CRA says 330 employees were fired for improperly claiming CERB – National

More than 300 Canada Revenue Agency employees were terminated last year for inappropriately receiving the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest round of layoffs took place in the last three months.

In total, 330 people have lost their federal jobs after receiving a benefit to which they were not entitled, the CRA told Global News in its latest update.

The CRA announced last year that it was launching an internal review to determine whether employees received CERB and identified about 600 people for further investigation.

The $2,000 per month CERB was implemented by the CRA between March and September 2020 during the early months of the pandemic.

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However, not everyone who was investigated was terminated. According to the CRA, 185 people were investigated but not fired, although 40 faced disciplinary action, such as suspension. In the remaining cases, administrative measures were taken, such as: B. Terminating the review because the employee was no longer with the agency at the time of the review, or they were found to be a victim of identity theft.

Another 135 had no consequences because they were eligible for CERB. The CRA told Global News that some of its employees could receive the benefit because they are students or on fixed-term contracts.

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Those who accessed CERB unlawfully must pay the money back if they have not already done so, the CRA said.

“The actions of some should in no way undermine the honesty and integrity of the tens of thousands of CRA employees who work exemplary work every day to serve Canadians,” a CRA spokesperson said in an email.

The CRA added that there are still a small number of cases, such as those on sick leave or unpaid leave, that are still under review and will take additional time to process.

&Copy 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.