A Nova Scotia think tank has released figures that in the last decade Atlantic Canadians withdrew $12.5B more in EI than they paid into the plan. More than half of that in Newfoundland alone. I have always said that the EI system in this country is a wealth distribution scam gone haywire.
EI is a tax on the hard working people. In Ontario it is nearly impossible to collect. The Harper government increases EI deductions on a yearly basis. This is a tax increase. Harper and his insurance defence lawyer turned Finance Minister Flaherty find it impossible to reign in spending so they increase our taxes through the back door.
We can build a lot of subway track with the EI contributions from Toronto residents, shipped to the East Coast under the guise of insurance. It is a wealth distribution system that discourages labour mobility. It results in labour shortages in a country with high unemployment rates. It is unsustainable and yet Harper doesn't have what it takes to change the system. A system he once criticised as a sense of East Coast entitlement while in opposition. He was right then, but is wrong today.
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