The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ju ly 28 ,2 02 2 | 6 ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member of the National NewsMedia Council. Complainants are urged to bring their concerns to the attention of the newspaper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2. Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca insidehalton@metroland.com facebook.com/OakvilleBeav @OakvilleBeaver WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Montague Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Regional Managing Editor Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director of Distribution Charlene Hall Circulation Manager Kim Mossman Directors of Advertising Cindi Campbell and Graeme MacIntosh Director Creative Services Katherine Porcheron CONTACT US Oakville Beaver 901 Guelph Line Burlington, ON L7R 3N8 Phone: 905-845-3824 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Advertising: 289-293-0620 Delivery For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail kmossman@metroland.com or call 905-631-6095. Letters to the editor Send letters to insidehalton@metroland.com. All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at insidehalton.com OPINION TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT INSIDEHALTON.COM The Employment Insur- ance (EI) program is a crit- ical feature of Canada's so- cial safety net. It is intended to provide temporary financial sup- port for individuals who lose their jobs while they look for work. The pro- gram has not had a compre- hensive review in over two decades, and it is impor- tant that the EI system is modernized and reflects the needs of today's labour market and workforce. To that end, the Oak- ville Chamber of Com- merce welcomes the feder- al government's review of the program to ensure the services are resilient, ac- cessible, adequate and fi- nancially sustainable. Businesses are still re- covering from COVID and are facing a multitude of challenges, including la- bour shortages, record in- flation and supply chain disruptions. We caution government that now is not the time to achieve these goals by increasing EI pre- miums. The EI program was put through its paces during the pandemic, and the ex- traordinary measures that were employed have come at a great cost. According to the 2022 Actuarial Re- port on the EI Premium Rate, COVID measures will lead the EI operating ac- count to a projected cumu- lative deficit of $33.9 billion by the end of 2022. The federal 2022 budget suggests that rates could increase 15 cents (at five cent increments) over the next three years (2023 to 2025) to get back to balance. The business communi- ty has endured COVID, and the pandemic has had a profound impact on the ability of businesses to op- erate. Employers should not have to carry any addi- tional government EI pan- demic debt burden through increased premi- ums. We believe that econom- ic recovery requires gov- ernment programs and policies that focus on growth and sustainability. As the government fi- nalizes its consultations on reforming the EI program, consideration of the eco- nomic challenges that businesses and employers are facing today as a result of factors out of their con- trol need to be recognized. Employers who pay 58 per cent of EI should not be burdened with a premium increase. On behalf of our cham- ber members, we encour- age the federal government to consider EI program so- lutions that do not rely solely on increased premi- ums. Faye Lyons is the vice- president of government relations and advocacy for the Oakville Chamber of Commerce. She can be reached at faye@oakvil- lechamber.com. EI PREMIUM INCREASE WOULD BE DETRIMENTAL HIKE WOULD PUT FINANCIAL BURDEN ON EMPLOYERS, WRITES FAYE LYONS Ducklings poke out from under their mother in a backyard garden on Greeneagle Drive. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. Joe Brandt photo SNAPSHOT The Bank of Canada made an aggressive move to increase interest rates. That increase will im- pact many individuals. The underlying story is just how serious the risk of inflation is to the Canadian economy, and that such ex- treme measures have been taken. Three facts help paint the picture of the severity of current inflationary concerns. One: The one per cent increase to interest rates was four times the size of recent interest rate hikes. Two: The current policy interest rate as set by the Bank of Canada is 2.5 per cent, which is the highest since the financial crisis of 2008. Three: Canada 's infla- tion rate is 8.1 per cent, which is the highest since 1983. Interest rate hikes are a delicate balancing act by the Bank of Canada, with plenty of pros and cons on the impact they will have. Consider this a financial trade-off. Financial pain will be felt by many individuals from both higher borrow- ing costs and -- likely -- continued decreases in the value of people's largest as- sets, their homes. As for the Canadian economy, this increase in interest rates and the ex- pected future interest rate increases could push our economy into a recession. The priority is to get in- flation under control, which will slow price increases and wage hike demands. Consider this the necessary steps to maintain a strong economic foundation. It's short-term pain for long-term gain. This, ulti- mately, will be good for our economy; however, many will be hurt in the process. Peter Watson, of Watson Investments MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI offers a weekly financial planning column, Dollars & Sense. He can be contacted through www.watsonin- vestments.com. INTEREST RATE HIKE WILL HURT MANY CANADIANS PETER WATSON Column SIGN UP FOR OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT INSIDEHALTON.COM FAYE LYONS Column