I registered for this program a year ago and am due to have my baby in October. Because of the stress and high demands, and physical labour involved in our jobs my dr has put me on sick leave effective immediately. This means that I will (hopefully) get 15 weeks of sick leave and then 52 weeks of maternity/parental leave to be with my family.
I paid around $500 in EI premiums on my taxes and I will receive more than $17000 in benefits. The math makes sense to me as I would have to pay into the program for over 30 years at my current income rate in order to break even. Now, I have just filed my application for benefits so will update with any news as my application is processed. So, far though, this program is a no-brainer for those who woudl like to have a baby and be able to take a maternity leave.