PARLIAMENT HILL—Canada’s new labour minister is getting ready to overhaul the Employment Insurance system and the federal labour code to address a growing gap between regulations and today’s disruptive new business models.
Labour Minister MaryAnn Mihychuk said the wave of automation and other changes to how business is done have made many regulations and support systems less relevant.
“It is all part of that flexible work and the changing working environment, and it illustrates how outdated our EI support system is and our labour code. We are going through a significant review and updating of both systems so they can be more responsive,” Mihychuk told the Epoch Times.
The provinces handle most labour code regulations but the federal government delivers EI and creates labour laws for federally regulated industries like banking and radio or television.
Federal, provincial, and municipal governments have so far been unable to keep regulations current with the changes introduced by new businesses that take advantage of transformative technology.
The highest profile example has been Uber. Many cities are currently grappling with the upheaval of the taxi industry by the ride service company, resulting in court cases and pitched battles between the city, Uber, and taxi drivers who are seeing their expensive taxi licenses plummet in value.
But other industries are watching closely as emerging technology prepares to encroach on their territory. Canada’s big banks, for example, are preparing for a new era of financial technology, or fintech, as startups attract significant investment for products aimed at providing core banking services.
