EI parental benefits denied aunt caring for orphaned nephew

Two months ago, Willow Yamauchi received the most terrifying phone call of her life. Her nephew, 12, called to say his father wasn't breathing.

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"He couldn't get him to respond. I was terrified for him, of course," said Yamauchi. 

Dash's father died of unknown causes. Six years prior to that, the boy lost his mother to breast cancer. Now the boy was an orphan.

Yamauchi and her husband welcomed Dash into their home joining their two older children. Yamauchi is listed as his legal guardian.

But given the tragedy of his circumstances, the boy needs extra care.

Asked for leave

"Dash is understandably quite traumatized, " she said. "He can't always go to school, sometimes he needs a half-day. He has a number of appointments that I need to take him to," she said.

In order to better care for the boy, Yamauchi applied for a leave of absence from her job as a social worker, and for parental benefits under employment insurance. She was denied the parental benefits.

Only parents who are caring for a newborn or newly adoptive parent are eligible for EI parental benefits. 

Yamauchi, who has worked as a contributor to the CBC in the past, applied for the benefits because the family can't afford for her to take an unpaid leave from work.

"I just assumed I was going to get it. For 22 years, money has come off every paycheque so that in the time of need I could take a leave, or so I thought I could, to be with my family," she said. 

NDP MP Jenny Kwan believes Yamauchi and others in her situation should be eligible for EI, because adoption may not always be possible or even in the child's best interest. 

"The other alternative is that you must lie to the government to say you're considering adopting, even though you have no intention of doing so. That too is wrong," said Kwan. 

She estimates that there are roughly 11,000 children in B.C. that are being raised by a grandparent or relative.

Adoption not an option

Yamauchi doesn't want to adopt Dash right now, during this traumatizing period. Plus, she said it would take some time to organize the paperwork and could cost several thousand dollars. 

She also doesn't want to dishonour Dash's parental roots — once a child is adopted, a new birth certificate is issued with the biological parents' names removed. 

"My husband and I have no desire to legally take the place of the parents who cherished this child, who had a wonderful relationship with him," she said. 

Other possibilities

In the letter denying Yamauchi's request for employment insurance, Service Canada said she can make a formal request for reconsideration, which Yamauchi plans to do.

A spokesperson for the federal minister of Families, Children and Social Development said it can't comment on the case without written permission from the person involved. The spokesperson urged Yamauchi to contact a Service Canada Centre.

But Kwan and Yamauchi want broader legislative reform. They are seeking changes to federal law to allow permanent caregivers to be eligible for employment insurance parental benefits.