adplus-dvertising
Connect with us

News

‘I’m tired all the time now’: Canada is so expensive that some Ukrainian immigrants are leaving

Published

 on

Not long after Russia began bombing Ukraine, Oleksii Martynenko packed his bags and fled Kremenchuk, a once-tranquil but now war-torn city roughly 190 miles from Kyiv. He moved to Stockholm and took a job as a line cook. One year later, as his work visa approached expiry, he relocated to Canada’s largest city.

The continental change of scenery proved challenging for the Ukrainian immigrant. It took Martynenko about two months to find a comparable job in Toronto’s bustling downtown, about an hour’s commute from his apartment in the city’s suburbs. It wasn’t enough to pay the bills, so he soon took a second job, also as a line cook, and now works seven days a week in fast-paced kitchens.

The strenuous work and high cost of living has taken its toll. Martynenko, 44, is now planning a return to Sweden. His monthly expenses in Toronto include roughly $100 for a phone plan , $150 for public transit, $400 for groceries, and $1,000 for a room in a rooming house, where the kitchen and bathroom are shared among four tenants. Any money left over is sent back to family still in Ukraine. At least in Stockholm he earned enough to have savings, he said.

“I’m tired all the time now,” Martynenko said in an interview. “I want to go back to Europe because it’s such a difficult life in Canada.”

Canada has long been a choice destination for newcomers seeking a better life in a prosperous nation. Nearly a quarter of all Canadians are immigrants and the country has welcomed nearly 200,000 Ukrainians since the war’s outset. But the daily grind of life in Canada’s busiest metropolises — not just Toronto but also Vancouver, Montreal and Calgary — along with soaring costs is making it increasingly hard to get by.

Social service organizations have warned that the country’s most vulnerable citizens — often newcomers — are affected most by higher prices, especially in housing. Andrei Zavialov, a settlement worker with Ukrainian Canadian Social Services Toronto, said he knows of at least 15 Ukrainians who have returned to their home country from the Greater Toronto Area since the war broke out. There isn’t one predominant reason for leaving, he said, but expenses are among the most cited factors.

“An individual becomes unable to find money, but they need to pay for very high rent, groceries,” said Zavialov. “And such expenses hit an immigrant’s pocket strongly. No job, no money, they return to Ukraine where everything is familiar.”

Anecdotal stories like these are supported by new research suggesting that more newcomers have chosen to leave Canada in recent years as worsening housing affordability, a strained health-care system, and underemployment spark disillusionment with the opportunities the country offers.

An acceleration of that trend would undermine Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ambitious plans to stave off economic backsliding through relaxed immigration policies. Like many developed countries, Canada’s birthrate is declining and the population would shrink were it not for new arrivals. Real gross domestic product per capita has stagnated over the past decade, while soaring home prices have far outpaced disposable income.

The Trudeau government’s solution is a target of roughly half a million new permanent residents a year, on top of a recent boom in arrivals that pushed Canada’s annual population growth rate to 2.7 per cent in 2022, the fastest pace among advanced economies.

The challenge now is retaining them. Newcomers have to navigate a web of problems, starting with housing costs. Even smaller Canadian cities are facing tight rental supply as higher interest rates have discouraged would-be buyers, creating fierce competition for rental units. The average cost of rent in Canada hit a record $2,149 in September, up more than 11 per cent from a year prior, according to research firm Urbanation. In Toronto, it was $2,614, which represents almost the entire pretax income of a person working full-time for minimum wage.

Other costs are also rising. While inflation is decelerating, it’s still running at 3.8 per cent, “much too high for comfort,” according Benjamin Reitzes, a rates and macro strategist at the Bank of Montreal. Grocery costs increased 5.8 per cent annually in September, while gas prices jumped 7.5 per cent.

To be sure, many newcomers are keen to stay in the country. Zavialov said most Ukrainian newcomers he’s interacted with have expressed strong admiration for Canada — its diverse population, socialized health care system and fraying but still-strong social net. The decision whether to return to Ukraine or stay in Canada is also inspired by factors beyond expenses — proximity to war, safety, or a sense of patriotic duty.

A combination of those considerations prompted Anna-Maria Lyakhovetska to plan a return to Ukraine as soon as it’s safe. The 17-year-old moved to Germany after her father died in the war, and then relocated to Canada, arriving in Toronto just seven months ago. Now she wants to go back, in part to escape the hurdles of life in a new country and in part to aid the war effort. Russia’s invasion, she said, encouraged her to pursue a career in political organizing.

“It’s expensive living here,” she said. “But I also want to go back to help my country.”

The bulk of Canada’s Ukrainian immigrant intake is clustered in Ontario, the country’s most populous province, according social services group Operation Ukrainian Safe Haven. Based on financial assistance data, 40 per cent of recent Ukrainian immigrants have settled in Ontario while 21.4 per cent landed in Alberta and 10.3 per cent went to Manitoba.

Oleksandr Halyk, 50, arrived in Canada with his 25-year-old son in March, directly from Ukraine. An engineer back home, he took a job as a cabinet maker in north Toronto because he lacked a convertible degree. His son, meanwhile, found a better paying job at an airport.

“For my son, I think that he will stay here for a long time and probably build his future,” Halyk said. “But for me, to tell the truth, a life in Canada is much more expensive than in Ukraine, or in Europe. There, I have experience, and I can find work with a good salary.”

728x90x4

Source link

Continue Reading

News

NASA astronauts won’t say which one of them got sick after almost eight months in space

Published

 on

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Three NASA astronauts whose prolonged space station mission ended with a trip to the hospital last month declined to say Friday which one of them was sick.

Astronauts Matthew Dominick, Michael Barratt and Jeanette Epps publicly discussed their spaceflight for the first time since returning from the International Space Station on Oct. 25. They spent nearly eight months in orbit, longer than expected because of all the trouble with Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule and rough weather, including Hurricane Milton.

Soon after their SpaceX capsule splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico off the Florida coast, the three were taken to a hospital in nearby Pensacola along with Russian cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, who launched with them back in March.

One of the Americans ended up spending the night there for an undisclosed “medical issue.” NASA declined to say who was hospitalized or why, citing medical privacy.

When asked at Friday’s news conference which one had been sick, the astronauts refused to comment. Barratt, a doctor who specializes in space medicine, declined to even describe the symptoms that the unidentified astronaut had.

“Spaceflight is still something we don’t fully understand. We’re finding things that we don’t expect sometimes. This was one of those times and we’re still piecing things together on this,” said Barratt, the only member of the crew who had flown in space before.

Epps said everyone is different in how they respond to space — and gravity.

“That’s the part that you can’t predict,” she said, adding, “Every day is better than the day before.”

Dominick said little things like sitting comfortably in a hard chair took several days to get used to once he returned. He said he didn’t use the treadmill at all during his time in space, as part of an experiment to see what equipment might be pared on a long trip to Mars. The first time he walked was when he got out of the capsule.

The two astronauts who served as test pilots for Boeing’s Starliner — Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams — will remain at the space station until February, flying back with SpaceX. Starliner returned empty in September.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



Source link

Continue Reading

News

43 monkeys remain on the run from South Carolina lab. CEO thinks they’re having an adventure

Published

 on

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Forty-three monkeys bred for medical research that escaped a compound in South Carolina have been spotted in the woods near the site and workers are using food to try to recapture them, authorities said Friday.

The Rhesus macaques made a break for it Wednesday after an employee at the Alpha Genesis facility in Yemassee didn’t fully lock a door as she fed and checked on them, officials said.

“They are very social monkeys and they travel in groups, so when the first couple go out the door the others tend to just follow right along,” Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard told CBS News.

Westergaard said his main goal is to have the monkeys returned safely with no other problems. “I think they are having an adventure,” he said.

The monkeys on Friday were exploring the outer fence of the Alpha Genesis compound and are cooing at the monkeys inside, police said in a statement.

“The primates are exhibiting calm and playful behavior, which is a positive indication,” the police statement said, adding company workers are closely watching the monkeys while keeping their distance as they work to safely recapture them.

The monkeys are about the size of a cat. They are all females weighing about 7 pounds (3 kilograms).

Alpha Genesis, federal health officials and police all said the monkeys pose no risk to public health. The facility breeds the monkeys to sell to medical and other researchers.

“They are not infected with any disease whatsoever. They are harmless and a little skittish,” Yemassee Police Chief Gregory Alexander said Thursday.

Authorities still recommend that people who live near the compound about 1 mile (1.6 kilometers) from downtown Yemassee shut their windows and doors and call 911 if they see the monkeys. Approaching them could make them more skittish and harder to capture, officials said.

Eve Cooper, a biology professor at the University of Colorado Boulder who has studied rhesus macaques, said the animals have the potential to be dangerous and urged people to keep their distance.

Rhesus macaques monkeys can be aggressive. And some carry the herpes B virus, which can be fatal to humans, Cooper said.

However, Alpha Genesis states on its website that it specializes in pathogen-free primates. Cooper noted that there are pathogen-free populations of rhesus macaques that have been quarantined and tested.

“I would give them a wide berth,” Cooper said. “They’re unpredictable animals. And they can behave quite aggressively when they’re afraid.”

Alpha Genesis provides primates for research worldwide at its compound about 50 miles (80 kilometers) northeast of Savannah, Georgia, according to its website.

Locally, it is known as “the monkey farm.” And there is more amusement than panic around Yemassee and its population of about 1,100 just off Interstate 95 about 2 miles from Auldbrass Plantation, a Frank Lloyd Wright house designed in the 1930s.

There have been escapes before, but the monkeys haven’t caused problems, said William McCoy, who owns Lowcountry Horology, a clock and watch repair shop.

“They normally come home because that’s where the food is,” he said.

McCoy has lived in Yemassee for about two years and while he plans to stay away from the monkeys, he has his own light-hearted plan to get them back.

“I’m stocking up bananas, maybe they’ll show up,” McCoy said.

The Alpha Genesis compound is regularly inspected by federal officials.

In 2018, the U.S. Department of Agriculture fined Alpha Genesis $12,600 in part after officials said 26 primates escaped from the Yemassee facility in 2014 and an additional 19 got out in 2016.

The company’s fine was also issued because of individual monkey escapes as well as the killing of one monkey by others when it was placed in the wrong social group, according to a report from the USDA.

The group Stop Animal Exploitation Now sent a letter Thursday to the USDA asking the agency to immediately send an inspector to the Alpha Genesis facility, conduct a thorough investigation and treat them as a repeated violator. The group was involved in the 2018 fine against the company.

“The clear carelessness which allowed these 40 monkeys to escape endangered not only the safety of the animals, but also put the residents of South Carolina at risk,” wrote Michael Budkie, executive director of the group.

The USDA, which has inspected the compound 10 times since 2020, didn’t immediately respond to the letter.

The facility’s most recent federal inspection in May showed there were about 6,700 primates on site and no issues.

In a 2022 review, federal veterinarians reported two animals died when their fingers were trapped in structures and they were exposed to harsh weather. They also found cages weren’t adequately secure. Inspectors said criminal charges, civil penalties or other sanctions could follow if the problems weren’t fixed.

Since then, Alpha Genesis has undergone six inspections with minor problems reported only once.

In January 2023, the USDA said temperatures were out of the 45 to 85 degree Fahrenheit (7.2 to 29.5 degree Celsius) required range at some of the compound’s monkey cages. The inspection found moldy food in one bin, sharp edges on a gate that could cut an animal and sludge, food waste, used medical supplies, mechanical equipment, and general construction debris on the grounds.

Supporters of medical research involving nonhuman primates said they are critical to lifesaving medical advances like creating vaccines against COVID-19 because of their similarities to people. Keeping a domestic supply of the animals is critical to prevent shortages for U.S. researchers.

Humans have been using the rhesus macaque for scientific research since the late 1800s. Scientists believe that rhesus macaques and humans split from a common ancestor about 25 million years ago and share about 93% of the same DNA.

These monkeys have been launched into space on V2 rockets, used for AIDS research, had their genome mapped and made stars of their own reality television show. They were in such high demand in the early 2000s that a shortage led to scientists paying up to $10,000 per animal.

Outside of rats and mice, rhesus macaques are one of the most studied animals on the planet, said Dario Maestripieri, a behavioral scientist at the University of Chicago who wrote the 2007 book “Macachiavellian Intelligence: How Rhesus Macaques and Humans Have Conquered the World.”

The animals are very family oriented, siding with relatives when fights break out. And they’re adept at building political alliances in the face of threats from other monkeys. But they can be painful to watch. Monkeys with lower status in the hierarchy live in a constant state of fear and intimidation, Maestripieri said.

“In some ways, they kind of represent some of the worst aspects of human nature,” Maestripieri said.

___

Lovan reported from Louisville, Kentucky, and Finley reported from Norfolk, Virginia.



Source link

Continue Reading

News

Freeland says she’s ready to deal with Trump |

Published

 on

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland speaks with reporters after chairing a special cabinet committee working on Canada’s plan to deal with the incoming Donald Trump administration. Freeland says she’s stood up for Canadian interests in the past and is ready to go another round. (Nov. 8, 2024)



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending