CEWS Extension 2021, What You Need to Know

For those who have been wondering if the CEWS would be extended, the short answer is yes but not by much. In this blog we share what the most recent CEWS Extension 2021 means for you and your business.

There’s good news on the horizon. If you are a business or employer struggling to make ends meet or simply have seen a decrease in revenue due to the pandemic, the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program is here to help and it has just been extended. The CEWS is a wage subsidy program initially offered until September 2021 (now extended till October 23rd 2021) to qualifying employers who have seen a drop in revenue due to COVID-19.

At first, the federal government had announced that the CEWS would be in place for a 12-week period running from March 15 to June 6, 2020. The government then extended the program for an additional 12 weeks (to August 29, 2020) and also extended the eligibility for the program to include a number of employer entities that were otherwise excluded. On July 30, 2021, the CEWS was further extended until October 23, 2021 with the earliest that employers can apply being Monday, November 1, 2021.

But what exactly does it do? The CEWS aims to prevent more job losses (i.e. avoid layoffs and terminations) in these challenging times. The CEWS is set up not only to help you keep your employees on payroll but also to enable you to re-hire workers that were perhaps retired due to pandemic-related reasons.

Each CEWS claim period lasts for a specific period of 4 weeks, beginning on a Sunday, and does not renew automatically. Instead, each period, employers must confirm that they are eligible and calculate their amount according to that period’s rules before applying. The 21^st period from September 26 to October 23, 2021 is not yet open for application. It will begin from Monday, November 1, 2021. The previous 20^th period from August 29 to September 25, 2021 is accessible until Thursday, March 24, 2022.

How popular is the program? According to Statistics Canada, from April to October 2020, almost 360,000 employer businesses had received financial support from CEWS. Furthermore, according to the government of Canada, 4,361,370 CEWS applications have been approved by September 19, 2021.

But is the program really needed? Considering that 4,229,750 of the current CEWS applications are under the $100 K mark, it would seem that it is indeed very much needed. The CEWS provides funds to companies struggling the most, who are also therefore at risk of losing employees creating more unwanted unemployment.

This is good timing for the CEWS as, according to Health Infobase Canada, COVID-19 rates began to spike this time last year reaching an absolute high in December 2020. Since September of 2021 we have seen a rise in cases beginning yet again. It remains to be seen if the government will extend for an additional period, at this point they appear to be taking a month-by-month approach to these extensions. We will continue to watch and keep you informed and apprised of developments in this regard.

At Innovators Alliance, we always bring you the news you need to know to be agile in a fast-changing market place. For more information about the CEWS consider our peer-to-peer membership that enables you to collaborate with other business leaders just like you to be ahead of the curve. Find out more at www.innovators.org.

Sources:

• Use of the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy program by employer businesses in 2020 (statcan.gc.ca)
• Claims to date: Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy – Canada.ca
• COVID-19 daily epidemiology update – Canada.ca