complete a Request for Reconsideration- explaining that at the time of reporting you had no knowledge that you would be paid money in September of 2020 for weeks from April 12th through to June 6th 2020.
- Sign the two (2) Consent forms for EI (This allows designated members of our Local Union to assist you with you EI)
- Pass on these documents to the Union Benefit Office with your “Notice of Debt” showing Penalty and fines applied and “Request for Clarification Letter” for weeks in question.
In Solidarity,
Paul Ivey
Unifor Local 707 -Unit #1
Benefit Representative
