Some high school students could be on the road legally without passing a driving test, as Manitoba Public Insurance scrambles to restore priority services while its employees are on strike.
Students who have already completed MPI’s driver education program — known as Driver Z and taken by high-schoolers at least 15 1/2 years old — will be issued a Class 5 licence (permitting operation of passenger vehicles primarily, held by most Manitoba motorists) without having to pass a road test in an attempt to prevent a backlog in testing. The seven-month program includes 20 class hours, 14 hours of in-car instruction and a minimum of 45 hours of mandatory driving practice.
Parental consent will be required for students to receive a licence without a road test, and they can request that their child be subject to one.
It’s part of a new contingency plan to restore services suspended by the walkout earlier this week of MPI’s 1,700 workers in the first strike in the Crown corporation’s 52-year history.
“I’m confident that there will be no safety concerns by taking this step.”–MPI board chair Ward Keith
While road tests have historically been used to determine driver aptitude, MPI board chair Ward Keith said students who complete the Driver Z program are more likely to pass road tests and have fewer future traffic violations than other drivers.
“I’m confident that there will be no safety concerns by taking this step,” Keith said Wednesday.
All other Class 5 drivers who were waiting for a road test before the strike began will be required to take one conducted by driver-education instructors under contract to MPI. The public insurer said 70 instructors have been contracted thus far, and they will have the ability to conduct tests in their modified training vehicles, many of which are fitted with an additional passenger-accessible brake pedal and other safety features the instructor can use to end the test safely.
Students who get licences without passing a road test could find themselves subject to taking one at a later date. Manitoba’s registrar of motor vehicles will have the discretion to require anyone licensed during the strike to pass the proficiency exam down the road, at no cost.
While road tests have historically been used to determine driver aptitude, MPI board chair Ward Keith said students who complete the Driver Z program are more likely to pass road tests and have fewer future traffic violations than other drivers.While road tests have historically been used to determine driver aptitude, MPI board chair Ward Keith said students who complete the Driver Z program are more likely to pass road tests and have fewer future traffic violations than other drivers.
Keith said while there aren’t any requirements in place yet to determine which new drivers are selected to take a test, MPI will be tracking safety stats.
“I’m not saying necessarily that anyone will need to get re-tested. I’m just saying that the registrar needs to have that discretion, if there’s a need to do so in the future. And that’s what we’ll learn from this program,” he said.
An MPI spokesperson said the corporation wasn’t able to provide the number of students who could have their road test waived, but about 12 per cent of all road tests are booked by Driver Z students.
MPI cancelled 2,048 Class 5 road tests this week. Drivers with appointments that were cancelled as a result of the strike are already being contacted, and Keith said the exams are expected to begin early next week.
“I’m hoping that actually we’ll be able to address some of the backlog that currently exists for driver testing by leveraging the driver-ed instructors throughout the province,” he said.
Some experienced driving instructors are less confident than Keith.
Lek Kinnarath, the owner of Maple Leaf Driving School, has been teaching Manitoba’s teenagers to drive for several decades. He said the Driver Z program alone isn’t sufficient to get them road-ready.
“It’s definitely unsafe for them to just get their licence without having a proper test…. I’m strongly opposed to that,” he said.
“I know for sure, most of the students that receive this course, the Drivers Z course, they usually get some basic knowledge only. They are not really in the advanced stage.”
“It’s definitely unsafe for them to just get their licence without having a proper test…. I’m strongly opposed to that.”–Lek Kinnarath, Maple Leaf Driving School
He said he has trained students who have completed the course but waited months to train for their road test, and they had retained little of what they were taught in the program.
“Let’s say, if I have 10 Driver Z students — and I’m talking from my experience of 36 years of teaching — I would say, out of 10 students, there may be only one student that (is) quite good… 90 per cent of them, they are nowhere close to be able to drive safely,” he said.
Ideally, MPI would be bringing in professional driving instructors to hold road tests for all drivers, regardless of what program they’ve completed, he said, adding he was invited by MPI Tuesday to work as a road test examiner. He won’t be crossing the picket line any time soon.
He said he knows many of the striking workers from taking students to their road tests and doesn’t want to betray them.
“They’re asking MPI for better pay, for better living and everything. And here, we, behind their back, we’re doing their job,” he said. “I would say that they would look at us as the enemy.”
Striking workers rallied at the Legislative Building Wednesday afternoon to call out Premier Heather Stefanson, who published a video on her X (formerly Twitter) account chiding the Manitoba Government and General Employees’ Union for calling back-to-back strikes for members from two (MPI and Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries) Crown corporations.
Striking MPI workers rallied at the Legislative Building Wednesday afternoon to call out Premier Heather Stefanson.”>
Striking MPI workers rallied at the Legislative Building Wednesday afternoon to call out Premier Heather Stefanson.
To chants of “Where is Heather?” from more than 1,000 people in attendance, MGEU president Kyle Ross joked: “She’s probably shooting a video.”
“It’s not easy to take a stand when it comes to your livelihood; going on strike is scary. Over 1,700 families here in Manitoba are putting their lives on line, their necks out and their lives on hold. And so far all they received from their employer and their government is spin, and two poorly produced videos,” Ross said, drawing a loud chorus of boos from the crowd.
Earlier this month during the now-settled MLL workers strike, Andrew Smith, the Progressive Conservative government minister responsible for liquor and lotteries, posted a video blaming the dispute on “the NDP and their union friends.”
At the rally, MPI contact centre employee Cheryl Santilli told the crowd it was time for the province to “recognize the standard of excellence we provide and pay us what we deserve.”
“Stop your war of words with propaganda and false information and get back to the table to negotiate a fair deal for the employees of MPI who make you look so good to everyone.”
TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.
The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.
The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.
Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
