Do you know if you can apply for EI in Canada without paperwork?

[Anonymous]

kind of an odd situation as i haven't officially been laid off but i have no hours and last day of work there was Dec 12 , i recall at the time she said it was an early holiday break and said we'd be back at work around Jan 4 but that has come and went , was there one Friday a week ago for 5 hours cause some customers had to pick up things they bought , that was the last time i was physically in the building but last time i worked a normal work week was dec 12

according to what i've heard her mother had health issues over the holidays and now she is claiming she cannot be left alone. so she isn't coming in to run the business and i'm unable to work as i'm not allowed to work there by myself. not sure when this issue will sort itself out and don't have a commitment or solid return date

yet to hear anything from her about this week , last message said she'd try but its already Saturday so seems unlikely she wants me to come in Monday morning

been thinking that maybe i should apply for EI ( employment insurance ) as i've worked enough hours in the last year to qualify but i don't have any paper work from her and haven't been officially laid off yet but money going to run really low if i don't come up with some answers soon

Updates

3 mo

still nothing and its 3pm Sunday here , so doesn't seem like she is planning to go back in Monday morning , was looking at the EI website and forms i need to fill in but going to wait till tomorrow incase i hear something from her first

Updates

3 mo

heard from her , do have scheduled hours on weds, thurs, fri. but its suppose to storm/snow badly here on Wednesday so will see if i make it in. she said her mother is doing better so not sure why she isn't back at work today , not going to apply for EI at this point , will see how week turns out

[Oliverlogan263]

Man, that's rough situation dude. From what I've heard, yeah you might be able to apply for EI even without official paperwork since you technically don't have work available right now. Here's what I'd do:

- Go on the EI website and do an online application right away. Explain the situation - worked til Dec 12, no hours since then due to owner's issues.

- You've worked enough hours total to qualify, so that part should be fine. As for end date, I'd say something like "job still available pending owner's return, estimated late Jan."

- Money's tight so don't delay! Worst case they deny you but at least you tried. For pay stubs, just use your last one from Dec pay period as "final" one.

- Keep in touch with your boss too, ask for a letter explaining the temp closure if you need backup for EI people. Cover your bases.

- As long as you're applying for other jobs and willing to start backup if yours calls you, think you have a good case. Let me know how it goes man, fingers crossed!

[Asker]

just waiting to see if i hear anything from her today or tomorrow before filling out an EI application , my understand is i can cancel it if i return to work , the issue is i don't know what is going on with owner /boss of place i work and when she actually plans to return to work

i'm pretty sure my last day was dec 12 , recall at the time though it was a bit early of a holiday break as last year we worked a bit later and didn't have as much time off

then i went in that one Friday a week ago , that was actually my last day , she wasn't there and had a friend help out instead , haven't been in the building since and it looks mostly quiet and no sign of life when i drove by

[Oliverlogan263]

Yeah man, this whole situation is super sketchy and uncertain. Your boss isn't communicating well at all. I'd say if you don't hear anything concrete from her by Tuesday, then just go ahead and submit the EI application.

Like you said, you can always cancel it if you end up going back to work. But waiting around any longer without some income coming in isn't a good idea either. Your boss has had plenty of time to sort this out and give you a proper update by now.

I'd also consider starting to look around for some other work options too, just in case this place really has shut down for good without telling you. Don't wanna get stuck high and dry if that's the case. Sucks that she's leaving you hanging like this without any answers. Hopefully the EI comes through quick if you apply, so at least you've got some cash flow while you figure things out. Good luck man, keep me posted!

[Asker]

its almost 9 pm and still nothing , guess i'm not going in for Monday morning. going to send a short text tomorrow , just asking about the week and possible hours before telling her i'm applying for EI if she doesn't allow me to return to work this week. going to see what she has to say first

this whole thing is leaving me feeling super weird and uncomfortable , cause if things do end there i have to look for another job but she is my only recent employer so others will wonder what went on there and she might have to talk to my future employers if they ask for an employer reference or my last job.

i also personally wonder if she like had a mental break down or something , i had questions about her mental health before this and really starting to wonder now what is going on with her. this might sound weird but i wouldn't even be surrpised if her mother is like already dead and died weeks ago ( maybe she didn't accept it or something and lost it maybe? ) or is perfectly fine living at her place watching tv or something. i just don't know really about her

[Asker]

i though about checking local obituaries to see if there is one for her mother but i don't know what her last name would be since it might not be her current name if she was married right? also is a lot of old people here who die regularly so is going to be recent ones and tough to say if one is hers

[Asker]

its 9 am Monday and nothing from her , it would normally be the start of the work week and her last message said she hoped to return this week so yeah something seems odd. i personally wonder if she had a mental breakdown or something. and is now like totally not in tune with reality or something

the business also has a website and facebook page , i checked them and nothing new had been posted since jan 4 the day i was in for work when customers came in to pick stuff up. she didn't post anything indicating business was taking a break or anything

[Oliverlogan263]

Wow dude, this whole situation is messed up. There's definitely something not right going on with your boss it seems like.

I wouldn't worry too much about future references from this job - at this point it's clear some personal issues have come up that aren't your fault. As long as you did your job well when you actually worked there, that's all that really matters.

As for checking obituaries, I wouldn't go that far. It could come across as kind of creepy if she found out. Your best bet is to just send her a simple text today confirming your schedule like you said, and move ahead with EI if she doesn't get back to you.

Maybe call the local labor board too, just to get their input on applying if an employer goes MIA like this. I wouldn't put it past her if what you're guessing about her mom could be true honestly. Really weird behavior.

At this point you gotta look out for number one - yourself. Don't feel bad about getting EI rolling if she doesn't give you solid answers. Mental health stuff is no joke, you never know what people are going through. Just cover your bases and try not to stress too much. It'll work out, bro!

[getwiththepg]

I’m pretty sure employers upload everything to CRA so you should be good. They just ask basic stuff when you go to fill it out online. Same thing as CERB (Stimulus package for my US ppls) a few years back.

[Jkgordon]

You should be able to, but I’m in different country do your best bet is to Google unemployment benefits in your town as part of the search.

[Asker]

i did a little searching online , apparently you can apply without the paperwork , like as soon as your out of work , the issue is i didn't realise i was out of work till now not back on dec 13 when i last worked there and i might still get called back in if employer is able to decide what there doing or not

[Nikki1989]

I would imagine you will always need the paperwork.

[Asker]

the paperwork is just a paper employers give you when your finished work there or laid off , it just has your social insurance # and a record of your hours there. part of the issue is i'm not sure when i'm returning to work , i realise her mother has health issues but i can't be expected to go broke over this

[LiamS95]

By law if she has no work for you she has to issue you an (ROE) Record of Employment and lay you off for lack of work so you can collect EI

[Asker]

its been more complex than it seems , she has claimed 2 times since ( dec 12 ) that she's resume work but both times cancelled so there has been confusion. obviously if back in Dec she had told me i wouldn't be working in January i'd have applied for EI already

going to try and contact her tomorrow to get clarity if i'm coming back in this week or not

[LiamS95]

You have to have a ROE to apply for EI

[Asker]

not to make the initial application , i read they can request that info from employer , going to try and contact her today before going online and applying as if she confirms days this week i can work its not necessary

[LiamS95]

Go for it but it's always easier to deal with the government if you have all of the required paperwork up front.

[Anonymous]

If you apply and attest you never received an ROE, Service Canada will request from the employer.

[Asker]

i haven't heard anything from employer since last Tuesday , was suppose to go back into work last week but didn't and then suppose to go back this week but its Sunday at 5 pm and not a word from her so i'm not going in Monday morning when i haven't been given a schedule