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Returning to the Office

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Unfortunately, the world’s economies are moving into or are in a Recession. A horrid word I know, but every decade or so it appears like an unwanted house guest.
Will a recession bring people back into the office? After 2 years of working from home, if you had that safety privilege-opportunity, many of us will be invited or perhaps forced to return to the office.

A Pew Research Center survey(2020) found that 64% of respondents polled had been working from home due to office closures due to the pandemic. By January 2022 61% were doing it because they wanted to. Employers allowed and even encouraged working from home while studying their employee’s progress and output.

Now we have found that we live in a job seekers marketplace, with companies offering higher wages and better perks to attract and keep potential employees. The “great resignation” of 2020-2021 has become the “great labour slackening” where employers feel emboldened-half of these employers believe in-office workers are more productive.

Many in the market believe employees will return to the office space, fearing the possibility of being laid off by employers requiring a sense of control and management. The same survey found that 14% of those who have returned to the office feared losing work opportunities while at home.

The Canadian National Society of High School Scholars found that 63% of their members wanted to go back to the office, while 23% considered working from home.

A recession places most businesses in a particularly difficult situation, that would not go well for their employees. Recessions traditionally bring with them cost-cutting avenues, repealing benefit packages, various benefits to the employee and staff, layoffs and terminations. Working from home also grants employers added benefits. Employee’s that work half-time at the office and their home office can save an employer $11,000 annually, while a full-time employee working from home would save them more. Negotiations between employers and employees working from home have and will carry on, where a person’s annual wage/salary will decline. The privilege of working at home has a cost, that of lower wages. Working from home can save an individual as much as $4-5,000 annually.

Businesses and employees have to consider what is best for themselves. The cost of hiring and retraining employees is very high, especially in this labour void we work in today.

A possible work-from-home strategy may be on its way, encouraged by governments, environmentalists and Sociologists. The Possible benefits such as less stress, driving to work, health and safety issues, and improved communication systems will certainly increase the likelihood that home-based work is a future trend.

Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.ca

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RCMP arrest second suspect in deadly shooting east of Calgary

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EDMONTON – RCMP say a second suspect has been arrested in the killing of an Alberta county worker.

Mounties say 28-year-old Elijah Strawberry was taken into custody Friday at a house on O’Chiese First Nation.

Colin Hough, a worker with Rocky View County, was shot and killed while on the job on a rural road east of Calgary on Aug. 6.

Another man who worked for Fortis Alberta was shot and wounded, and RCMP said the suspects fled in a Rocky View County work truck.

Police later arrested Arthur Wayne Penner, 35, and charged him with first-degree murder and attempted murder, and a warrant was issued for Strawberry’s arrest.

RCMP also said there was a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of Strawberry, describing him as armed and dangerous.

Chief Supt. Roberta McKale, told a news conference in Edmonton that officers had received tips and information over the last few weeks.

“I don’t know of many members that when were stopped, fuelling up our vehicles, we weren’t keeping an eye out, looking for him,” she said.

But officers had been investigating other cases when they found Strawberry.

“Our investigators were in O’Chiese First Nation at a residence on another matter and the major crimes unit was there working another file and ended up locating him hiding in the residence,” McKale said.

While an investigation is still underway, RCMP say they’re confident both suspects in the case are in police custody.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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26-year-old son is accused of his father’s murder on B.C.’s Sunshine Coast

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RICHMOND, B.C. – The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team says the 26-year-old son of a man found dead on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast has been charged with his murder.

Police say 58-year-old Henry Doyle was found badly injured on a forest service road in Egmont last September and died of his injuries.

The homicide team took over when the BC Coroners Service said the man’s death was suspicious.

It says in a statement that the BC Prosecution Service has approved one count of first-degree murder against the man’s son, Jackson Doyle.

Police say the accused will remain in custody until at least his next court appearance.

The homicide team says investigators remained committed to solving the case with the help of the community of Egmont, the RCMP on the Sunshine Coast and in Richmond, and the Vancouver Police Department.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Metro Vancouver’s HandyDART strike continues after talks break with no deal

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VANCOUVER – Mediated talks between the union representing HandyDART workers in Metro Vancouver and its employer, Transdev, have broken off without an agreement following 15 hours of talks.

Joe McCann, president of Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1724, says they stayed at the bargaining table with help from a mediator until 2 a.m. Friday and made “some progress.”

However, he says the union negotiators didn’t get an offer that they could recommend to the membership.

McCann says that in some ways they are close to an agreement, but in other areas they are “miles apart.”

About 600 employees of the door-to-door transit service for people who can’t navigate the conventional transit system have been on strike since last week, pausing service for all but essential medical trips.

McCann asks HandyDART users to be “patient,” since they are trying to get not only a fair contract for workers but also a better service for customers.

He says it’s unclear when the talks will resume, but he hopes next week at the latest.

The employer, Transdev, didn’t reply to an interview request before publication.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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