EI surplus called unfair to unemployed

The federal government is balancing its budget with the help of employment insurance surpluses while people who need help from the program suffer, says P.E.I.s Coalition for a Fair EI.

In 2014 the EI program posted an estimated $3.4 billion surplus. Similar surpluses are forecasted for 2015 and 2016 while premium rates remain frozen.

Lori MacKay of the Coalition for a Fair EI told CBC News the surpluses show government changes to EI have gone too far, and saidthat Ottawa is balancing its budget on the backs of the unemployed.

The surplus is money that's not in the hands of Canadians that have found themselves out of work, said MacKay.

That's where the surplus is coming from, and it's creating a lot of hardship in individual homes and communities.

In advance of this year's federal election MacKay said her group hopes to get all parties to commit to reversing the EI changes brought in by the Conservatives starting in 2011.

A spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada told CBC News in an email that recent changes to EI did not change access to benefits, but rather supported unemployed workers to get back to work.

For mobile device users: Is it reasonable for the employment insurance program to keep running a surplus?