Business

Black Friday brings massive crowds, multiple fights to Calgary mall – CBC.ca

Published

4 years ago

November 28, 2020

Despite new provincial restrictions introduced this week, large crowds descended on Chinook Centre during Black Friday sales — and Calgary police say a couple of instances quickly got out of control.

Multiple fights broke out Friday evening, police confirmed, and officers escorted a “whole bunch” of unruly patrons out of the facility. No charges were laid.

At this point, Calgary police Staff Sgt. Mike Calhoun said the emphasis remains on education rather than enforcement — but that could change.

“We’re starting on giving warnings,” Calhoun said. “If we’re starting to see [people] not complying, we’ll move to enforcement.”

Cadillac Fairview, which owns the mall, said a group of youth “impeded traffic flow and caused disturbances” throughout the mall, which resulted in numerous police officers attending the site to escort them from the facility.

“We will continue to work closely with CPS, who will have a presence again on site today and support our efforts to ensure customers’ shopping experience and safety is not hindered,” Cadillac Fairview said in a statement.

The company said it was actively monitoring capacity levels throughout the holiday shopping season to fall in line with the province’s new restrictions.

The facility has also implemented additional measures like enhanced cleaning protocols, signage, directional arrows and installation of barriers where required.

‘It makes me feel awful’

Taylor Tuffnell, who works in the mall, said she saw multiple “huge gatherings” of shoppers moving through the hallways.

“All of a sudden, another huge wave started happening,” Tuffnell said. “So I was like, this is awful! So I’m going to do something [about] this, because this shouldn’t be happening right now.”

In a recording shared to social media, Tuffnell captured the busy hallways within the facility, a scene that wouldn’t look out of place in a regular year.

“It is Black Friday, so we were expecting the mall to be pretty busy,” she said. “[But we had] people hanging out, talking in the hallways, blocking entrances and lineups. That’s basically what [the posts were] showcasing, just how many people were chilling at the mall.”

Taylor Tuffnell, who works at Chinook Centre, said there were multiple waves of large groups making their way through the mall’s hallways on Friday. (Taylor Tuffnell)

Tuffnell said it’s hard to say how this year might compare to Black Fridays of years past, but said it “felt like so much more” because many were chatting and hanging out instead of shopping.

“It made me feel awful. I love my store, I love my job, I love going to work every day,” she said. “But I am also filled with this overwhelming anxiety when I see these situations, because I have family too.

“To see people taking it lightly and hanging out in malls, instead of going out for essentials for Christmas shopping, holiday shopping, it’s so disheartening.”

Tuffnell said she hoped that people attending malls would follow implemented safety protocols.

“[If not], I would just say, guys, stay home,” she said. “If you’re not going to buy things in the mall, just stay home.”

New provincial restrictions

Justice Minister Kaycee Madu said Friday that about 700 peace officers in Alberta would be given the authority to enforce the province’s health orders.

Madu said the province is ready to enforce the new rules, but added that Alberta is not asking officers to “harass responsible Albertans going about their everyday lives.”

“My expectation is that those who are in violation of the measures that we have put in place would have to be held accountable,” Madu said at the news conference.

“I think you are going to see a heightened level of enforcement in those cases where there are individuals who are blatantly not compliant with the health measures.”

WATCH | Alberta Premier Jason Kenney announces new COVID-19 restrictions for Alberta

Alberta rolled out new restrictions on Tuesday that prohibit all social gatherings in people’s homes and make masks mandatory for all indoor workplaces in the province’s two largest cities. 3:57

New mandatory restrictions announced by the province this week require businesses that can remain open to limit their capacity to 25 per cent of fire code occupancy.

Speaking earlier this week, Premier Jason Kenney said his government will re-evaluate the new restrictions on Dec. 15 and impose stricter measures should case numbers continue to rise at the current rate.

“We will continue to assess it, but we’re not going to let political pressure or ideological approaches to cause indiscriminate damage to people’s lives and livelihoods,” Kenney said.

“We’re going to protect the health-care system using targeted measures. We’ll have to be more restrictive if they don’t work.”

Shoppers physically distance while waiting in line at an electronics store in Calgary on Black Friday. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)

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Business

Carry On Canadian Business. Carry On!

Published

15 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Steven Kaszab

Human Resources Officers must be very busy these days what with the general turnover of employees in our retail and business sectors. It is hard enough to find skilled people let alone potential employees willing to be trained. Then after the training, a few weeks go by then they come to you and ask for a raise. You refuse as there simply is no excess money in the budget and away they fly to wherever they come from, trained but not willing to put in the time to achieve that wanted raise.

I have had potentials come in and we give them a test to see if they do indeed know how to weld, polish or work with wood. 2-10 we hire, and one of those is gone in a week or two. Ask that they want overtime, and their laughter leaving the building is loud and unsettling. Housing starts are doing well but way behind because those trades needed to finish a project simply don’t come to the site, with delay after delay. Some people’s attitudes are just too funny. A recent graduate from a Ivy League university came in for an interview. The position was mid-management potential, but when we told them a three month period was needed and then they would make the big bucks they disappeared as fast as they arrived.

Government agencies are really no help, sending us people unsuited or unwilling to carry out the jobs we offer. Handing money over to staffing firms whose referrals are weak and ineffectual. Perhaps with the Fall and Winter upon us, these folks will have to find work and stop playing on the golf course or cottaging away. Tried to hire new arrivals in Canada but it is truly difficult to find someone who has a real identity card and is approved to live and work here. Who do we hire? Several years ago my father’s firm was rocking and rolling with all sorts of work. It was a summer day when the immigration officers arrived and 30+ employees hit the bricks almost immediately. The investigation that followed had threats of fines thrown at us by the officials. Good thing we kept excellent records, photos and digital copies. We had to prove the illegal documents given to us were as good as the real McCoy.

Restauranteurs, builders, manufacturers, finishers, trades-based firms, and warehousing are all suspect in hiring illegals, yet that becomes secondary as Toronto increases its minimum wage again bringing our payroll up another $120,000. Survival in Canada’s financial and business sectors is questionable for many. Good luck Chuck!. at least your carbon tax refund check should be arriving soon.

Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.ca

Business

Imperial to cut prices in NWT community after low river prevented resupply by barges

Published

19 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

NORMAN WELLS, N.W.T. – Imperial Oil says it will temporarily reduce its fuel prices in a Northwest Territories community that has seen costs skyrocket due to low water on the Mackenzie River forcing the cancellation of the summer barge resupply season.

Imperial says in a Facebook post it will cut the air transportation portion that’s included in its wholesale price in Norman Wells for diesel fuel, or heating oil, from $3.38 per litre to $1.69 per litre, starting Tuesday.

The air transportation increase, it further states, will be implemented over a longer period.

It says Imperial is closely monitoring how much fuel needs to be airlifted to the Norman Wells area to prevent runouts until the winter road season begins and supplies can be replenished.

Gasoline and heating fuel prices approached $5 a litre at the start of this month.

Norman Wells’ town council declared a local emergency on humanitarian grounds last week as some of its 700 residents said they were facing monthly fuel bills coming to more than $5,000.

“The wholesale price increase that Imperial has applied is strictly to cover the air transportation costs. There is no Imperial profit margin included on the wholesale price. Imperial does not set prices at the retail level,” Imperial’s statement on Monday said.

The statement further said Imperial is working closely with the Northwest Territories government on ways to help residents in the near term.

“Imperial Oil’s decision to lower the price of home heating fuel offers immediate relief to residents facing financial pressures. This step reflects a swift response by Imperial Oil to discussions with the GNWT and will help ease short-term financial burdens on residents,” Caroline Wawzonek, Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance and Infrastructure, said in a news release Monday.

Wawzonek also noted the Territories government has supported the community with implementation of a fund supporting businesses and communities impacted by barge cancellations. She said there have also been increases to the Senior Home Heating Subsidy in Norman Wells, and continued support for heating costs for eligible Income Assistance recipients.

Additionally, she said the government has donated $150,000 to the Norman Wells food bank.

In its declaration of a state of emergency, the town said the mayor and council recognized the recent hike in fuel prices has strained household budgets, raised transportation costs, and affected local businesses.

It added that for the next three months, water and sewer service fees will be waived for all residents and businesses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

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Business

U.S. vote has Canadian business leaders worried about protectionist policies: KPMG

Published

19 hours ago

October 22, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – A new report says many Canadian business leaders are worried about economic uncertainties related to the looming U.S. election.

The survey by KPMG in Canada of 735 small- and medium-sized businesses says 87 per cent fear the Canadian economy could become “collateral damage” from American protectionist policies that lead to less favourable trade deals and increased tariffs

It says that due to those concerns, 85 per cent of business leaders in Canada polled are reviewing their business strategies to prepare for a change in leadership.

The concerns are primarily being felt by larger Canadian companies and sectors that are highly integrated with the U.S. economy, such as manufacturing, automotive, transportation and warehousing, energy and natural resources, as well as technology, media and telecommunications.

Shaira Nanji, a KPMG Law partner in its tax practice, says the prospect of further changes to economic and trade policies in the U.S. means some Canadian firms will need to look for ways to mitigate added costs and take advantage of potential trade relief provisions to remain competitive.

Both presidential candidates have campaigned on protectionist policies that could cause uncertainty for Canadian trade, and whoever takes the White House will be in charge during the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2026.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.

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