Ontario proposes portability of extended health benefits

Ontario proposes portability of extended health benefits

MPP Peggy Sattler,
London West, NDP

Research on the proposal won’t be available until after elections

February 8, 2022

Veronica Silva Cusi
The Philippine Reporter
LJI Reporter

Ontario is proposing to study whether the extended health benefits can be carried over when workers change employers. This can be applicable to workers who are doing gig work or are part-timers who have different employers.

Extended health benefits, such as dental and vision care, physiotherapy, and drug purchases, are not covered under the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), the provincial health plan. Most employers offer these added health benefits, which are sometimes extended to employees’ families, as incentives to attract the best workers. But the benefits are tied to specific employers.

The Ontario government noted that millions of people in “retail, the gig economy and hospitality have limited-to-no benefits coverage.”

Monte McNaughton,
Ontario Minister of Labour

Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development announced on February 3 the creation of an advisory panel will look into a system to make this happen, making the province the first to “pursue such a comprehensive benefits program.”

“Independent contractors, low-wage workers, newcomers, younger workers, and racialized people are also less likely to have workplace benefits,” the Ontario press release said.

The province said McNaughton will appoint a Portable Benefits Advisory Panel with members to be announced in spring 2022. He did not exactly say when the panel’s recommendations are expected.

Coincidentally, provincial election is scheduled on June 2, prompting the official opposition, the NDP, to raise issue on the timing of the announcement and the usefulness of the proposal.

In a statement following McNaughton’s announcement, Ontario NDP Labour critic Peggy Sattler (London West) said: “Minister McNaughton’s working group will not even report its findings until after the election. … All that was really promised today is that the Ford government will do absolutely nothing during their term in office about the millions of Ontarians without decent health benefits.”

Sattler added: “Millions of part-time, contract and gig workers across Ontario can’t afford dental or vision care for themselves or their families. These workers urgently need health benefits – not another committee to study health benefits.

Kevin Feliciano, technician

Kevin Feliciano, 29, a technician for film, TV, and events productions in the GTHA, said he could benefit from this proposal now that he has been without a full-time and stable job since September 2020.

Like millions of workers affected by the pandemic, he was let go from his full-time work in a hotel where he was at since 2016. And like most full-time workers, he had those extended health benefits, including vision care that he requires.

In his current work as part-time, contract worker in productions, he doesn’t get regular jobs. He gets called for jobs on and off for as brief as a day to a maximum of three months. However, since he doesn’t have a single employer, he has no extended health benefits.

He said it would be good if this proposal will materialize because he hasn’t availed of some extended health benefits since he lost his full-time job.

“Maganda [yung proposal] para sa aming walang full-time [work]. (The proposal is good for us without full-time work),” said Feliciano, adding that dental and vision care are important for technicians. “For us crew, we’re dependent on vision (care).”

“Mas ingat ako ngayon sa salamin ko kasi alam ko mahal ang salamin pag walang insurance. (I’m extra careful of my prescription eyeglasses because I know how expensive they are if there are no [extended health] insurance benefits),” he added.

Feliciano said he is hopeful that the proposal can materialize soon as there are more upcoming events and gigs expected in the industry soon when the economy reopens from a COVID lockdown. He added that the proposal should’ve been thought of years ago because many have been doing gig work even before the pandemic.

But like the NDP, Feliciano is wary of the timing of the announcement.

“Mas gumagalaw yata sila kapag malapit na ang eleksyon (Some are proposing actions when election season comes),” he said.

The proposal to study the portability of health benefits stems from a recommendation by the Ontario Workforce Recovery Advisory Committee (OWRAC), which was created by McNaughton in June 2021.