Conservative party candidate for Prince Albert Randy Hoback said his party will help provide a safety net for gig workers. (Alison Sandstrom/paNOW Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Gig Worker Benefits

Hoback backs Conservative party promise for gig workers

Aug 27, 2021 | 4:00 PM

While there is a certain flexibility that comes with gig work but that flexibility carries a trade-off. The Conservative party has promised to eliminate one of the drawbacks, however, if they are elected to the federal office on September 20.

The Conservatives announced that, if elected, they would bring in the equivalent of Canada Pension Plan and EI benefits for gig workers. The companies hiring gig workers would have to make equivalent contributions into an employee savings account.

“There’s a new emerging economy where you have programmers and people working in the computer industry that work by contract,” said Randy Hoback, the party’s candidate for Prince Albert and the representative for the riding since 2008. “They don’t get employment insurance, they don’t get CPP, they tend to do contracts that may be a year or six months in nature, and because of that, they’re left out of all of our safety nets.”

Freelancers, independent contractors, project-based workers, and temporary hires are all considered part of the gig economy. A study from earlier this year by Payments Canada suggests as many as 13 percent of Canadian adults are gig workers, and as many as 37 percent of companies hire workers in this field.

“What this program does is it actually creates an employee savings account,” Hoback said, “and every time they work for a company, no matter who they are, the company will make their portion of contributions for EI and Canada Pension, and the employees can contribute to that account.”

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Statistics show the gig economy is only growing in Canada, and will likely continue to do so as the digital age progresses. When asked whether this might inspire companies to hire fewer gig workers, Hoback pointed out the demand for their services was simply too high.

“Canadian employers are already doing this outside the gig economy,” he said. “So I think they’ve understood it and they accept it. I think when you look at the talents of Canadians, these employers want that talent. They won’t have a problem paying for it.”

Gig economy companies will be required to pay 7.31 percent of wages into this new program, as that’s what regular employers pay into CPP and EI. Under the new system, Gig economy workers will continue to participate in CPP as they do today and will continue to have the option to participate in “EI for self-employed workers.”

The federal election will take place on September 20.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP