Who's responsible for what during a Canadian employee's leave — employer, employee, or government?
Employer, employee, and government roles during leave
Quick answer
During a Canadian employee's parental or pregnancy leave, three parties have distinct responsibilities: the employer administers and approves the job-protected leave itself and issues a Record of Employment (ROE); the employee applies directly for paid benefits (EI or QPIP) and coordinates benefit-sharing with the other parent if applicable; and the government determines benefit eligibility, calculates amounts, and pays the employee directly. Tilt supports the employer by identifying required information, determining provincial eligibility, tracking timelines, and explaining the process to employees — but does not determine benefit eligibility or issue payments.
Who this applies to / Prerequisites
- HR teams who support employees working in Canada
- Applies to pregnancy (maternity) and parental (bonding) leave specifically
- Assumes the employee is pursuing both job-protected leave (provincial) and paid benefits (EI or QPIP) concurrently, as is typical
Roles and responsibilities
- Employer: Issues a Record of Employment (ROE) when the employee stops working and experiences an interruption in earnings. The employer is responsible for approving and administering the job-protected leave itself — this is separate from, and happens alongside, the employee's application for government-paid benefits.
- Employer (via Tilt): Tilt supports the employer by identifying the information needed to structure the leave, determining eligibility for provincial job-protection laws, tracking leave timelines, and explaining the Canadian leave framework to employees, including how to apply for paid benefits.
- Employee: Applies directly for EI or QPIP benefits, selects between standard and extended parental benefits where applicable, coordinates benefit-sharing decisions with the other parent if applicable, and provides required information to the government.
- Government: Determines eligibility for EI or QPIP, calculates the benefit amount, and pays benefits directly to the employee. The employer is not involved in this determination or payment.
- Optional employer role: Employers may choose to provide supplemental pay (top-up) through a company leave policy, in addition to the government-paid benefit the employee receives directly.
Other considerations
- Issuing the ROE is the employer's responsibility, triggered when the employee stops working and experiences an interruption in earnings.
- Paying the EI or QPIP benefit is a government responsibility, not an employer or Tilt responsibility — the employee must apply directly, and the government calculates and pays the benefit.
- When an employee needs help understanding the process, Tilt can explain the Canadian leave framework and how to apply for paid benefits, but cannot apply on the employee's behalf or determine their eligibility.
- Employers may offer supplemental pay (top-up) through a company leave policy; check whether the structure of the payment affects the employee's EI/QPIP benefit amount.