Recent Activities - 2008 in Review

• Won 82% of clients’ EI appeals, in whole or in part
• Returned over $600,000 to appellants in EI benefit entitlement and reduced administrative penalties
• Raised over $35,000 in donations, primarily from local unions and central labour bodies, toward a total budget of $332,000
• Renewed partnership agreement with CAHRD (Centre for Aboriginal Human Resources Development) to help CUHC clients access training opportunities
• Provided practicum placements for students enrolled in the University of Manitoba Faculty of Social Work and Labour Studies program
• Initiated two research projects, one in partnership with the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) to assess the impact of the EI program on inner city residents, and a second through the Labour Studies program to assess the impact of the change from UI to EI
• Ongoing involvement in a research project begun with CCPA in 2007 to assess the impact of EI reform on Aboriginal peoples
• Ongoing involvement in a Charter Challenge launched in 2007 on behalf of a CUHC client and in cooperation with Public Interest Law Centre of Legal Aid Manitoba which alleges that the EI Act offends Section 15 (Equality) for its differential impact on persons with disabilities, who often have difficulty accumulating sufficient hours to qualify for benefits
• Ongoing pilot project with Family Services and Housing in which CUHC represents clients who have been denied Canada Pension Plan disability benefits
• In partnership with the Public Interest Law Centre of Legal Aid Manitoba, initiated planning of an advocacy conference to be held in the spring of 2009
• Maintained active involvement in PovNet a national on-line resource for advocates and PLANC (Poverty Law Advocacy Network of Canada)
• Maintained active involvement as a member of the Canadian Labour Congress Unemployment Insurance committee
• Maintained active involvement in the labour sponsored Workplace Stress Initiative
• Initiated strategic planning for a possible expansion of services into other areas of poverty law that would complement CUHC EI advocacy services
  
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