BUILDING TRADES ARE CONSERVATIVE

Michael Taube: Doug Ford's endorsements show unions and Conservatives can be allies

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford has run a strong campaign in the provincial election. He’s ahead in the polls, has performed well in the leaders’ debates and has earned endorsements from likely sources as well as some unlikely ones.

© Provided by National PostOntario Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford makes an announcement with Stelco as a backdrop during an election campaign stop in Hamilton on May 18, 2022.

The most interesting endorsements of the lot? Four unions — the Laborers’ International Union of North America, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, IBEW Construction Council of Ontario and the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) — have come out in support of Ford and the Ontario PC government. In the past, the words “Conservative” and “endorsed” have seldom passed the lips of union leaders and members in combination thereof.

Anti-Ford critics must surely be beside themselves. It’s one thing for former Mississauga mayor Hazel McCallion, a longtime Liberal, to endorse Ford. The influential municipal powerhouse has occasionally supported Conservative candidates, and endorsed Ford in the 2018 provincial election. But why would four labour unions support a Conservative politician who previously had issues with some public sector workers?
“I’m not gonna judge any other party. I’ll tell you, our families, be it my dad or my brother Rob or (nephew) Michael, we’ve supported the hard-working women and men in this province, the union members,” Ford said earlier this week at IUPAT’s headquarters. “We always have. I love ‘em.”

That’s really what Ford has always thought about unions and the working class. Like other politicians, he’ll agree and disagree with some of their views. He may fight like cats and dogs with them every once in a while, but sees it as being the same as having a small, short-lived tiff with your parents, siblings, neighbours or the grocer down the street. He ultimately knows that blue-collar workers play a vital role in society and the provincial economy — and he’ll defend them and their unions to the bitter end.

This isn’t the first time that union leaders have stood in solidarity with Ford in some fashion, either. When he announced the provincial minimum wage would be raised to $15 an hour starting in January, OPSEU’s Smokey Thomas and now-former Unifor national leader Jerry Dias flanked him at the press conference. All those whose mouths that were left agape at this stunning visual can maybe pick up their jaws at long last.

Alas, it’s yet another example of how progressives and liberal elites just don’t understand how Ford Nation works and succeeds.

As I’ve written before, Ford Nation combines populist rhetoric and conservative principles. Ontarians from all walks of life are fed up with Big Government, high taxes and regular interference in their daily lives. Ford, like other members of his family (including his late brother, former Toronto mayor Rob Ford), values individual rights, liberties and freedoms and wants to give more control back to the people.

This means Ford stands up for the little guy as much as he stands up for business and the free market economy. Moreover, Ford gets what matters most to them. He may come from a different financial background and lifestyle, but his plain-spoken language and folky mannerisms — which are genuine personality traits — are something they can identify with. It’s also why they don’t get worked up about things if he makes a mistake or has to change course on a policy. We’re not infallible, meaning that ordinary people and prominent individuals both screw up every so often.

To be sure, these union endorsements are more directed at Ford than the PCs. If a different PC leader was at the helm, these endorsements likely wouldn’t have been forthcoming. Or not as many of them, at the very least.

However, Ford’s ability to acquire union endorsements does hold some important lessons for today’s Conservative politicians and parties.

Most modern Conservatives think differently on issues than union leaders and card-carrying union members. Nevertheless, they’ve been able to find common ground in the past. Canada’s federal PCs and the Reform Party both acquired some significant blue-collar support in elections, and former federal Conservative leader Erin O’Toole tried to revive this last year. U.S.-based union members have supported House and Senate Republicans, as well as such presidential candidates as Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison have rebuilt relations with working people and earned their votes. We also can’t forget former U.S. president Donald Trump’s successful 2016 pitch to the blue-collar element in the Rust Belt and the “forgotten men and women.”

Creating a labour-friendly atmosphere similar to the one Ford and Labour Minister Monte McNaughton have successfully achieved isn’t an impossible task for federal conservatives, either. Focusing on free markets, trade liberalization and private enterprise are all important and necessary, but they can be balanced at times with such labour-oriented concerns as economic security, good wages, job creation and workers’ rights.

Hence, conservatives and union leaders need to regularly sit down at the bargaining table or in a political office to discuss grievances, concerns and policies. Keeping the lines of communication open will help reduce anti-union and anti-business rhetoric, and enhance intellectual discourse and the ability to find common ground. There won’t always be an easy answer, but there will be far less obstacles between them than what currently exists.

Ford has clearly figured it out with unions. Federal conservatives need to follow his lead.

National Post
Michael Taube, a columnist for Troy Media and Loonie Politics, was a speechwriter for former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper.

WAGES, PRICES, PROFIT MARX

ABOLISH THE MONARCHY

Two-Thirds of Canadians Polled Don’t Want Prince Charles to Be King

Robin Raven, RD.com - Yesterday 


A prince of the people?

Prince Charles is the longest-serving heir apparent in British history, but he hasn't enjoyed great popularity with the public since more private details about his marriage to Diana, Princess of Wales became public knowledge. 

An Angus Reid poll from April 2022 found two-thirds (67%) of Canadians opposed to the idea of Charles succeeding his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, as monarch.

 An earlier U.K. poll showed that the popularity of the man who is next in line to the throne is decreasing, while an Express poll revealed that people would prefer that other royals ascend to the throne.

 Harsh, we know, but it's not completely without cause. These are the reasons why many people throughout Canada and the United Kingdom aren't excited by the idea of Prince Charles becoming their new king.

Canada sees 25,000 unfilled cybersecurity jobs as hacking activity soars

MoneyWise - Yesterday 


With 25,000 cybersecurity jobs staying vacant in Canada, this growing market is hungry to shore up its recruitments by closing the gender gap, a female keynote speaker told an audience at the Canadian Women in Cybersecurity’s conference in Vaughan on May 4.


© Provided by MoneyWise Canada



Globally, there are 3.5 million unfilled jobs in cybersecurity, Gina Cody, first woman to receive her PhD designation in building engineering at Concordia University, added.

“This number for sure will go up,” said Cody, who made a historic $15 million gift to Concordia University’s faculty of engineering and computer science in 2018, said.

In North America, women fill only about 21 per cent of cybersecurity jobs and even fewer of them hold senior positions in the industry, Cody added.

“The math here is straightforward,” Cody said. “If they want to close the employment gap in cybersecurity, we need to close the gender gap.”
Increased spending

Governments around the world are expected to increase their spending on cybersecurity, and Canada is among them.

Canada’s minister of innovation, science and industry, François-Philippe Champagne, announced in February that the National Cybersecurity Consortium (NCC) will receive up to $80 million to lead the Cyber Security Innovation Network (CSIN).

NCC is a not-for-profit consortium, founded in 2020 by five Canadian universities with the goal of bringing together business and government research into cybersecurity. The consortium collaborates with more than 140 researchers from 35 post-secondary institutions, 16 large companies, 30 small and medium-sized firms, 26 not-for-profit organizations and eight governments and governmental organizations across Canada.

This spending on cybersecurity by the government is a boon for the economy too. According to Statistics Canada, the Canadian cybersecurity industry contributed over $2.3 billion in GDP and 22,500 jobs to the Canadian economy in 2018 alone.

But that’s a drop in the bucket compared to what will be coming globally. Research firm Cybersecurity Ventures forecast in a recent report that governments will spend around $1.75 trillion on cybersecurity between 2021 and 2025.
Cybersecurity jobs expected to grow even more

The number of unfilled jobs is expected to grow amid alarming projections that cybercrime is on the rise worldwide, and the pandemic only accelerated the trend, as more companies pivoted online.

In 2021, the Sophos State of Ransomware Report showed that 39 per cent of Canadian businesses were victims of ransomware the prior year, and 65 per cent of the businesses expect a future ransomware attack. Ransomware is a type of malware that threatens to publish the victim’s personal data or perpetually block access to it unless a ransom is paid.

Citing a figure from Cybersecurity Ventures’ Official Cybercrime Report, Cody said in 2021 alone, cybercrime is estimated to have caused more than US$6 trillion in damage, up from US$3 trillion in 2015.

“If cybercrime were measured as a country, it would [have] the third largest GDP in the world after the United States and China,” she added. “The world is beginning to realize just how important cybersecurity really is.”
All skill sets needed

In one panel discussing the “absolute joy of being a woman in cybersecurity,” women panelists sought to dispel some myths surrounding the industry. Those include having to be a math whiz.

“If you have more soft skills, like myself in communications and policy, there’s an area for you,” said Julia Le, a cybersecurity education and awareness manager at the government of Ontario.

“If you want to get into the ethical hacking team and break into systems really, ethically, and make sure that our software and programs are secure enough, well, yes, you will need a computer science background,” said Le, who has a master’s degree in public policy.

One of the panelists, Eman Hammad, cyber-physical security and resilience at PwC, told the audience that she sees the industry as “mosaic,” with people able to bring all their diverse experiences into the mix.

“Especially in cybersecurity, you can bring all [of] yourself, you can bring yourself as a technology expert, you can bring yourself as a people person, you are working with clients and trying to understand their challenges. You can bring yourself, all your skills,” Hammad said.

Most importantly, cybersecurity is not unlike police work; it’s about protecting the public.

“You wake up every morning and say that today is the day I can make a difference, even if it’s small,” Hammad said.

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Reconciliation isn't ‘a spectator sport,’ speakers tell business leaders

Dave Baxter Local Journalism Initiative reporter - Yesterday 
Winnipeg Sun


If business owners and entrepreneurs are serious about working towards reconciliation with Indigenous people, then they must have an understanding that everyone at all levels has to get involved, and that no one can just sit back and hope for change.


© Provided by Winnipeg Sun

The Honourable Murray Sinclair, a former Senator and longtime advocate for Indigenous rights in Canada, told business leaders on Thursday that they all have a responsibility to stand up to racism, while speaking at a Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce Luncheon. 

Photo by Dave Baxter /Winnipeg Sun/Local Journalism Initiative

That was the message sent to Winnipeg’s business community on Thursday, when the Honourable Murray Sinclair, and his son Dr. Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair spoke side-by-side at an event hosted by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce.

The luncheon featured a one-on-one conversation between the father and son, where they spoke about what all business owners and leaders in Manitoba must do if they want to see reconciliation happening in the business and corporate world and beyond.

Murray Sinclair, a former Senator and longtime advocate for Indigenous rights in Canada who served as chairman of the Indian Residential Schools Truth and Reconciliation Commission from 2009 to 2015, said that all business owners must understand that if they witness racism they can never turn a blind eye to it, even if they think they aren’t directly involved.

“The important thing for the business community to understand is that reconciliation is not a spectator sport, it requires the participation of all the players,” he said. “You cannot stand by and watch things happen around you and say, ‘well that doesn’t involve me.’

“Don’t ever think it doesn’t involve you, if someone else is calling someone else names, it involves you so call it out, and get in between the racist and the victim, because you have an obligation to.”


© Dave Baxter /Winnipeg Sun/Local Journalism Initiative

The Honourable Murray Sinclair, and his son Dr. Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair spoke side-by-side at a luncheon event hosted by the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce on Thursday. 

He also said it is very important for business owners to know that they might not even understand all the ways that racism can manifest itself and that they may be taking part in racist or bias practices without even knowing it.

“The worst kind of racism in Canada is not the racism where people deliberately set up to harm someone, the worse kind of racism is unconscious racism where you are doing something and don’t even know you are doing it, because you are following a policy based on western society’s ways of thinking and doing,” Sinclair said.

He said an example of that unconscious racism is that employers in Canada often won’t give Indigenous people time off for ceremonies that he said are often just as important in Indigenous cultures, as religious ceremonies like Christmas and Easter are in western cultures.

“This is very important and they say ‘no we can’t do that, it’s not in the policy.’”

The former Senator said that all business owners should have an “action plan in place” when it comes to reconciliation and working with Indigenous people and communities and that those types of plans will not only help move Canada closer to reconciliation but ultimately be good for their own business.

“It’s important because it will help you to engage in dialogue that is going to be meaningful not just for them, but also for you,” Sinclair said.

“You not only are trying to change the way that you do business, but you will benefit through the way that you do business through reconciliation, because it will enhance your relationship with Indigenous communities, with Indigenous employees, and will result in you doing business better.

“You will become not only better businesses, but you will become better humans too.”

The responsibility of business owners to work towards reconciliation is outlined in the Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) as Call 92 in the report states, “we call upon the corporate sector in Canada to adopt the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a reconciliation framework, and to apply its principles, norms, and standards to corporate policy and core operational activities involving Indigenous peoples and their lands and resources.”

— Dave Baxter is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the Winnipeg Sun. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.

Alberta Birds of Prey Centre to open with precautions amid avian flu

Yesterday
Eloise Therien / Global News


Each spring in mid-to-late May, the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre in Coaldale opens its doors to public.

The facility serves as a working conservation centre that helps injured and orphaned birds return to the wild.

Visitors can interact with trained owls, view flying demonstrations and observe a variety of native bird species in display aviaries.

According to Colin Weir, the organization's managing director, some biosecurity measures are being put in place to protect the animals this year as it prepares to open on Saturday.

Read more:
Avian flu suspected to be cause of geese deaths in Coaldale

"The only thing that will be significantly different -- a bit of a disappointment to the children -- is we're not going to have our flock of pet ducks out for kids to feed," he explained.

"That's just out of an abundance of caution because of the avian influenza that's been found around southern Alberta," Weir said.

Normally, there are 50 to 100 of the ducks on site. They're currently being kept at an acreage away from the centre.

Another change is the inability to accept injured birds at the facility.

"If someone has an injured bird, the best thing to do is to give us a call and we can have someone meet you out front in our parking lot and then we'll deal with it at another location."



H5N1 strain considered the worst avian flu to hit Saskatchewan since 2015

After struggling with the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions it brought in 2020 and 2021, Weir said the avian flu is another obstacle the centre will just have to navigate.

Weir explained it mainly affects ducks and geese but can also impact species like hawks, falcons and even foxes.

"We're still going to be open (and) see how it goes with each passing week.

"There's nothing we can do to stop it, but hopefully it's something that might be peaking now because of the spring migrations."

Alberta Birds of Prey Centre will be open every day from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. starting May 21 through to Labour Day.

NFL creates new youth flag football program for Canada

John Kryk - Yesterday 
Toronto Sun

© Provided by Toronto Sun

The NFL logo on the field before the game between the New Orleans Saints and the Carolina Panthers at the Caesars Superdome.


The NFL on Thursday announced it is expanding into Canada.

Well, expanding its youth flag football program into Canada.

The flag football arm of the four-down league has launched a new initiative north of the border, called NFL FLAG Canada — for boys and girls ages four to 17.

Regional 2022 tournaments across Canada will be held over the next two months, although age ranges are limited this year. The NFL is inviting established flag football leagues across Canada to enter.

The NFL’s goal within three years, it said in a news release, is to inaugurate 250 new flag football leagues across Canada, eventually accommodating more than 100,000 youths.

“Flag football is one of the fastest growing sports in the United States, with regular participation of more than three million youth and adults each year,” Izell Reese, executive director of NFL FLAG, said in a statement. “We’re excited to bring NFL FLAG to Canada’s loyal fan base, and provide opportunities for young fans to learn the fundamentals of the game and experience the excitement of flag football.”

To help drive fan growth and participation in Canada, the NFL’s flag football arm will “work closely” with clubs granted international home marketing areas in Canada last fall — namely, the Seattle Seahawks and Minnesota Vikings.

Four 2022 regional NFL FLAG Canada tournaments are set for:
Vancouver (June 5 at Notre Dame High School, with May 27 registration deadline);
Regina (June 18 at University of Regina, with May 30 registration deadline);
Toronto (July 10 at Esther Shiner Civic Stadium, with June 27 registration deadline);
Halifax (June 25 at Saint Mary’s University, with June 6 registration deadline).

Winning teams will qualify for the NFL FLAG Championships held next February at the Pro Bowl, the NFL’s annual all-star game.

For more information, and to find a league near you in Canada, go to nflflag.com/canada .

Flag football debuts as a sport at the World Games this summer in Birmingham, Ala.

Damani Leech, the NFL’s chief operating officer of international initiatives, in a statement said the creation of NFL FLAG Canada and the introduction of flag football at the 2022 World Games “demonstrate the growing global interest” in North American football, generally, and also underscore “ongoing efforts across the global football community to include flag football in the 2028 Olympic Games.”

John Kryk now writes a weekly newsletter on NFL matters. Content is exclusive to that platform. You can have it automatically dropped into your email inbox on Wednesdays simply by signing up — for free — at https://torontosun.com/newsletters/

JoKryk@postmedia.com
@JohnKryk

COACHING IS ABUSE

Athletes call for sport culture overhaul in Canada amid allegations of abuse

The Canadian Press


Scales should be banned from children's gyms. Parents should be permitted to watch. Rules of acceptable behaviour should be posted on gym walls with a toll-free line to report violations.

They may sound like basic safety precautions around children in sport, but they don't exist on a blanket scale in Canada. Amid what Sport Minister Pascale St-Onge has called a safe sport "crisis," many current and former athletes say the country is long overdue for a sport culture overhaul.

More than a 1,000 athletes from gymnastics, boxing and bobsled/skeleton have called for independent investigations into their sports in recent weeks, and last week former gymnast Amelia Cline filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Gymnastics Canada and six provincial federations.

The proposed class of plaintiffs allege abuse dating back to 1978, and claim the organizations created a culture and environment where the abuse could occur and failed to protect the athletes, most of them minors, in their care.

One of the class members told The Canadian Press she'd like the posting of proper behaviour, with a call-in number, made mandatory in gyms.

"A lot of these rules sound like common sense, (but) it's frightening the extent to which common sense doesn't seem to permeate the gymnastics culture," said the retired gymnast, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.

St-Onge has said in her first five months as sport minister, she's received complaints about abuse, maltreatment or misappropriation of funds levelled against at least eight national teams, including rugby and rowing.

The outpouring of heartbreaking stories has prompted much conversation, around shared experiences and suggestions for fixes.

Ciara McCormack, the soccer player who first publicly accused Canada's under-20 women's coach Bob Birarda of inappropriate behaviour, said parents "have to have access to their children's training environments."

Few gymnastics facilities permit parents to watch.

McCormack also believes non-disclosure agreements involving misconduct should be eliminated, and education made mandatory for athletes and parents about what abuse looks like and how to report infractions. She also suggested an athlete-led organization with a hotline and disciplinary procedures -- similar to that of teachers or medical practitioners -- where cases of misconduct are recorded and accessible.

"(National sport organizations) have taken advantage of having all the power and all the resources with the result being an immense amount of harm, and I think its crucial that athletes are given power, resources and a voice in the system from children as rec athletes all the way up to national team athletes," McCormack told The Canadian Press. "It's long overdue."

Birarda, meanwhile, pleaded guilty in B.C. Provincial Court in February to four sexual offences involving four different people.

Kim Shore, a former gymnast and mom of a former gymnast, said she'd like to see bathroom scales banned from gyms. Gymnasts have said the public weigh-ins have left them with serious emotional scars years later around body image.

She also suggested an offenders registry. Several national sport organizations, including Skate Canada and Athletics Canada, have suspended coaches and athletes listed on their websites.

But there's plenty of holes in lists, including the inability to track coaches at the grassroots or even the provincial level. Coaches who are suspended, or permitted to leave quietly, from a club, a province or a national team, can often simply move to another. Or even another sport.

Shore said an international database would seem like a pipe dream to many in the sport world, but added that even a provincial and national database would be a "massive step forward."

She suggested parents do Google searches on prospective coaches, because there's often chatter about questionable behaviour on websites like Reddit.

"You're tapping into what I think is really our biggest problem in Canada, and that is that we take no action against enablers and institutions who are complicit to enabling further abuse," said Shore, a former member of Gymnastics Canada's board of directors.

"Sport has failed athletes because it tries to operate above the law, and sometimes even with their own laws. So there’s very little oversight and accountability," she added.

In her 32-page proposed class-action lawsuit, Cline alleges that she suffered numerous injuries during training, including back and neck injuries, and fractures in her wrist, hand, fingers and toes. She alleged her coach, Vladimir Lashin, overstretched her hamstring to the point it tore away from her pelvis, resulting in an avulsion fracture.

Cline told The Canadian Press that she was a frequent visitor to B.C. Children's Hospital to the point that staff knew her by name.

"It's kind of telling when they say, 'Oh, it's you again, you're back,'" said Cline, who's now 32.

Cline quit the sport at age 14, and she and her parents filed a complaint with Gymnastics BC. According to the claim, a harassment officer from Sport B.C. was appointed to investigate, but the Clines were never allowed to see the report.

Instead of receiving punishment, Lashin, who hasn't responded to a request for comment, was named head coach of Canada's national team for the 2004 Athens Olympics. Gymnastics Canada appointed him national coach and high-performance director of the women's artistic program in 2009. He resigned in 2010.

Mike Kwiatkowski, a former multi-sport athlete and a graduate of the International Olympic Academy's Masters program, said parents should view lack of transparency as a red flag.

"What's' the reason for the actions of an organization to provide barriers?" he said. "Child safeguarding is not just about checking the boxes, it's a responsibility. If there is no transparency or openness, there is a massive problem."

Sport Canada announced this week that its new Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner (OSIC) will be operational as of June 20. The office will receive and address individual complaints of violations of the University Code of Conduct to Prevent and Address Maltreatment in Sport.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2022.

Lori Ewing, The Canadian Press

New deal offers Canadian Football League players a seat at the table

Dan Barnes, Postmedia" - Yesterday 

© Provided by Toronto Sun

CFL logo on an official Canadian CFL league ball during warm-ups before the Saskatchewan Roughriders CFL game against the Toronto Argonauts on July 11, 2013 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The list of collectively bargained items includes the boilerplate, the essential and the ground-breaking.

Package them up, there are about 20, and there is little doubt the Canadian Football League Players Association occupies a markedly different space than it did before a four-day strike provoked a new collective bargaining agreement with the league.

For starters, the PA now occupies a seat on the CFL Ventures board of directors. If the CFL’s business grows, and goodness knows that simply has to happen or there is no future for any of the stakeholders, the newly formed commercial arm of the league will hold the keys and the CFLPA’s board representative will be able to provide decision-making input in real time. Though one seat doesn’t make them a full business partner, the PA will literally be in the room, and that stands as a ground-breaking development.

But the real jaw-dropper was the league’s about-face on revenue sharing. As Wednesday’s marathon bargaining session began, the league was still loath to include Grey Cup revenue in the formula, the players were adamant, the issue looming as a deal-breaker. Sources suggest the PA was in fact getting ready to fly its members home on the weekend, such was their resolve on the financial issue.

The league eventually changed its stance to include Grey Cup revenue and audit rights for the PA, and so tumbled the final pillar on which the player strike was founded. The formula’s baseline will be set as all revenue from 2022, a year in which the league is still emerging from a pandemic, and just figuring out the benefits of its partnership with Genius Sports, the company promising to unlock earning potential from betting and other digital and data opportunities. The revenue sharing deal will offer the players up to a 30% share of revenue growth above that threshold, to be added to the salary cap. The cap itself is to raise a minimum of $100,000 per season, not including the potential growth.

The other crucial items — the Canadian ratio, medical coverage, term and expiry date — had all been hashed out to the satisfaction of both sides, and a memorandum of agreement was at hand.

The tentative deal must still be ratified by the CFL’s board of directors and the CFLPA membership. That seems a good bet, because we can only assume the CFL’s negotiators had the blessing of all nine franchises to offer as much as they did to get a deal done, end the strike and ensure a full, 18-game season is played for the first time since 2019. And there is absolutely no chance players will reject this package once it is laid out for them by CFLPA leadership during meetings at all nine training camp sites. Here then, are some of the other new developments in the CBA:

* Long-term medical coverage for players increases from three years to four years in 2022 and five years in 2023 and for the remainder of the deal.

* The CFLPA can reopen the CBA after five years, once the TSN broadcast deal expires. The term expires 30 days prior to the opening of training camp, rather than on the eve of camp.

* The changes to the ratio are complex, but the deal preserves seven Canadian starters and 21 Canadians on the roster. Three of the four designated imports can sub in for a starting Canadian, but only to a maximum of 49% of playing time to preserve the Canadian starters’ playing time bonuses, and only if the DIs meet the requirements for a nationalized American. The league’s teams gain the flexibility of using a DI such as a kick returner in a wide receiver role, for example.

* A veteran who has played out the term of his first contract and re-signs with that same club can be guaranteed up to 50% of his base salary in the final year of his next deal, be it a two-, three- or four-year contract.

* The financial plight of Canadian veterans returning to the CFL from the NFL has been addressed. A year of service down south counts as a year on the grid. If you do three years in the NFL you come to the CFL as a free agent and can negotiate a deal as such. If you do two years down south, you live under the terms of the rookie cap for a season. The change was inspired by the T. J. Jones situation. He and the Toronto Argonauts negotiated a salary well above the rookie cap, but it was nixed.

* Global players will receive a raise to the league minimum, which is $65,000 this year, $70,000 next year and rises to $75,000 through the term of the deal.

* The grievance and arbitration system has changed to allow the CFLPA to speak directly to team GMs and/or presidents to try to resolve issues, rather than first having to go through the league office. Arbitrators have also been added to the roster.

* The league and CFLPA also agreed on the terms of a COVID travel policy, the return of the NFL window, a player housing allowance tied to the average of national rents, mental health and addiction programming, a player and fan code of conduct, administrative language regarding work permits, and national certification of all equipment and medical personnel who interact with players.

dbarnes@postmedia.com

ONTARIO

Asparagus  Crop culled due to worker shortage

Asparagus grower John Jaques isn’t sure why, but changes to the federal government’s migrant worker program have left him six men short this season.

It’s a situation the Thamesville area farmer found himself unable to cope with, so he’s started mowing down 20 acres of his 60-acre crop.

He’s considering converting the 20-acre parcel to corn and soybeans.

“It’s sad,” the owner of Sunshine Farms said in a recent interview with The Chatham Voice. “It’s expensive and very labour intensive to get an asparagus crop into production.

“Growing soybeans and corn makes it a whole lot easier.”

At age 70, the veteran farmer – once Ontario’s largest asparagus producer – said the situation has knocked the fight out of him and he’s scaling back.

“We can only do so much as a family,” Jaques added.

For some 40 years, Jaques has participated in the Canada’s Seasonal Agricultural Worker program, mainly drawing workers from Mexico.

At Jaques’ request, many of the same workers have been returning for years and have become like family.

But the vegetable grower said 2022 is different.

He put in his orders for workers – who fly in each week on a staggered schedule – to begin the asparagus harvest that normally peaks the first two weeks of May.

In the first week when 12 workers were scheduled to arrive, only 10 made it, Jaques said. On week two, when 13 were set to arrive, there were only nine; and on the final week when five were supposed to come, only four made it.

Consequently, Jaques said, that even though the asparagus crop was late, the understaffed crew at Sunshine Farms couldn’t keep up.

“When we have a full crew, we work lots of hours,” he explained. “From daylight until dark. But being six workers short, we were unable to harvest and pack all of the crop.”

Besides selling asparagus at the farm gate, Sunshine Farms also sells an array of canned and pickled products to grocery stores across the province.

Until now, Jaques said the migrant worker program has worked well for him.

He blames changes made at the federal level for the shortages.

In the past, Jaques said extra workers would normally wait at airports on standby, ready to take the place of workers who couldn’t make it.

That’s no longer happening, Jaques said, noting that process had worked well in the past.

“They’re no longer doing that,” Jaques said.

He said he’s also heard there are COVID-19 related government slowdowns in Mexico, and worker applications were not being processed on time.

Jaques has heard the Canadian migrant worker shortage is due to COVID-19 but he’s not buying it.

As for hiring workers closer to home, Jaques said he doesn’t even bother because it’s so hard to find good workers.

“Many people are expecting a cheque for nothing,” he added. “Canada, in my opinion, has turned into a welfare state.”

Jaques said he’s received plenty of comments on social media encouraging him to donate the asparagus crop.

Many people have also asked him to let people come and pick their own, but Jaques can’t allow that due to liability issues.

“Even if it (the asparagus) was donated, we’d still have to pick it,” he explained.

Farm labour shortages in Chatham-Kent are widespread. As of Friday, there were 61 positions relating to farm labour on the chathamkentjob.com employment website.

Calls to Chatham-Kent–Leamington MP Dave Epp, who represents agriculture in the Conservative shadow cabinet, were not answered as of press time.

Pam Wright, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chatham Voice

Community to meet to discuss proposed feedlot near fragile Alberta recreational lake


 The Canadian Press

Cottage owners and farmers who say a proposed feedlot threatens the water quality of a popular lake are to gather this weekend to discuss how they can keep making their case to the regulatory body that will rule on the project.

"We've had a lot of interest, not just from the lake community, but also the farm community," said Jeannette Hall, who is organizing the meeting in Westerose, Alta., near Pigeon Lake, where a feedlot owner has applied to expand his operation by 4,000 head of cattle.

Pigeon Lake is unusual in that it's fed by run-off, not streams or rivers, and is drained by a single creek. That makes the lake highly vulnerable to algal blooms fed by nutrients washing into its waters.

The lake's roughly 5,000 inhabitants have spent millions upgrading wastewater systems to improve the lake's water quality. They fear the feedlot proposed by G&S Cattle Ltd. would undo that work.

The feedlot would be within a few kilometres of the shore on land that slopes down into it.

Pigeon Lake is already "supercharged" with nutrients from decades of residential growth as well as the region's natural geology, said Jay White, a consulting biologist who's studied the lake for years. Those nutrients don't go away, he said.

"Once it gets in your lake there's no place for it to go."

While White said there are ways to keep manure from contaminating lake water, he doesn't see enough of them in the proposal now before the Natural Resources Conservation Board.

"This application is treating this site like any other feedlot site in Alberta," he said. "We're not seeing anything over and above the guidelines."

Greg Thalen, owner of G&S Cattle, has declined interview requests on his plans.

Many have concerns about public consultation, said Opposition New Democrat environment critic Marlin Schmidt, who was door-knocking in Pigeon Lake this week.

"Everybody found out about the project indirectly," he said.

Notice was posted in a small rural weekly newspaper that few saw, with a public feedback period of less than a month.

More than 300 statements of concern were registered, including from three First Nations. The County of Wetaskiwin asked for an environmental impact assessment.

Environment Minister Jason Nixon has said the public consultation has been adequate.

But Schmidt said many he spoke with fear their concerns won't be taken seriously.

"People were not feeling hopeful that their statements of concern would be considered, (that) if the government wants this to go forward there's not much people can do to stop it."

Schmidt said his party wants to look at changing legislation governing industrial agriculture. He said public consultation could be both lengthened and include more people, with better standards for locating developments.

"People are really upset about this proposal," he said.

Hall said the meeting will share information on the environmental risks of the proposal and how the regulatory process works. She said the concerns aren't only from cottage owners.

"So many people feel this is an attack on farming. That's not what it is at all."

The community meeting is set for Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Lakedell Ag Centre in Westerose.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 20, 2022.

— Follow Bob Weber on Twitter at @row1960

Bob Weber, The Canadian Press