The province has opened phase two of the application period for the Critical Workers Benefit with an expanded list of the categories of workers who are eligible to apply.
On June 22, the province announced the one-time $1,200 payment is now available to workers in social services and to those in the private sector who provided critical services, were essential to the supply and movement of goods, and who faced a risk of exposure to COVID-19.
In the private sector, this now includes truck drivers, farm workers, security guards, cleaners, funeral workers, employees at quick service and dine-in restaurants, and taxi drivers. Anyone in these industries must make less than $25 an hour and they must have worked 300 hours during the period of Oct. 12, 2020, to Jan. 31, 2021.
“It is a meaningful thing for a lot of our staff that are eligible for it,” said Cameron Connelly, vice president of Connelly-Mckinley Funeral Homes.
Connelly said the benefit is long overdue for people in his industry, as funeral workers were an essential service throughout the pandemic.
“We didn't have the luxury of having people (work) at home. So, there was always that call to action that we had to be there on a daily basis, and really, I mean, we were very busy during a lot of COVID with COVID deaths," said Connelly. "We applaud it, but I also believe it's the right thing to do. It's the decent thing to do.”
Bruce Tymens, general manager at the St. Albert location, said it’s tough to articulate his thoughts on the benefit.
“While everyone's talking about nurses and doctors, you forget about the funeral side of it, how we have to deal and cope with it emotionally, physically, while maintaining everything we can for families,” Tymens said.
Debbie Lambert, the assistant general manager at the St. Albert location, said it’s great for her staff to be recognized, as they have been dealing with a lot of unknowns. They have had to attend at hospitals and nursing homes for those who have passed away from COVID-19 and then perform embalming or preparation.
Connelly said the pandemic has been trying for many of his employees, as they’ve dealt with being busier because of COVID, but also with the regular pandemic struggles of having children out of school and child care and having immunocompromised family members to worry about.
The funeral homes experienced a significant increase in calls for services during the winter.
“We had the busiest December that we've ever had in terms of the number of cases that we did, and by cases, that's just deceased calls for families that we care for,” said Connelly.
The Critical Workers Benefit is a joint federal-provincial program with $465 million available to reward the work of critical workers during the pandemic. The Alberta government has contributed $118 million to the program. The federal government has put in $347 million.
During phase one, the $1,200 payments were offered to more than 277,000 workers in the health-care, social services, education, and private sectors who delivered critical services, which also included grocery cashiers, pharmacy assistance, and gas-station attendants.
Around $99 million is available for phase two of the benefits, which could potentially reach 76,500 workers. The province has slated $18.5 million to the social-service sector for about 14,300 workers, and up to $80.3 million to the private sector to support 62,200 workers.
There are different requirements for different industries.
While private-sector employers are required to apply for the benefit, the province will contact employers of support staff working in licensed child-care programs; disability support workers providing independent living supports; respite; community access and employment supports; and front-line workers in seniors-serving organizations and non-profit affordable-housing providers.
In a press statement on June 23, NDP Labour Critic Christina Gray said the United Conservative Party (UCP) has confirmed they still haven’t distributed one-third of the total Critical Worker Benefit available.
“It’s been more than a year since the federal government allocated $347 million for Alberta's critical workers, and Jason Kenney's UCP are still dragging their heels on getting this money into the pockets of workers and into Alberta's economy,” she said.
Despite being critical of the slow roll-out, Gray is happy the government has added more industries to the benefit.
“I am glad to hear that they have belatedly taken our advice to add in professions the UCP had made ineligible in the first phase, such as taxi drivers, funeral-service workers, and social-service workers,” she said.
Connelly said they have about 20 employees who will likely qualify for the benefit out of the around 70 people who work out of their three locations.
He said the feedback from his workforce has been mostly positive, but it would have been nice if it applied to people who made more than $25 an hour or who had worked slightly less than 300 hours.
“It was a benefit that I think we had resigned ourselves wasn't coming … I think it was just nice that there was a surprise with it, and we were included,” said Connelly.
