VICTORIA (NEWS 1130) – While he has some concerns, B.C.’s premier says he’s confident the pieces will be in place as Canada eyes the easing of border restrictions for fully vaccinated Americans as early as mid-August.
John Horgan says he’s being cautious but optimistic as we await more details from the federal government.
While the prime minister has promised to provide more information next week, Horgan says what the easing of restrictions for U.S. travellers will look like has not yet been laid out.
“The federal government, the prime minister, and the minister of intergovernmental relations were very attentive to suggestions and proposals from various provinces,” Horgan said, referring to a call with the country’s premiers on Thursday.
“Obviously, large provinces like Quebec, Ontario, B.C., and Alberta who have large populations and lots of traffic at airports and at our … land borders are concerned that there’s capacity at border control to meet the objectives.”
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In addition to staffing concerns at borders, Horgan says there are also questions around testing and what that will look like.
“I know people trying to travel now are required to get private sector testing done and the costs are prohibitive. Obviously, the health authorities in British Columbia are testing people with symptoms, not testing people so they can travel. That may change in the weeks ahead as we see continued decline in cases and those presenting with symptoms because of the high vaccination rates,” he explained.
Horgan notes it’s also not yet clear what kind of documentation travellers will have to provide beyond confirmation they’ve received necessary doses of a vaccine against COVID-19.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau revealed plans on Thursday to allow fully vaccinated Americans into Canada again by as early as the middle of next month. He said if vaccination rates keep heading higher, fully immunized travellers from around the world could begin arriving in Canada as of early September.
While the planned easing of further travel restrictions is welcome news for many, a number of stakeholders from the tourism and travel industries have said they need more details and concrete dates in order to help businesses prepare.
Related video: Canada aiming to allow vaccinated Americans into country by mid-August: PM
Horgan says as we look ahead, collaboration is key.
“The details will be clearer as we get closer to the dates, but the prime minister was very much seized of concerns across the country about making sure that Border Services had the resources that they need,” he explained, pointing to collaborative work between provincial government employees at border crossings in previous months.
The premier adds he is prepared to offer whatever assistance is needed, as are other provinces. He says he’s supportive of the “caution that’s being demonstrated by the federal government,” adding there had been discussions about potentially “reopening as early as next week.”
Current border restrictions are set to expire on Tuesday, July 21.
“There was some concern that that was too fast — that was certainly the view of British Columbia and others. There were provinces that felt that we were ready to go now. I want to make sure that we are right beside the federal government on these matters, supportive, and making sure that if we need to be nimble … we will be,” Horgan said.
While non-essential travel to Canada remains largely restricted, the country has already begun to ease some COVID-19 travel restrictions. On July 5, the country began allowing fully vaccinated Canadians, permanent residents, and other travellers permitted entry to forego the 14-day quarantine and hotel stay requirements.
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.
