Canadanewsmedia news September 17, 2024: Bloc wins Montreal Liberal stronghold | Canada News Media
Connect with us

News

Canadanewsmedia news September 17, 2024: Bloc wins Montreal Liberal stronghold

Published

 on

 

Here is a roundup of stories from Canadanewsmedia designed to bring you up to speed…

Bloc wins Montreal Liberal stronghold, NDP holds on to seat in Winnipeg byelection

The Bloc Québécois has won the Montreal Liberal stronghold riding of LaSalle—Émard—Verdun after an extremely tight three-way race with the NDP.

The resounding celebrations are another blow to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who faced calls to resign after losing another longtime Liberal seat in Toronto to the Conservatives in June.

Elections Canada reported all 187 polls showing the Bloc won the seat 248 votes ahead of the Liberals.

Further west in Winnipeg, the NDP maintained its stronghold in the riding of Elmwood — Transcona in a tight byelection race with the Conservatives.

Elections Canada reported the results of all 191 polls in the Winnipeg riding, showing NDP candidate Leila Dance won the race with 48.1 per cent of the vote.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

Inquiry to hear from MPs, elections commissioner

Liberal John McKay and Conservative Garnett Genuis are slated to appear today at a federal inquiry into foreign interference.

Both members of Parliament serve with the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, a group that brings together representatives of various countries to demand accountability from Beijing.

The federal inquiry, led by commissioner Marie-Josée Hogue, is also scheduled to hear from representatives of the Office of the Commissioner of Canada Elections, which carries out investigations.

The latest round of public hearings is focusing on the capacity of federal agencies to detect, deter and counter foreign interference.

The hearings, scheduled to continue through Oct. 16, will be relatively broad in scope, examining democratic institutions and the experiences of diaspora communities.

Calgary council facing fallout of Green Line spat

Calgary city council is set to face the fallout Tuesday of losing Alberta government funding for its Green Line light rail transit project, as Mayor Jyoti Gondek says it’s clear the province isn’t willing to budge on its rerouting demands.

Council is set to hear recommendations on how it could pay for the cost of abandoning the project and will mull over how it might transfer responsibility to the province.

While the city has already spent $1.4 billion on land acquisition, utility work and new rail vehicles, the full cost of killing the project in its current form is expected to become more clear.

Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen penned a letter to Gondek in early September saying the province would pull its $1.53 billion in funding from the $6.2-billion project if the city doesn’t rejig the line’s route and extend it farther south.

Jasper council to discuss provincial funding ask

The town council of Jasper, Alta., is set to discuss today if it will ask for funding from the provincial government to offset reduced property tax revenues for the next three years.

The potential request comes as town administration proposes property tax relief for residents affected by a devastating wildfire in July.

One-third of the town’s buildings were destroyed, and the municipality estimates it has lost access to $1.25 million in annual property tax revenue.

Under the town’s proposal, all property owners would be given a one-month tax break for when a mandatory evacuation order was in place.

Property owners whose homes or businesses were destroyed would have their remaining or outstanding 2024 bill nullified.

The proposal means Jasper would forgo over $1.9 million in municipal property tax revenue this year, or roughly 17 per cent of its overall budget.

Smith to announce supports for squeezed classrooms

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is set to announce a plan to help school classrooms being squeezed by an influx of new families.

Smith has scheduled a televised address to air on Global and CTV and to stream online at 6:50 p.m. local time.

Smith says her government was taken by surprise at the number of people who moved to Alberta last year.

The province’s population grew by more than 200,000 people in 2023-24, and Smith says every single school is facing capacity issues.

The province’s two largest divisions, Edmonton Public Schools and the Calgary Board of Education, say their schools are expected to have a utilization rate of well over 90 per cent this school year.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published September 17, 2024.

Source link

Continue Reading

News

Fledgling Northern Super League adds four to front office ahead of April kickoff

Published

 on

The Northern Super League has fleshed out its front office with four appointments.

Jose Maria Celestino da Costa was named vice-president and head of soccer operations while Marianne Brooks was appointed vice-president of partnerships, Kelly Shouldice as vice-president of brand and content and Joyce Sou as vice-president of finance and business operations.

The new six-team women’s pro league is set to kick off in April.

“Their unique expertise and leadership are crucial as we lay the foundation for not just a successful league in Canada, but one that stands among the top sports leagues in the world,” NSL president Christina Litz said in a statement. “By investing in top-tier talent and infrastructure, the Northern Super League is committed to creating a league that will elevate the game and set new standards for women’s professional soccer globally.”

Da Costa will oversee all on-field matters, including officiating. His resume includes stints with Estoril Praia, a men’s first-division team in Portugal, and the Portuguese Soccer Federation, where he helped develop the Portuguese women’s league.

Brooks spent a decade with Canucks Sports & Entertainment, working in “partnership sales and retention efforts” for the Vancouver Canucks, Vancouver Warriors, and Rogers Arena. Most recently, she served as senior director of account management at StellarAlgo, a software company that helps pro sports teams connect with their fans

Shouldice has worked for Corus Entertainment, the Canadian Football League, and most recently as vice-president of Content and Communications at True North Sports & Entertainment, where she managed original content as well as business and hockey communications.

Sou, who was involved in the league’s initial launch, will oversee financial planning, analysis and the league’s expansion strategy in her new role.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



Source link

Continue Reading

News

CP NewsAlert: Mounties warn of armed robbery suspects west of Edmonton

Published

 on

MAYERTHORPE, Alta. – An emergency alert has been issued in an area west of Edmonton for two armed men.

Mounties say the men are on foot after a robbery.

They say people in the area of Mayerthorpe should not open their doors to strangers or pick up hitchhikers.

They say the suspects are dangerous and should not be approached.

One man is described as white, about 30 years-old, five feet 11 inches tall, 205 pounds with dark hair and dark eyes, who was last seen wearing a cowboy hat and black sweater.

The other man is six feet tall, about 220 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a black flat brim hat with red letters.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



Source link

Continue Reading

Business

The #1 Skill I Look For When Hiring

Published

 on

File this column under “for what it’s worth.”

“Communication is one of the most important skills you require for a successful life.” — Catherine Pulsifer, author.

I’m one hundred percent in agreement with Pulsifer, which is why my evaluation of candidates begins with their writing skills. If a candidate’s writing skills and verbal communication skills, which I’ll assess when interviewing, aren’t well above average, I’ll pass on them regardless of their skills and experience.

 

Why?

 

Because business is fundamentally about getting other people to do things—getting employees to be productive, getting customers to buy your products or services, and getting vendors to agree to a counteroffer price. In business, as in life in general, you can’t make anything happen without effective communication; this is especially true when job searching when your writing is often an employer’s first impression of you.

 

Think of all the writing you engage in during a job search (resumes, cover letters, emails, texts) and all your other writing (LinkedIn profile, as well as posts and comments, blogs, articles, tweets, etc.) employers will read when they Google you to determine if you’re interview-worthy.

 

With so much of our communication today taking place via writing (email, text, collaboration platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, ClickUp, WhatsApp and Rocket.Chat), the importance of proficient writing skills can’t be overstated.

 

When assessing a candidate’s writing skills, you probably think I’m looking for grammar and spelling errors. Although error-free writing is important—it shows professionalism and attention to detail—it’s not the primary reason I look at a candidate’s writing skills.

 

The way someone writes reveals how they think.

 

  • Clear writing = Clear thinking
  • Structured paragraphs = Structured mind
  • Impactful sentences = Impactful ideas

 

Effective writing isn’t about using sophisticated vocabulary. Hemingway demonstrated that deceptively simple, stripped-down prose can captivate readers. Effective writing takes intricate thoughts and presents them in a way that makes the reader think, “Damn! Why didn’t I see it that way?” A good writer is a dead giveaway for a good thinker. More than ever, the business world needs “good thinkers.”

 

Therefore, when I come across a candidate who’s a good writer, hence a good thinker, I know they’re likely to be able to write:

 

  • Emails that don’t get deleted immediately and are responded to
  • Simple, concise, and unambiguous instructions
  • Pitches that are likely to get read
  • Social media content that stops thumbs
  • Human-sounding website copy
  • Persuasively, while attuned to the reader’s possible sensitivities

 

Now, let’s talk about the elephant in the room: AI, which job seekers are using en masse. Earlier this year, I wrote that AI’s ability to hyper-increase an employee’s productivity—AI is still in its infancy; we’ve seen nothing yet—in certain professions, such as writing, sales and marketing, computer programming, office and admin, and customer service, makes it a “fewer employees needed” tool, which understandably greatly appeals to employers. In my opinion, the recent layoffs aren’t related to the economy; they’re due to employers adopting AI. Additionally, companies are trying to balance investing in AI with cost-cutting measures. CEOs who’ve previously said, “Our people are everything,” have arguably created today’s job market by obsessively focusing on AI to gain competitive advantages and reduce their largest expense, their payroll.

 

It wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that most AI usage involves generating written content, content that’s obvious to me, and likely to you as well, to have been written by AI. However, here’s the twist: I don’t particularly care.

 

Why?

 

Because the fundamental skill I’m looking for is the ability to organize thoughts and communicate effectively. What I care about is whether the candidate can take AI-generated content and transform it into something uniquely valuable. If they can, they’re demonstrating the skills of being a good thinker and communicator. It’s like being a great DJ; anyone can push play, but it takes skill to read a room and mix music that gets people pumped.

 

Using AI requires prompting effectively, which requires good writing skills to write clear and precise instructions that guide the AI to produce desired outcomes. Prompting AI effectively requires understanding structure, flow and impact. You need to know how to shape raw information, such as milestones throughout your career when you achieved quantitative results, into a compelling narrative.

So, what’s the best way to gain and enhance your writing skills? As with any skill, you’ve got to work at it.

Two rules guide my writing:

 

  • Use strong verbs and nouns instead of relying on adverbs, such as “She dashed to the store.” instead of “She ran quickly to the store.” or “He whispered to the child.” instead of “He spoke softly to the child.”
  • Avoid using long words when a shorter one will do, such as “use” instead of “utilize” or “ask” instead of “inquire.” As attention spans get shorter, I aim for clarity, simplicity and, most importantly, brevity in my writing.

 

Don’t just string words together; learn to organize your thoughts, think critically, and communicate clearly. Solid writing skills will significantly set you apart from your competition, giving you an advantage in your job search and career.

_____________________________________________________________________

 

Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.

Continue Reading

Trending

Exit mobile version