Individuals that voluntarily leave their employment are not entitled to Employment Insurance (EI) benefits unless they leave upon a justifiable cause under the Employment Insurance Act (see section 29 c for a complete list). In addition, individuals must also be available to work while receiving EI benefits to maintain their eligibility. One reason that qualifies as a ‘just cause’ includes accompanying a spouse or a dependent child that has relocated. A case that illustrates this is a claim by Ms. Annie Laroche archived as CUB 57793 under the Government of Canada’s website (www.ei.gc.ca).
Ms. Laroche and her husband shared the responsibility of caring for their young child. Ms. Laroche worked evenings and her husband worked days, each caring for their child when the other was at work. Ms. Laroche’s husband eventually accepted an employment offer in a farther region. Ms. Laroche relocated with her husband and child, as they were both the caregivers. Initially, Ms. Laroche was denied benefits because she did not make herself available to work by securing childcare arrangements immediately after leaving her employment. However, this was overturned. Ms. Laroche was found to have just cause for leaving her employment due to her accompanying her relocating spouse, which also affords an individual a reasonable amount of time to secure living and childcare arrangements.
The takeaway from the case here is that voluntarily leaving employment to follow a relocating spouse is a ‘just cause’ and therefore entitles an individual to EI benefits. Further, an individual does not have to immediately make themselves available to work to continue eligibility for EI – there is a reasonable amount of time given to secure living and childcare arrangements