Canada Is Getting A New 'Lockdown Support' COVID-19 Benefit & It Offers $300 Per Week

Step aside, CRB! The Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit will launch as of October 24, one day after the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB) is set to end.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland said that all of Canada's original COVID-19 support benefits were "designed to be temporary."

Confirming that the existing income and business support programs will end as planned on October 23, 2021, she said the country will move from "broad-based support" to "more targeted measures."

Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit

From October 24, the new Canada Worker Lockdown Benefit will provide $300 per week to workers who are subject to a lockdown related to COVID-19, including those who are ineligible for Employment Insurance (EI).

"Temporary lockdowns are still a possibility in the months to come," Freeland explained. "We want Canadians to know that we intend now to put in place measures that would snap into action immediately."

On the same day, the deputy PM also announced changes to a number of other pandemic benefits for businesses, as well as an extension to the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB) and the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit (CRCB).

She added that the expected costs will be $7.4 billion between now and May 2022, compared with the $289 billion spent on business and income support since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.