Canada reported 1,685 new cases of the novel coronavirus on Sunday, as well as five new deaths.
The new data brings the country’s total number of COVID-19 infections to 181,678, and its death toll from the virus to 9,613, though Alberta, B.C. and all the territories except for the Yukon did not release updates on their case figures.
As of Sunday, a total of 153,219 patients have recovered from their infections, while over 9.87 million tests have been administered.
Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam said that the steep rise in new coronavirus cases over the last week, which coincided with Thanksgiving planning for millions of Canadians, was troubling.
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“The table will be smaller, and we will be missing those who are not in attendance,” wrote Tam in a statement Sunday.
“What is usually a special tradition for many Canadians, will serve as a hard reminder of how much we are sacrificing to protect ourselves, those we love and our communities.”
9:33 Justice Minister ‘confident’ coronavirus court delays are under control as second wave surges
Justice Minister ‘confident’ coronavirus court delays are under control as second wave surges
According to Tam, labs across Canada have tested an average of over 71,000 people daily for the virus, with 2.5 per cent of tests resulting in a positive case.
Quebec announced 942 new cases on Sunday, raising its total COVID-19 cases to 86,133. No new deaths were reported by the province, though three earlier fatalities not previously announced were added to the provincial death toll.
The province has seen a total of 5,953 deaths, while more than 71,800 patients have recovered from the virus.
Ontario added 649 new COVID-19 cases on Sunday, as well as seven new deaths.
5:27 Massive coronavirus test wait times not a sign of ‘good testing regime’: Ambrose
Massive coronavirus test wait times not a sign of ‘good testing regime’: Ambrose
The new data brings the province’s case total to 59,139 and its death toll to 3,005. Another 50,437 individuals there have since recovered from the virus.
Manitoba added 54 new cases on Sunday, raising its provincial case total to 2,578 of which an unknown number are considered probable cases. The province’s death toll stands at 32.
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Saskatchewan announced 24 new cases of the virus on Sunday, as well as one new death.
To date, a total of 1,888 lab-confirmed cases have been diagnosed in the province, while the death toll has been raised to 25.
New Brunswick reported 14 new cases of COVID-19 on Sunday as cases continue to spike from several outbreaks in the province over the past week.
Sunday’s cases bring the provincial case total to 272, of which 71 are considered active and diagnosed in the last seven days. The provincial death toll stands at two.
P.E.I. announced two new cases of the coronavirus on Sunday. The province’s total lab-confirmed cases stand at 63 and its death toll at zero.
Yukon reported one presumptive case on Sunday, though lab testing is being done to officially diagnose the case. The territory has seen a total of 15 confirmed cases and no deaths from the virus.
Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador reported no new cases of the virus on Sunday.
Worldwide, cases of the novel coronavirus have surpassed 37,350,000 according to tally by Johns Hopkins University. More than 1,074,000 people have succumbed to the virus globally, with the United States, Brazil and India leading in both cases and 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.
