RADIO - CHHA AM 1610 Voces Latinas - Toronto, 19/06/2020 - NEWS, Spanish Summary Translation: The Ford government plans to reduce the number of statutory holidays for frontline retail employees from nine to three. Unifor Ontario Regional Director Naureen Rizvi said the union participated in a technical meeting with the office of Consumer Services Minister Lisa Thompson. They were told the number of holidays would be reduced to three: Christmas, Good Friday and Canada Day. The two-year pilot project proposed by the government would allow retail stores to stay open six additional days to help them recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Rizvi said these holidays are often the only time off retail workers are guaranteed. She informed Thompson's office that the union is completely opposed to the proposal. The union was told that municipalities can choose not to participate, but they would have to approve regulations to opt out. The proposal comes right after Loblaws, Metro, Walmart and Sobeys ended pandemic pay increases for their employees. Unifor represents about 2,000 retail workers and leads the effort to make fair pay permanent.
0 Comments
WEB - Van People - Vancouver, 18/06/2020 - ARTICLE, Chinese Image Source: Van People website Summary Translation: No Byline - Although some countries shut themselves down during the COVID-19 pandemic, Canada believes that we must now work more closely with international trading partners than ever before to allow small businesses, families, workers and all Canadians to benefit. On June 15, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade Minister Ng had a virtual summit with 12 international partners of the Ottawa Group. The Group worked together to maintain trade in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, smoothen the supply chain, and support inclusiveness and sustainability. Ng said: “There is no doubt that Canadians rely on trade, whether you are a manufacturer who needs certain materials to produce a ventilator, or a family that needs life-saving medicines. Bringing our Ottawa Group partners together through a virtual network is an excellent opportunity. This summit will let us discuss how we can work together to keep the goods and services unimpeded, promote the rule-based trading system to be more modern, and support our people. Canada will continue to play a leading role on the world stage, so that our businesses, workers, and all Canadians can benefit from trade. More importantly, Canada will pave the way in the world after the COVID-19 pandemic towards more sustainable and prosperous development.” Link to original article: https://info.vanpeople.com/?action-viewnews-catid-159-itemid-1087587
RADIO - CHTO AM 1690 Bhakhde Mudde - Toronto, 28/05/2020 - COMMENTARY, Punjabi Image Source: https://www.citynews1130.com/ Description: Arshdeep Singh - Prime Minister Justin Trudeau isn’t ruling out the idea of a four-day work week in Canada as a way to boost the economy after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, if we talk about immigrant communities, they come to Canada to strengthen themselves financially. Many people from Punjab, India who come to this country, whether as international students, on a work permit or as skilled immigrants, have a dream of a better life including strengthening their economic situation in Canada. Economically, they start from scratch here. They need to work hard for 7 days a week to establish themselves in this country. Less working days would mean less money for them. Therefore, a four-day work week may not suit them.
WEB - Gazeta - Toronto, 23/05/2020 - NEWS, Polish Image Source: Gazeta website Summary Translation: Joanna Wojcik - Air Canada is revising its cancellation policy amid mounting customer frustration, offering travellers the option of a voucher with no expiry date or discount Aeroplan points if the airline cancels their flight due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The airline says the new policy applies to non-refundable tickets issued up to the end of June, with an original travel date between March 1 and June 30. Thousands of passengers continue to demand their money back for services they paid for but have not received. None of Canada's major airlines are offering to return cash to passengers for the hundreds of thousands of flight cancellations since mid-March, opting instead for vouchers — typically with a timeline of two years.
WEB - Goniec - Toronto, 24/05/2020 - NEWS, Polish Image Source: Goniec website Translation Summary: Katarzyna Nowosielska - As businesses have suffered a lot in recent months, Canadians should prepare for the possibility of having a new rate added to their bill: a COVID-19 supplement. Jonathan Alward of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) says that his group members will have to be passing on some of the additional costs (cost of personal protective equipment, sanitizer products, the extra staff hours it takes to make sure businesses are following all the protocols) to consumers. Alward emphasizes that businesses do not want to transfer costs to customers, but at this point they often find themselves in such a desperate situation that they have no other choice. University of Toronto marketing expert David Soberman emphasizes the importance of transparency – the customer must know upfront that COVID-19 fees will be applied to the bill, and they should be aware of what the actual amount will be before deciding on the service or purchase.
Toronto designers have raised over $100,000 to create the face mask of the future - Russian5/20/2020 WEB - Torontovka.com - Toronto, 19/05/2020 - NEWS, 1 page web, Russian Image Source: Torontovka.com Summary Translation: no byline - LuxMea, a multidisciplinary design studio with offices in Toronto and Boston, is working with Health Canada and testing their products at the University of Toronto so they can distribute them to frontline healthcare workers. LuxMea has an idea for a face mask that goes beyond the usual cotton or polyester varieties. They have raised over $100,000 to begin the mass production of masks made by 3D printers. What sets these masks apart is that they will be made using AI (artificial intelligence) technology so that they are individually tailored to each wearer. Each mask will be lightweight, flexible and glasses-friendly to prevent fog — a common issue with many cotton masks. They will also come with replaceable filters, making them reusable, durable and washable. The way personalization will work is that measurements for each individual customer will be taken online to generate the desired fit. The masks with then be 3D-printed by LuxMea's partner Shapeways, the largest 3D printing manufacturer in the world, and delivered directly to the customer's home.
WEB - Wiadomosci - Toronto, 16/05/2020 - NEWS, Polish Image Source: Wiadomosci website Summary Translation: No byline - Air Canada will lay off more than half of its 38,000 employees next month as it grapples with the fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. Air Canada, the country's largest airline, has - along with its competitors - seen demand for air travel evaporate amid ongoing border shutdowns and confinement measures, prompting the airline to ground some 225 airplanes and slash flight capacity by 95 per cent. Although air travel is expected to pick up somewhat before year's end, Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu said recovery will be slow, with at least three years of subpar earnings.
|