500 signatures reached
To: Prime Minister Trudeau and Finance Minister/Deputy PM Freeland
Low Income Canadians Dinged by CERB need justice NOW!
Dear PM and DPM, Please act immediately to correct a mistake made by your government that is unjustly penalizing thousands of the lowest income Canadians. Make sure that that the income used to qualify for CERB is immediately corrected to be GROSS income of $5,000 and NOT net income.
Thousands of the lowest income Canadians are being penalized by your government for a mistake that WAS NOT THEIRS!
When the CERB was rolled out by your government made it clear that eligibility was based on $5,000 income in the previous year. NOWHERE did the requirements say it was NET income!!! So thousands of the lowest income Canadians applied in good faith. That money was very much needed! And was spent on rent, mortgages, groceries, power and other necessities to keep households afloat. And NOW, months later thousands of Canadians are being told by your government that they must repay that money - NOT because of any mistake they made but because they simply WERE NOT TOLD that your government was using NET income not GROSS.
Why is this important?
This is an INJUSTICE that affects the poorest of Canadians.
While large corporations, including privately funded nursing homes where vulnerable Canadians have died, are being bailed out by your government the lowest income Canadians are being penalized and put in financial jeopardy - at no fault of their own. Please DO THE RIGHT THING, and correct this injustice. Ensure that the eligibility criteria for CERB is immediately clarified/corrected (for Revenue Canada and Service Canada) to be $5,000 income PERIOD -which means gross - just like advertised!