The Buzz

Government Announces Updated COVID-19 Support Measures

Last week, the Federal Government announced that some broad-based business supports will remain in place around wage and rent subsidies for businesses affected by COVID-19. However, there were some changes outlined on the eligibility rules and thresholds, which led to new changes.

Notably, hospitality (tourism and restaurants) will need to demonstrate a revenue drop of 40 percent, while all other businesses need to show a 50 percent drop to access these critical programs. Thus, any small businesses that experience a revenue decline less than these thresholds cannot access the previous wage and rent subsidies. This change will challenge many small businesses and CPB Canada members, clients.

In addition, the government has extended the Canada Recovery Hiring Program until May 2022.  Many business groups see this as a positive step to allow for organizations to hire back staff.

The government is also looking to find ways to support workers affected by the regional lockdowns. With the challenges of a labour shortage, businesses facing temporary or new local lockdowns will be eligible for up to the maximum amount of the wage and rent subsidy programs during the local lockdown, irrespective of the losses over the course of the pandemic.

CPB Canada would encourage our members to learn more about the recent government changes to address the needs of their clients and small businesses. For more information, please see last week's announcement by clicking here.