Portia Clark, host of CBC Radio’s Information Morning, spoke to Gordon Stewart, the head of the Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia, on Friday about how restaurants are handling the new policy.
This discussion has been edited for length and clarity.
Gordon Stewart, pictured, is the head of of the Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia. Stewart said the launch of the province’s proof-of-vaccine policy in restaurants has gone smoothly so far. (Alexander Quon photo)
Overall, what have you been hearing from your membership?
Generally, it went relatively smoothly. Certainly, there’s a lot of hiccups when we’re introducing something new like this to the sector, so there were some hiccups right across the province.
We had people showing up with their proof of vaccination, but didn’t have identification because they assumed they didn’t have to have it, so that meant they weren’t allowed to be in the restaurant, which obviously caused some frustration with some customers.
There’s some problems that are still lingering out there, and I expect those will probably continue for the next week or so.
Have you heard anything about people showing up without proof of vaccination and insisting they be seated?
There definitely have been some of those, for sure. Some people were not aware of the rules at all, which is surprising. But again, they learn very quickly that they need to have it to get in.
One of the things that’s different from when we were restricted more in restaurants last time [is] there are more sectors restricted now, like large events like hockey games and the Wanderer Grounds and theatres — you have to have proof of vaccination plus your ID.
That makes a huge difference. Now more people are prepared for it.
I’ve heard of at least one instance in which the RCMP had to be called. How common has that been?
It’s not common, but definitely we’ve had to have police and enforcement officers intervene. In some cases some people wouldn’t leave and in some cases the restaurant wasn’t taking the proof of vaccination or the ID, so there’s a little bit of issues on both sides of the fence.
Can restaurants keep a list of their regular customers’ vaccination record so they don’t have to show proof every time?
Yes, that is OK. It’s reasonable that if you have regular good customers and you [check] them in terms of their proof of vaccination plus their ID, then you can keep a record of that. Afterwards, you accept the responsibility as the owner or operator that they have already been tested before.
As the restaurant association, how have you been helping restaurants deal with the anxiety, but also the actual situations that they might be confronted with?
It’s not an easy thing when waiters and waitresses are hired — I don’t suspect they’re meant to be a bouncer or a doorman — so this is an added effort on their part, and I think it’s stressful on them. That’s not an easy thing for people to do. Some do it better than others, but that’s not why they were hired so it’s very challenging.
There’s a website [workers] can go to for tough customers, for bullying, things like that. We also highly recommend that they don’t engage at all. Like if someone doesn’t want to show their vaccination or even some people that don’t want to wear their mask, we’re saying don’t engage with them, just turn around and call the police immediately.
Information Morning – NS8:20How is the province’s proof of vaccination requirement playing out in restaurants?
To eat out at a restaurant in Nova Scotia, you have to show proof of having two doses of a COVID vaccine. Gordan Stewart, executive director of the Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia, tells us what he’s been hearing from restaurants in terms of compliance, patronage and pushback. 8:20
All the police departments and the different enforcement officers are aware of these situations. There have been a few fines handed out already, so [customers] want to stay in line so they won’t get that fine.
How helpful is the information on that website in terms of dealing with bullies in a restaurant or a bar?
It’s reasonably good. I think good common sense will serve you well too. The biggest thing is the confrontation — don’t be in confrontation mode. There’s no value to that. It’s not going to add any value to the situation.
It’s only going to make it worse and it will resolve itself. It might take five minutes and might take 15 minutes, but they’re not going to get served, so they’re not going to stay there forever.
Something that might come up in that situation is the people who work at the restaurant don’t have to prove they’re vaccinated. The patrons do. Is that possibly a source of conflict?
It could be, but it’s highly recommended. It’s not mandated to have a vaccine, but we are asking that [employees] have a test before you go to the shift. No one should work in a restaurant in Nova Scotia who either hasn’t been fully vaccinated or tested before they go on the shift.
Why aren’t you recommending to your membership that they make that COVID-19 vaccines mandatory for the staff?
We’re recommending that no one work in a restaurant [unless they have been vaccinated] or has had the rapid test.
What if you go into a restaurant, you’re not asked for your proof of vaccination or your identification? What should you do about that?
Well, if you’re a consumer, I think you should raise that issue. The fine for an operator not asking is about $7,500. It’s not something you want to [not do].
It’s possible someone might forget to do that, but I don’t think so given the circumstances now. It’s more likely that they didn’t want to do it and that is an offence under the Health Act right now.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology group SoftBank swung back to profitability in the July-September quarter, boosted by positive results in its Vision Fund investments.
Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp. reported Tuesday a fiscal second quarter profit of nearly 1.18 trillion yen ($7.7 billion), compared with a 931 billion yen loss in the year-earlier period.
Quarterly sales edged up about 6% to nearly 1.77 trillion yen ($11.5 billion).
SoftBank credited income from royalties and licensing related to its holdings in Arm, a computer chip-designing company, whose business spans smartphones, data centers, networking equipment, automotive, consumer electronic devices, and AI applications.
The results were also helped by the absence of losses related to SoftBank’s investment in office-space sharing venture WeWork, which hit the previous fiscal year.
WeWork, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2023, emerged from Chapter 11 in June.
SoftBank has benefitted in recent months from rising share prices in some investment, such as U.S.-based e-commerce company Coupang, Chinese mobility provider DiDi Global and Bytedance, the Chinese developer of TikTok.
SoftBank’s financial results tend to swing wildly, partly because of its sprawling investment portfolio that includes search engine Yahoo, Chinese retailer Alibaba, and artificial intelligence company Nvidia.
SoftBank makes investments in a variety of companies that it groups together in a series of Vision Funds.
The company’s founder, Masayoshi Son, is a pioneer in technology investment in Japan. SoftBank Group does not give earnings forecasts.
Shopify Inc. executives brushed off concerns that incoming U.S. President Donald Trump will be a major detriment to many of the company’s merchants.
“There’s nothing in what we’ve heard from Trump, nor would there have been anything from (Democratic candidate) Kamala (Harris), which we think impacts the overall state of new business formation and entrepreneurship,” Shopify’s chief financial officer Jeff Hoffmeister told analysts on a call Tuesday.
“We still feel really good about all the merchants out there, all the entrepreneurs that want to start new businesses and that’s obviously not going to change with the administration.”
Hoffmeister’s comments come a week after Trump, a Republican businessman, trounced Harris in an election that will soon return him to the Oval Office.
On the campaign trail, he threatened to impose tariffs of 60 per cent on imports from China and roughly 10 per cent to 20 per cent on goods from all other countries.
If the president-elect makes good on the promise, many worry the cost of operating will soar for companies, including customers of Shopify, which sells e-commerce software to small businesses but also brands as big as Kylie Cosmetics and Victoria’s Secret.
These merchants may feel they have no choice but to pass on the increases to customers, perhaps sparking more inflation.
If Trump’s tariffs do come to fruition, Shopify’s president Harley Finkelstein pointed out China is “not a huge area” for Shopify.
However, “we can’t anticipate what every presidential administration is going to do,” he cautioned.
He likened the uncertainty facing the business community to the COVID-19 pandemic where Shopify had to help companies migrate online.
“Our job is no matter what comes the way of our merchants, we provide them with tools and service and support for them to navigate it really well,” he said.
Finkelstein was questioned about the forthcoming U.S. leadership change on a call meant to delve into Shopify’s latest earnings, which sent shares soaring 27 per cent to $158.63 shortly after Tuesday’s market open.
The Ottawa-based company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, reported US$828 million in net income for its third quarter, up from US$718 million in the same quarter last year, as its revenue rose 26 per cent.
Revenue for the period ended Sept. 30 totalled US$2.16 billion, up from US$1.71 billion a year earlier.
Subscription solutions revenue reached US$610 million, up from US$486 million in the same quarter last year.
Merchant solutions revenue amounted to US$1.55 billion, up from US$1.23 billion.
Shopify’s net income excluding the impact of equity investments totalled US$344 million for the quarter, up from US$173 million in the same quarter last year.
Daniel Chan, a TD Cowen analyst, said the results show Shopify has a leadership position in the e-commerce world and “a continued ability to gain market share.”
In its outlook for its fourth quarter of 2024, the company said it expects revenue to grow at a mid-to-high-twenties percentage rate on a year-over-year basis.
“Q4 guidance suggests Shopify will finish the year strong, with better-than-expected revenue growth and operating margin,” Chan pointed out in a note to investors.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
TORONTO – RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust says it has cut almost 10 per cent of its staff as it deals with a slowdown in the condo market and overall pushes for greater efficiency.
The company says the cuts, which amount to around 60 employees based on its last annual filing, will mean about $9 million in restructuring charges and should translate to about $8 million in annualized cash savings.
The job cuts come as RioCan and others scale back condo development plans as the market softens, but chief executive Jonathan Gitlin says the reductions were from a companywide efficiency effort.
RioCan says it doesn’t plan to start any new construction of mixed-use properties this year and well into 2025 as it adjusts to the shifting market demand.
The company reported a net income of $96.9 million in the third quarter, up from a loss of $73.5 million last year, as it saw a $159 million boost from a favourable change in the fair value of investment properties.
RioCan reported what it says is a record-breaking 97.8 per cent occupancy rate in the quarter including retail committed occupancy of 98.6 per cent.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 12, 2024.
