The spread of the novel coronavirus in Canada painted a lopsided picture Sunday, as one province broke its record in newly reported COVID-19 cases and another recorded none for the first time in eight weeks.
Ontario reported nearly 4,000 new coronavirus cases as the spread of the virus in the nation’s most populous province began to prompt warnings from officials and health authorities of the virus spiraling out of control.
Government sources have since told Global News that the province is considering implementing a similar curfew to that of Quebec, with measures to be set in place from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m.
Quebec’s curfew came into effect Saturday evening, with most residents not being able to leave home during those times except for essential workers or those walking their dogs.
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Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Friday that “everything is on the table” when it came to selecting new measures to stop the spread of the virus.
2:42 Quebec’s pandemic curfew is put to the test
Quebec’s pandemic curfew is put to the test
That announcement was contrasted with new case data from Atlantic provinces Sunday, where New Brunswick recorded 14 new cases, Newfoundland and Labrador its first in several days and Nova Scotia zero new infections for the first time since Nov. 12.
On Twitter, Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam said that “disease activity remains widespread across Canada, and nationally, we remain on the path of continuing resurgence.”
2/2 As we advance toward widespread, lasting control of #COVID19 through safe & effective vaccines, an all Canadian effort is needed to help keep up the pace of progress! Maintain public health practices: #WashMaskSpace#Avoid3Cshttps://t.co/XA6qs0saSv
Her comments come amid a total of 7,817 new cases reported today across the country, raising Canada’s COVID-19 caseload to 659,788.
Another 117 people have died in Canada from the virus as well, with the national death toll standing at 16,950. Over 545,900 people have since recovered from the virus, however, while at least 19,371,000 tests have been administered.
Sunday’s snapshot of the virus’ spread across Canada remains limited however, with provinces like B.C. and P.E.I., as well as all of the territories, not reporting their COVID-19 data on the weekend.
Of those that did report new numbers Sunday, both Ontario and Quebec registered the highest daily case increases.
Quebec, which implemented Canada’s strictest health measures to date with a curfew Saturday night, recorded another 2,588 cases. The hardest hit province has now tallied a total of 228,821 cases, while another 39 deaths pushed its death toll to 8,686.
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2:14 Canada’s first case of South African COVID-19 variant found in Alberta
Canada’s first case of South African COVID-19 variant found in Alberta
Alberta’s cases now stand at 111,452 after another 811 cases were reported there Sunday. Twelve more deaths were also reported in the province.
Saskatchewan added another 307 cases while Manitoba reported 151.
Worldwide, cases of the virus continue to spread with infections now surpassing the 90-million mark as of Sunday, according to Johns Hopkins University. Over 1,933,000 people have also died from the virus, with the US., India and Brazil continuing to lead in both cases and deaths.
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— With files from the Canadian Press and Global News’ Ryan Rocca
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.
