Canada added 870 new cases of the coronavirus Thursday, but the national case count rose by an extra 248 cases that were delayed in reporting, bringing the national total to 140,752.
Six new deaths were also reported nation-wide in the last 24 hours, plus one from earlier in the week in Quebec, to bring the total to 9,200.
Ontario reported 293 new cases on Thursday, a slight decrease from the 315 reported the day before.
Three more deaths in the province have brought its total toll to 2,825, and resolved cases increased by 179 from the day before.
Fifty-three people are currently hospitalized, up from nine on Wednesday, while 21 patients are in intensive care, up from one on Wednesday, with 12 of them on a ventilator.
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1:53 Quebec raises coronavirus alert level in several regions including Montreal
Quebec raises coronavirus alert level in several regions including Montreal
Quebec reported 251 new cases in the last 24 hours, but added 499 cases Thursday due to a delay in reporting from earlier in the week, bringing its case total to 66,356.
The province now has been reporting an average of 300 new infections per day the last week.
“It’s everywhere that we have to be careful,” Health Minister Christian Dubé said.
Two deaths occurred in the province in the last 24 hours and one other was recorded that occurred earlier in the week.
The number of hospitalizations in the province shot up since Wednesday, going from six to 136, with 29 patients in intensive care, up from three a day earlier.
Over in British Columbia, 165 new cases of coronavirus were reported, setting a new single-day record over 139 recorded last week. Two of those cases are considered epi-linked.
5:37 Strengthening public health in British Columbia by reducing the risk of influenza during the pandemic
Strengthening public health in British Columbia by reducing the risk of influenza during the pandemic
There are now 1,705 active cases in the province, a record high for them.
One new death was reported to bring the total to 210.
However, hospitalizations did decrease from 60 patients to 57, with 22 of them in intensive care.
In Alberta, 146 new cases were reported, bringing the province’s active cases to 1,403 with 41 in hospital and eight of them in ICU. No new deaths were reported.
Saskatchewan added seven new cases, while one case from Wednesday had been removed after deeming it to be from a non-Saskatchewan resident.
There are currently 109 active cases and five patients in hospital in the province, all in Saskatoon. No new deaths were reported.
Manitoba reported 11 new cases Thursday, and currently has 293 active cases with 10 in hospital and two in intensive care. No new deaths were reported.
1:57 Coronavirus: Manitoba’s top doctor raises alarm over ‘stigmatizing behaviour’ in COVID-19 case
Coronavirus: Manitoba’s top doctor raises alarm over ‘stigmatizing behaviour’ in COVID-19 case
New Brunswick reported no new cases Thursday and said there are currently two active cases there.
Nova Scotia has continued its streak of no new cases, up to 10 days now.
No new cases were reported in the territories.
There have been 30,019,763 confirmed cases globally so far, according to Johns Hopkins University, and 943,515 deaths.
VANCOUVER – Contract negotiations resume today in Vancouver in a labour dispute that has paralyzed container cargo shipping at British Columbia’s ports since Monday.
The BC Maritime Employers Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 514 are scheduled to meet for the next three days in mediated talks to try to break a deadlock in negotiations.
The union, which represents more than 700 longshore supervisors at ports, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert and Nanaimo, has been without a contract since March last year.
The latest talks come after employers locked out workers in response to what it said was “strike activity” by union members.
The start of the lockout was then followed by several days of no engagement between the two parties, prompting federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon to speak with leaders on both sides, asking them to restart talks.
MacKinnon had said that the talks were “progressing at an insufficient pace, indicating a concerning absence of urgency from the parties involved” — a sentiment echoed by several business groups across Canada.
In a joint letter, more than 100 organizations, including the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Business Council of Canada and associations representing industries from automotive and fertilizer to retail and mining, urged the government to do whatever it takes to end the work stoppage.
“While we acknowledge efforts to continue with mediation, parties have not been able to come to a negotiated agreement,” the letter says. “So, the federal government must take decisive action, using every tool at its disposal to resolve this dispute and limit the damage caused by this disruption.
“We simply cannot afford to once again put Canadian businesses at risk, which in turn puts Canadian livelihoods at risk.”
In the meantime, the union says it has filed a complaint to the Canada Industrial Relations Board against the employers, alleging the association threatened to pull existing conditions out of the last contract in direct contact with its members.
“The BCMEA is trying to undermine the union by attempting to turn members against its democratically elected leadership and bargaining committee — despite the fact that the BCMEA knows full well we received a 96 per cent mandate to take job action if needed,” union president Frank Morena said in a statement.
The employers have responded by calling the complaint “another meritless claim,” adding the final offer to the union that includes a 19.2 per cent wage increase over a four-year term remains on the table.
“The final offer has been on the table for over a week and represents a fair and balanced proposal for employees, and if accepted would end this dispute,” the employers’ statement says. “The offer does not require any concessions from the union.”
The union says the offer does not address the key issue of staffing requirement at the terminals as the port introduces more automation to cargo loading and unloading, which could potentially require fewer workers to operate than older systems.
The Port of Vancouver is the largest in Canada and has seen a number of labour disruptions, including two instances involving the rail and grain storage sectors earlier this year.
A 13-day strike by another group of workers at the port last year resulted in the disruption of a significant amount of shipping and trade.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
The Royal Canadian Legion says a new partnership with e-commerce giant Amazon is helping boost its veterans’ fund, and will hopefully expand its donor base in the digital world.
Since the Oct. 25 launch of its Amazon.ca storefront, the legion says it has received nearly 10,000 orders for poppies.
Online shoppers can order lapel poppies on Amazon in exchange for donations or buy items such as “We Remember” lawn signs, Remembrance Day pins and other accessories, with all proceeds going to the legion’s Poppy Trust Fund for Canadian veterans and their families.
Nujma Bond, the legion’s national spokesperson, said the organization sees this move as keeping up with modern purchasing habits.
“As the world around us evolves we have been looking at different ways to distribute poppies and to make it easier for people to access them,” she said in an interview.
“This is definitely a way to reach a wider number of Canadians of all ages. And certainly younger Canadians are much more active on the web, on social media in general, so we’re also engaging in that way.”
Al Plume, a member of a legion branch in Trenton, Ont., said the online store can also help with outreach to veterans who are far from home.
“For veterans that are overseas and are away, (or) can’t get to a store they can order them online, it’s Amazon.” Plume said.
Plume spent 35 years in the military with the Royal Engineers, and retired eight years ago. He said making sure veterans are looked after is his passion.
“I’ve seen the struggles that our veterans have had with Veterans Affairs … and that’s why I got involved, with making sure that the people get to them and help the veterans with their paperwork.”
But the message about the Amazon storefront didn’t appear to reach all of the legion’s locations, with volunteers at Branch 179 on Vancouver’s Commercial Drive saying they hadn’t heard about the online push.
Holly Paddon, the branch’s poppy campaign co-ordinator and bartender, said the Amazon partnership never came up in meetings with other legion volunteers and officials.
“I work at the legion, I work with the Vancouver poppy office and I go to the meetings for the Vancouver poppy campaign — which includes all the legions in Vancouver — and not once has this been mentioned,” she said.
Paddon said the initiative is a great idea, but she would like to have known more about it.
The legion also sells a larger collection of items at poppystore.ca.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 9, 2024.
