Internal audit raises red flags over maintenance of graves, cemeteries for veterans

The Canadian Press
Mon, April 17, 2023 



OTTAWA — An internal report by Veterans Affairs Canada is raising red flags over the country's military graves and cemeteries, warning that more permanent funding is needed to keep them from falling into disrepair.

The report is the result of an internal audit following up on a similar review six years ago. At that time, nearly 45,000 out of the estimated 207,000 graves of Canada's veterans were in a state of disrepair because of a lack of resources.

The Trudeau government subsequently committed nearly $25 million over five years in temporary funding starting in 2018, which the new report says has largely addressed the problem by facilitating thousands of repairs.

Yet auditors found that without a permanent increase to the department's funding, that success will be short-lived.

"While five-year funding for the backlog project has allowed the grave marker maintenance team to reduce the backlog of repairs significantly, maintaining an adequate inspection cycle post-project will be challenging," the audit report reads.

"The evaluation finds that the current $1.25 million allocated to the cemetery and grave marker maintenance program is insufficient to prevent a future maintenance backlog."

The audit report goes on to note that the annual $1.25 million budget has remained largely unchanged since 2009, even though the number of graves tracked and maintained by the department has increased by more than 40 per cent over the past decade.

Veterans Affairs spokesman Marc Lescoutre confirmed in an email to The Canadian Press that the department has not increased baseline funding for the maintenance program, though he said it has taken $900,000 from other areas to ensure sufficient funds.

"The department is exploring opportunities to seek ongoing funding to address the increasing cost of maintaining the grave marker inventory and to develop and implement an appropriate grave inspection/maintenance cycle," he added.

Bruce Julian, dominion president of the Royal Canadian Legion, welcomed the progress that has been made in reducing the number of grave markers needing maintenance.

"At the same time, we were concerned to read that the future of the department's program was at risk due to apparent insufficient funding," Julian said in an statement.

"We ask that the federal government commit to fully and permanently supporting the ongoing care of grave markers placed by VAC. These are essential means of reflection and remembrance dedicated to those who have served our country."

The Liberals have been repeatedly criticized for refusing to make permanent investments in Veterans Affairs operations over the past few years, as it has relied instead on temporary funds and staff to address long-standing problems.

That included hiring of hundreds of temporary staff to process a backlog of disability claims from ill and injured veterans, and dozens of temporary case managers to help permanent staff with their overwhelming workloads.

The temporary measures have been criticized by veterans, service providers and others such as auditor general Karen Hogan, who has blasted the continued use of what she calls ad hoc funding.

During their review of grave marking maintenance, auditors interviewed staff from Veterans Affairs as well as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, which cares for the graves of 110,000 Canadian soldiers killed and buried overseas in the First and Second World Wars.

Their conclusion: "Returning to the financial status quo after the backlog project will result in a situation where grave markers cannot be inspected and maintained within the current 12-year cycle.

"Further, the 12-year inspection cycle itself was adopted in response to funding levels, not as a best practice. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission currently inspects the graves it is responsible for on a six-year basis."

In addition to Canadian war graves, the commission also cares for those of British, Australian, New Zealand and Indian soldiers killed during the two great wars.

Auditors found problems in the operation of the two cemeteries that Veterans Affairs owns and operates: Fort Massey Cemetery in Halifax and God's Acre Cemetery in Esquimalt, B.C., which was recently expanded to accept more graves.

"The upgraded facilities were supposed to allow for on-site staffing to facilitate increasing burials at the cemetery," the audit report says of God's Acre. "However, health and safety concerns with the structure have restricted on-site activities."

Concerns were also raised about a lack of formal policies around who can actually be interred at God's Acre, how plots are obtained, reserved and priced, while "no business processes are in place for the handling of funeral payments."

God's Acre and Fort Massey also did not have up-to-date operational plans or plans for protecting the cultural and historical integrity of either site.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2023.

Lee Berthiaume, The Canadian Press

Nova Scotia public schools plan for possible strike of CUPE support workers, bus drivers

CBC
Mon, April 17, 2023 

School bus service in some regional centres for education will be put on pause if workers go on strike. (Shutterstock - image credit)

Nova Scotia public schools are preparing for a possible CUPE strike this week, forcing hundreds of students back to online learning

Thousands of unionized workers — including bus drivers, cleaners, maintenance staff, educational program assistants and early childhood educators, along with other roles — could soon walk off the job after wage negotiations reached an impasse last week.

"It was our biggest fear for a while," said Emma Wilkie, a Portapique, N.S., parent with a teen in Grade 11.

"... Our 17-year-old is not thrilled about going back to online learning having just gotten out of it."

Wilkie said it's too bad the strike could be coming so close to the end of the school year.

"Our other option previously was to drive Jade ourselves, now it's going to go to online learning. We've got emails from the teachers saying anyone in Grade 7 to 12 would be switching to online in less than a week from now, so that's a surprise for teachers; it's definitely a surprise for us," she said.

The earliest a strike could begin is Friday, April 21, but the union is required to give at least 48 hours of notice.

Wilkie said the bus service is essential for students in rural areas.

"Driving a bus full of teenagers and kids is not an easy job, and if they're only getting paid for hours in the morning and hours in the afternoon, of course it's going to be hard to find workers. So maybe the pay should be more, maybe the benefits should be more," Wilkie said.

Autism Nova Scotia expressed concerns about a possible strike in a news release on Monday. The organization says the needs of students will be forgotten, including students with autism being left without support in the school system.

"We are deeply concerned for autistic students and students with disabilities who require specific supports, who will be left without options if a strike takes place," said Cynthia Carroll, executive director of Autism Nova Scotia, in a news release.

"All students deserve equal access to education, it's a human right. Without a proper contingency plan in place, autistic and students with disabilities will once again be left behind."

While many regional centres for education are hopeful a strike could be prevented, they are making plans in case a strike happens.

Plans vary because the strike will have different impacts in different areas.

Chignecto-Central Regional Centre for Education

In-person learning will continue for pre-primary children up to Grade 6 classes in all CCRCE schools.


Before and after school programming will continue


Grade 7 to Grade 12 students will move to online learning, with devices provided to students who need them. The centre says school staff will connect with families where a student has special programming requirements.


School bus transportation will be paused..


Field trips that rely on school-bus transportation will be paused.


All extra-curricular activities, sports and community use of school buildings will pause, but there could be exceptions for outdoor fields and grounds.

Cape Breton-Victoria Regional Centre for Education

Primary to Grade 5 students will be able to continue attending school.


There will be no school bus service.


Grade 6 to Grade 12 students will move to at-home learning.


Students will continue to follow their regular schedule and will meet with their teachers and classmates on Google Classroom.


Students needing additional support will still be able to access in-person learning at their school, but without the support of teacher assistants or student support workers. Individual schools will reach out to affected families to discuss these plans.

Annapolis Valley Regional Centre for Education

No school bus transportation for students to and from Annapolis County schools, West Hants area schools and the West Kings Family of Schools in Kings County.


Primary to Grade 5 and pre-primary children who receive busing by National Passenger Service (AVRCE's third-party provider for most Kings County schools) will continue to receive transportation to and from school.


AVRCE-operated cafeterias will not be available, but breakfast and snack programs will remain.


Secretaries in West Hants-area schools will not be working, so delays are anticipated if anyone tries to contact school offices.


Any after-school extracurricular activities that require being in the building will be on pause. Community use of schools during evenings and weekends will also be on pause.

Halifax Regional Centre for Education

All schools will remain open to in-person learning, student transportation will operate as usual for those who require it, and the EXCEL program will continue to operate.


Educational program assistants would not be at work. Schools are reaching out to families who would be affected to come up with an alternative plan on a case-by-case basis.


Pre-primary programs will be paused and pre-primary students will not attend school.


Services from the following employees will be paused for the duration of a strike: library support specialists, SchoolsPlus community outreach workers, child and youth care practitioners, Mi'kmaw/Indigenous student support workers, African Nova Scotian student support workers and assistive technology support workers.

South Shore Regional Centre for Education

Grade Primary to Grade 6 students will still attend class.


Learning for Grade 7 to Grade 12 students will shift online, with some exceptions. That includes students who attend class though the learning centre.


School bus service will be suspended, except in cases where a private bus is being used.


Schools will not be available for before or after school use, except for any existing child-care programs.


Extracurricular activities inside the school building or that require a school bus are suspended, but sports on fields and on school grounds may continue.

Tri-county Regional Centre for Education

Elementary students will continue to attend class.


Most junior high and high school students will shift to online learning, with some exceptions.


Schools will not be available for use before classes or after classes, except for existing child-care programs.


Buses will not be available for students, unless there are previous arrangements for a student to take a private bus service.


Extracurricular activities inside schools are paused.

Conseil scolaire acadien provincial

Elementary students will continue to be able to attend class.


Most junior high and high school students will shift to online learning, with exception for students who attend class at the learning centre for more than half the time.


On the first day of a strike, learning staff would be given a day to prepare for online learning and students would take an independent learning day. Online school would begin on the second day of the strike.


Regions that would lose bus service during the strike include Clare, Argyle, Pomquet and South Shore. Areas where transportation is provided by Transco as well as taxi services will continue to operate.

Strait Regional Centre for Education

A spokesperson for SRCE told CBC News CUPE Local 955 staff are not in a legal strike position on April 21, 2023. Its negotiation timelines are different than other regional centres for education.

MORE TOP STORIES

Ben & Jerry's workers announce plan to unionize in Vermont

Mon, April 17, 2023 


BURLINGTON, Vt. (AP) — About 40 workers at the Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop in the Vermont city where the company was founded announced Monday that they plan to form a union.

“Collectively, we have come to embody Ben and Jerry’s slogan of ‘peace, love, and ice cream,’” they said they wrote to management.

The so-called scoopers at the Burlington, Vt., shop said they have formed an organizing committee and petitioned the National Labor Relations Board for an election. They said they have the support of the upstate New York & Vermont chapter of Workers United, the union that started the Starbucks unionization campaign in Buffalo, New York.

“I think of this union as a sign of respect for Ben & Jerry’s,” said Rebeka Mendelsohn, a shift manager and catering lead, in a statement. “We’re a company that stands for social justice rights and equity, and I want to ensure that this message is translated to all levels of employment.”

Ben & Jerry's, now owned by consumer goods giant Unilever, said organizers just presented the plan to the company Sunday night.

It's ”an important issue to us, we’re aware of it, and we’re actively working on it," Ben & Jerry's spokesman Sean Greenwood wrote in an email.

The shop employees' letter to management says they want a voice in key decisions over issues such as salaries and health care costs.

“We are taught from the beginning of our employment that equality and justice are integral rights of ours as people. But what happens when Vermont’s Finest are continuously left out of these conversations?"

The Associated Press

California State University student workers file for union

The Canadian Press
Mon, April 17, 2023 


SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Student workers across California State University campuses filed Monday with the state to form a union, saying it would help them advocate for better pay and working conditions.

“With a union, we’ll be able to hold the university accountable for how it treats students,” said Grayce Honsa, a student and resident adviser at San Diego State University.

The students looking to unionize serve as residential advisers, run mentorship programs, manage student radio stations and perform other jobs across the system's 23 campuses. Many students are paid the minimum wage of $15.50 an hour, and in some cases, they are paid less depending on their level of experience, said Mike Roth, a spokesperson for the Service Employees International Union California.

The organizers say they are behind the largest student worker unionization effort in the country. A vote has not yet been scheduled. If it is successful, the union would need to be recognized by the California Public Employment Relations Board.

It follows a successful effort by unionized graduate student workers to reach a deal with the University of California system.

In December, UC graduate students ended a 40-day strike after reaching a bargaining agreement with the university system to raise wages for workers who were paid as little as $24,000 a year.

Charles Toombs, president of the California Faculty Association, which is backing the California State University students' unionization efforts, said it is unacceptable that some student workers struggle to make ends meet.

“Their working conditions are impediments to their success,” he said.

The university system serves more than 477,000 students across the state.

Amy Bentley-Smith, a spokesperson for the California State University chancellor's office, said in an email the system “is not involved” in the organizing effort but “acknowledges all workers’ rights to organize.”

“In the event student employees are formally recognized by the California Public Employment Relations Board, we look forward to engaging with them as we do with all of our other union partners,” she wrote.

Assemblymember Liz Ortega, a Democrat representing Alameda County, expressed her support for the students' efforts to unionize.

“In a nation of vast wealth where too many workers are denied the respect and pay they deserve, there’s only one path to changing the balance of power," she said. "And that is uniting with your colleagues and joining a union.”

___ Sophie Austin is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on Twitter: @sophieadanna

Sophie Austin, The Associated Press

MANITOBA
SRSD educational assistants call off strike

Local Journalism Initiative
Mon, April 17, 2023 

Approximately 200 educational assistants (EAs) were poised to go on strike first thing in the morning on April 17. Late on Saturday, April 15, a tentative agreement was reached between the Seine River School Division (SRSD) and the Manitoba Government and General Employees Union (MGEU), representing the EAs at the bargaining table.

“Educational assistants in the SRSD are amongst the lowest paid in the province,” stated a MGEU’s promotional leaflet, “making it difficult to attract and retain experienced staff and forcing many EAs in our division to leave for other careers or better pay in other school divisions.”

The promotional material further claimed that bargaining attempts for a new contract with improved salaries had been ongoing for more than a year.

Ritchot has two schools within SRSD’s boundaries, including École St. Adolphe School and École Île-des-Chênes School.

Union President Speaks Out

MGEU president Kyle Ross says that striking is always a last resort, but the EAs felt that they had few alternatives. Even so, he adds, many were concerned for the students who would be affected by their decision.

“It’s been a difficult round of bargaining,” Ross says. “There were many systemic issues… The key issue is that they were feeling left behind. Other divisions around them have better [wage] packages and we were working with them to catch up and keep up. We have to actively work to get them to a place where they feel respected.”

For comparison’s sake, he says, there’s a $4 per hour wage disparity between SRSD EAs and those in the Sunrise School Division immediately to the north.

While the Monday strike has been called off for now, both parties still need to vote to ratify the agreement. Ross anticipates that this will happen as early as Thursday, April 20. Until then, details of the tentative agreement cannot be shared publicly.

“We’re recommending acceptance because we believe that the bargaining committee did a great job on getting this deal,” Ross says.

The last wage increase seen by the SRSD EAs, he adds, was in June 2020 when their previous contract was signed. The contract expired on July 1, 2021. Even so, he says, that contract provided only a nominal one percent wage increase.

SRSD Responds

Ryan Anderson, the superintendent and CEO of SRSD, has been involved in negotiations with the EAs and MGEU over the past months.

To the best of his memory, a request was first made by the EAs to join them at the bargaining table around the end of the 2022 school year. From Anderson’s perspective, both parties were amicable in their decision to put off the commencement of negotiations until January of this year.

There were a number of solid reasons for the delay in commencing negotiations, he says. Not the least of these was the fact that SRSD’s senior administrative team recently underwent a major restructuring. Anderson himself only assumed the position of superintendent/CEO last spring.

By fall, the board of trustees was faced with a similar restructuring since it was an election year.

“There were several factors that led to why the division and the union were not able to come to the bargaining table until January,” Anderson says. “Having a complete turnover in your senior administration and having a turnover in your board [of trustees] are generally pretty solid rationales for why you’d want to delay that process by a couple of months. Especially if retroactivity is a component of the compensation package in the negotiation.”

Adding insult to injury, he says, SRSD was faced with the upheaval of a pandemic, followed shortly after by the province’s push for Bill 64, which was set to completely dismantle the public school board model and replace it with a central education authority.

Anderson admits that SRSD has always been in agreement that their EAs wages were below market value and needed to be addressed. Now, with a deal finally on the table, Anderson is hopeful that a new contract can be agreed upon quickly.

“When you engage at the bargaining table, there’s back-and-forth negotiations and I think you do the best you can to get to a place where everybody’s satisfied with what that outcome looks like,” Anderson says.

Had they not been able to reach a tentative agreement on Saturday, he adds, the division had already created a contingency plan in case of a labour disruption.

“We were taking steps to ensure that… the programs and services would continue to be offered to students,” he says.

According to Ross, an EA strike would have made a significant impact on the division.

“When you pull 200 people out of the schools that help maintain some of the difficult students and the kids that need more supports, I think it would have been really challenging for all the students in the classroom,” Ross says.

Brenda Sawatzky, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Niverville Citizen

Workers at anti-poverty World Bank struggle to pay bills

The Canadian Press
Mon, April 17, 2023 



WASHINGTON (AP) — Andre Blount has been serving food to dignitaries at World Bank headquarters for nearly 10 years but his pay still isn’t much above minimum wage.

This week, as leaders from around the world are in D.C for the spring meeting of the poverty-fighting organization, Blount and his coworkers are trying to bring attention to what they see as a galling situation:

The workers who put food on the table for an organization whose mission is to fight poverty are themselves struggling to get by. Union leaders say a quarter of the World Bank food workers employed as a contract laborers through Compass Group North America receive public benefits, like SNAP, or food stamps, just to make ends meet.

“It’s sickening,” Blount, 33, said as he joined red-shirted union members this week on a picket line outside the development bank on a hot afternoon. “They go around the world looking for how to help people, but you have hundreds of employees in D.C. who are struggling.”

Inside, meanwhile, suited-up professionals were striding through a lobby where “End Poverty” T-shirts and tote bags are for sale.

The building’s expansive cafeteria overlooks an indoor pond and caters to even the most particular palates. There’s a soup station called “Ladle and Crust,” a “Mediterranean Table” station serving hummus and tabouli, and a sushi chef offering made-to-order rolls and sashimi.

A nearby fine dining room for diplomats and special guests of the bank was hosting lunch for delegations from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

Many of the food service workers, it turns out, come from countries to which the development bank sends missions.

Blount, after a decade on the job, says he’s paid $18 an hour, above D.C.‘s minimum wage of $16.10. He says feeding some of the world’s most important people in a variety of service and catering roles should pay more than the legal minimum. He has never received a wage increase of more than 50 cents.

Blount, a member of the Unite Here Local 23 chapter, is one of roughly 150 Compass workers employed at the World Bank. They are in the midst of contract negotiations, seeking higher wages and better health care benefits.

World Bank spokesperson David Theis said that while the bank is not a party to talks between the union and Compass Group, the bank’s staff has “deep admiration and respect” for their food service colleagues. He said the bank ensured the workers were paid throughout the pandemic.

While $18 per hour may seem like a lot in some areas, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s “ living wage ” index lists $22.15 per hour for D.C.

Beginning July 1, the minimum wage in D.C. will increase to $17 per hour for all workers, one of the highest minimums in the country. The increase comes as persistent high inflation eats at workers’ paychecks and the median rent in Washington is $2,571, according to Zillow.

“The World Bank says its mission is to promote shared prosperity by increasing the incomes of the poorest 40% of people in every country,” Unite Here President D. Taylor said on a call with reporters.

“We think that first starts in the United States, by compensating food service workers here. They work hard every day yet struggle to pay their bills.”

Compass Group spokesperson Lisa Claybon said the firm was bargaining in good faith and eager to reach a fair agreement. She added that the company has “long history” of working to “do what's best for our employees and clients.”

The current negotiations also cover Compass workers who serve food at the Smithsonian, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the National Institutes of Health.

Alex Campbell, director of the International Trade Union Confederation’s D.C. office, said workers around the globe "are suffering from a cost-of-living crisis that they didn’t cause.”

“To end poverty and promote shared prosperity in this turbulent moment, workers everywhere need decent living standards, basic rights on the job, and collective bargaining,” Campbell said. “That’s true from Compass employees here in D.C. to workers on projects funded by the World Bank Group anywhere in the world.”

Blount said he simply believes that his job should pay him what he’s worth. He added, “If I were to get a raise from Compass Group, it will help with saving up emergency funds, paying my bills on time instead of being late.”

__

In a story published April 14, 2023, about World Bank Group food service workers, The Associated Press erroneously reported a food service worker had gotten just one 50-cent wage increase in the past nearly 10 years. The story should have said the worker has never received a wage increase of more than 50 cents.

Fatima Hussein, The Associated Press

SEND THE BOSSES TO JAIL
Suncor and contractor plead guilty in 2021 drowning death of oilsands worker

CBC
Mon, April 17, 2023 

Suncor and Christina River Construction face a total penalty of $745,000 after an appearance in Fort McMurray Provincial Court on Friday. (Patrick Poitras/Facebook - image credit)

The death of a 25-year-old man who drowned in a tailings pond after the dangerously thin ice beneath his bulldozer collapsed has resulted in a total of $745,000 in fines against two companies.

Suncor and Christina River Construction pleaded guilty to a single count each under the Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Act in the death of Patrick Poitras.

Poitras was operating a John Deere bulldozer on Jan. 13, 2021, at Suncor's base mine, about 30 kilometres north of Fort McMurray, when the ice beneath the machine gave way.

Three days later, his body was pulled from the pond.

His parents say the fines issued against the operators aren't punishment enough for the death of their son.

Following an appearance in Fort McMurray Provincial Court Friday, Suncor and Christina River Construction — the contractor that employed Poitras — face a total penalty of $745,000.

In November, 28 charges were initially laid against the companies. However, a joint submission for sentencing was accepted by the court Friday after all the other charges were withdrawn.

Cathina Cormier, Poitras' mother, said the fines issued feel like a cruel joke. The companies got a "slap on the hand" for putting her son in danger, she said.

Hearing in court how the operators failed to protect her son left her traumatized and enraged, she said.

"It brought me back into that black hole," Cormier said.

"As a mom, it was a joke and a nightmare being in court and hearing them.

"They sent my son to do a job that wasn't secure and he loved that job."

She said the sentence, and apologies provided to her by company officials, offer her no comfort as she continues to mourn.

She hopes her son's death will help prevent another family from losing a loved one to a workplace accident but she remains sceptical about the commitment to safety in the oilpatch.

Poitras' father, Marcel Poitras, says the sentence brings him little comfort. All the charges initially levied against the companies should have been pursued, he said.

Poitras said he remains haunted by the horrible way his happy, hard-working son died. He said the penalties levied in court fall short of honouring the senseless loss of his child's bright future.

"You can't put money on a life, that I know," Poitras said in an interview Monday.

"But those companies, they have to ensure the safety of workers … How many people die every year.?"

Suncor's safety record has been facing increased criticism. At least 12 workers have died at its Alberta oilsands operations since 2014.

Poitras said the increased scrutiny is justified. He hopes his son's legacy will ensure no one else working in the oilsands is exposed to deadly hazards on the job.

Suncor pleaded guilty to a count that acknowledges that it failed to manage the work in a way that would protect workers from hazards.

According to the agreed statement of facts, the company admits that previous measurements done on the ice had shown it was too thin to bear the weight of the machine.

Christina River pleaded guilty to a count that details a contractor's duty to ensure the safety of its workers. The company admits that it failed to confirm the ice was 17 inches thick, as required under site's safety regulatory guidelines.

Poitras was working to clear snow from the frozen tailings pond on the day he drowned.

Patrick Poitras/Facebook

Court heard the ice was not strong enough to support the machine and was too thin for responding emergency crews to access the submerged bulldozer.

As part of the sentence, the companies must pay for a series of projects intended to honour Potrais' legacy, and improve safety in the oilsands.

Suncor has been ordered to pay a total $420,000. Of the total fine, $370,000 will be given to to the David and Joan Lynch School of Engineering Safety and Risk Management at the University of Alberta. The money will help fund research into the hazards of work in the oilsands and developing best practices for preventing serious injury and death on site.

Christina River Construction must pay a total of $325,000. Of the fine, $200,000 will go to Keyano College in Fort McMurray to fund the creation of a Patrick Poitras memorial scholarship and a memorial safety award in his name. The programs will benefit students training to work as heavy equipment operators. The remaining $75,000 will be used to subsidize safety courses.

Poitras, of Saint-André, N.B,. moved out west to work in the oilsands at age 21, but had plans to soon return home to the east coast for good.

Cormier said she misses the sound of her son's voice, his blue eyes and seeing his big smile beneath his signature mullet hairstyle.

She said he should be home with her in New Brunswick, enjoying life. Instead, she takes comfort in the belief that he is watching over his family and his former colleagues on site, helping to keep them safe.

"I just know Patrick is doing his job, protecting people there."

IT'S THE LAW IN CANADA 

TORIES WANT TWO SOLITUDES
NDP, Bloc accuse Poilievre of threatening French, Quebec culture with stance on CBC

The Canadian Press
Mon, April 17, 2023



OTTAWA — Federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says Pierre Poilievre's criticisms of the CBC amount to an attack on Canadian culture by the Conservative leader — and Quebec and francophone culture, in particular.

Singh addressed the issue, speaking in French, after Twitter added a label to CBC's main account on Sunday indicating the broadcaster was "government-funded media."

That move prompted the corporation to announce Monday it was hitting pause on its use of the social-media platform, which described the BBC the same way before changing its own label to "publicly funded media."

CBC receives roughly $1 billion in taxpayer money annually, but it contends the label is inaccurate because it maintains editorial independence and receives its funding through a vote in Parliament.

Poilievre regularly promises to slash that funding. And he sent a letter to Twitter last week requesting that the label be applied to accounts associated with CBC News, though the letter did not mention Radio-Canada, the French-language wing of the broadcaster.

The Conservative leader has suggested in media interviews that while he believes in defunding the CBC, he sees the value in its French-language programming and the need to serve francophone communities — but both the NDP and Bloc Québécois are raising specific concerns about that approach.

"This is not just an attack against independent journalists," Singh told reporters Monday, speaking in French. "But it is also an attack against Canadian culture, particularly Quebec culture and francophone culture."

An attack on the broadcaster "will hit the francophone community across the country that depends on Radio-Canada for the news, to share stories, to share culture," he said.

"It shows someone who is willing to attack Quebec culture."

Poilievre's office has not responded to a request for comment.

Earlier in the day, Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet said on Twitter that Poilievre is playing a risky ideological game, and that he's openly threatening French and access to information and the arts.

Pierre Paul-Hus, one of two Conservative MPs that Poilievre tapped to serve on his House of Commons leadership team, responded on the platform to say the Bloc leader's assertion of looming cuts was false.

The federal Conservatives currently hold nine out of 78 federal seats in Quebec, while the governing Liberals boast 34 and another 32 belong to the Bloc. The NDP has one seat and Alain Rayes, a former Conservative who left the party last fall after Poilievre won its leadership contest, sits as an independent.

Poilievre, a fluent French speaker, has visited Quebec several times since becoming Conservative leader.

Making gains in the seat-rich province has proved challenging for the federal party, whose support is heavily concentrated in Western Canada. Since the 2006 federal election that elected Stephen Harper, the Tories' best showing in the province was to hold a dozen seats.

Alexandre Boulerice, the federal NDP's sole MP in Quebec, told reporters on Monday that Poilievre is "at war with CBC," which he defended as an independent organization.

Asked about Poilievre's pitch to maintain funding for its French-language services, Boulerice suggested that Conservatives were weighing their electoral chances in Quebec, a majority French-speaking province.

"Maybe that's the calculation because otherwise, (it) makes no sense, this false distinction."

CBC has clarified that any proposal to axe its funding while maintaining its French-language programming would require a change to the Broadcast Act, the legislation that stipulates its mandate.

Spokesman Leon Mar said in a statement last week that to fund Radio-Canada and not CBC "would change the very nature of how programs and services are funded in Canada to target public money at only one language group."

Mar's statement pointed out that federal law says the broadcaster must provide services in both official languages.

The law also outlines that the corporation is to be independent. As it stands, funding decisions about where to allocate the taxpayer money it receives annually are handled by a board of directors, with no input from the government or Parliament.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Heritage Minister Pablo Rodriguez both slammed Poilievre's comments toward the CBC and accused him of looking to U.S. billionaires to wage his attacks, referring to Twitter CEO Elon Musk.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2023.

Stephanie Taylor, The Canadian Press

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for QUEBEC NATIONALISM 

Canada federal workers strike: What government services will be impacted?

You should file your taxes early – and expect some delays in processing

Members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) demonstrate outside the Treasury Board building in Ottawa on Friday, March 31, 2023. 

THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle

Elianna Lev
Mon, April 17, 2023 a

More than 100,000 federal workers moved into legal strike position last week and could strike on Wednesday, which will likely have an impact on several services in Canada, including tax filing.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), says a significant percentage of the federal workforce across the country — more than 124,000 — could go on strike, if they don't reach an agreement by 9 p.m. on Tuesday. The union continues to negotiate with the government, namely on wages, job security and remote work policies.

That number doesn’t account for the tens of thousands of workers who are deemed essential, and therefore are unable to walk from their job.

The government’s website states that they are “committed to negotiating collective agreements that are fair for employees and reasonable for taxpayers.”

A strike, which could roll out between now and the beginning of June, would impact 23 federal departments and agencies, as listed on the government’s website.

Last year, the union laid out how the strike would work, suggesting that there could be selected, targeted or rotating strikes. This is when specific work locations in a city, region, or province organize picket lines for a day, or a series of days at a time, rather than one sweeping strike across the country.
What will be impacted by a strike from Canada's federal workers?

Many departments will feel an impact of the strike, which in turn, will impact Canadians.

In the midst of tax season, 35,000 Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) employees are set to walk off the job as of Friday. The feds say "we anticipate there may be delays in processing some income tax and benefit returns, particularly those filed by paper, and increased wait times in our contact centres." Additionally, certain CRA services may be delayed or unavailable. Benefit payments will be prioritized and Canada child benefit will continue despite any potential labour disruption.

Those looking for services with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, can expect delays with procedures such as application processing, in-person appointments and events, such as citizenship ceremonies, consular citizenship and passport services in Canada.

Service Canada expects full or partial disruption for a number of services, including passport services, grants and contributions programs, the temporary foreign worker program, Canada education savings grant, Canada learning bond, Canada disability savings grant and Canada disability savings bond, the job bank and biometrics collection.

Some Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada support programs and services could be impacted.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada expect partial or full disruption to services including fisheries enforcement, aquaculture management and invasive species, Indigenous funding programs, licensing, fisheries management decisions, marine mammal response and small craft harbours.

Global Affairs Canada anticipates delays with consular services.

Veterans Affairs Canada anticipates it "will have a significantly reduced capacity to process new payments." A strike could also impact career transition services, education and training benefit, disability benefits, caregiver recognition allowance, case management services, benefits and medical services, in-person appointments and responses to calls and messages.

Departments that are deemed essential services, and aren’t expected to be disrupted by strike action include the Canada child benefit, Health Canada services and the majority of RCMP services.

Here's what happens to federal services if public servants strike on Wednesday

The Canadian Press
Mon, April 17, 2023 


OTTAWA — The union representing over 155,000 public servants says if a deal isn't reached with the federal government by 9 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, it will launch a strike this Wednesday.

The Public Service Alliance of Canada says that negotiations have not progressed enough in recent days to call off a strike and its members are frustrated.

Federal departments and agencies have released a list of services that may be disrupted if workers walk off the job Wednesday.

Here's an updated list of what services may be affected:

Agriculture and Agri-foods Canada: The department says if a strike occurs there may be disruptions to call-taking at the Agriculture and Agri-foods Canada contact centre.

Some services that may be disrupted or delayed include AgriInvest, AgriStability, the Poultry and Egg On-Farm Investment Program, the Wine Sector Support Program, the youth employment and skills program and programs under the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership.

Canada Revenue Agency: Workers at the agency announced their own strike mandate last Friday, and the union says they, too, will walk off the job Wednesday if a deal is not reached. In the event of a strike, benefit payments would be prioritized and the Canadian Child Benefit would continue. The CRA is encouraging people to file their taxes online due to delays in processing some income tax and benefit returns, particularly those filed by paper. There may be longer wait times at contact centres.

Canadian Heritage: The department says that all funding programs will be maintained but there could be delays when it comes to application receipts, funding decisions and issuance of payments.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the Canadian Coast Guard: Fisheries and Oceans Canada's conservation and protection program, health and safety-related fishery closures along with the Canadian Coast Guard's search and rescue, environmental response and icebreaking services will still be running but may be operating at reduced administrative capacity.

Some services that may be partially or fully disrupted include Canadian Coast Guard lighthouses, wrecked vessels, and licensing and funding programs by Fisheries and Oceans.

Canadian Transportation Agency: The agency says it will ensure that the national transportation system will continue to run. There may be some delays to things like dispute resolution and information provision.

Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada: Essential services such as the Indian Residential Schools crisis centre, support for hunting, harvesting and community-led food programs, accessing retail subsidy, treaty and negotiations will be maintained, though there may be delays.

Employment and Social Development Canada: Essential services such as the Canada Pension Plan, Old Age Security, employment insurance and social insurance numbers will be maintained. However, there could be processing delays and longer wait times.

The delivery of passports would be limited to clients experiencing humanitarian or emergency situations. There would also be partial processing delays to the Temporary Foreign Worker program, the Canada Education Savings Bond, the Canada Disability Savings Grant and the Canada Disability Savings Bond.

Global Affairs Canada: The department says it will maintain essential services such as travel advisories, the EduCanada program and international scholarships program.

Services at missions abroad, document authentication services, import and export permits, the CanExport program and international assistance programming may be partially or fully impacted.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada: Expect delays for most services, including processing applications, in-person appointments and citizenship ceremonies, passport services and contacting the department.

Services offered by outside organizations would still be available, and online applications, accounts and emergency services will be maintained.

Indigenous Services Canada: Services such as receiving, renewing or replacing a status card, non-insured health benefits, First Nations child and family services, emergency management and funding programs will be maintained. However, the department says labour disruptions may cause delays.

Library and Archives Canada: Service points in Ottawa, Vancouver, Winnipeg and Halifax along with services for the Government of Canada, galleries, libraries, archives and museums will be maintained.

There could be delays to ordering archival and published material, requesting copies, making access-to-information requests, making licensing or copyright requests and for services to publishers.

Public Services and Procurement Canada: Services such as direct deposit, pension payments (socio-economic payments), linguistic services and public notices will be maintained.

Services that may be partially or fully disrupted include phone-assisted direct deposit and security screening.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police: Regular police services would continue across the country, but services such as administrative support, media relations, web updates and access to RCMP buildings may be disrupted.

Transport Canada: Essential services would be maintained but services such as public outreach, regulatory work, aircraft services, issuance of licenses, certificates and registrations, transportation security clearances and other motor vehicle safety hotlines could be partially or fully disrupted.

Veterans Affairs Canada: In the event of a strike, periodic payments to veterans would continue uninterrupted. That includes disability benefits, income replacement benefits and additional compensation for pain and suffering.

The department anticipates a reduced ability to process new payments. New benefit requests or those that are already in the queue will be prioritized on a needs basis.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 17, 2023.

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This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Meta and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

Cindy Tran, The Canadian Press

Major reforms to air passenger rights needed, says House committee report

The Canadian Press
Tue, April 18, 2023 




OTTAWA — A parliamentary committee is recommending sweeping changes to Canada's air passenger rights framework.

The report from the House of Commons transport committee calls on the government to tighten compensation rules for travellers whose flights are cancelled or significantly delayed.

Released Tuesday, the paper comes after chaotic travel seasons over the summer and winter holidays brought on by soaring demand, labour shortages and poor weather.

The report's 21 recommendations include bigger monetary penalties, more efficient processing of compensation claims and putting the burden of proof on airlines to show why compensation should not be awarded.

The committee also suggests the federal government consider harmonizing its compensation rules with European regulations even when delays are for safety purposes — a payout exemption the European Union does not allow.

With the complaints backlog now well over 42,000, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra has pledged to strengthen the four-year-old passenger rights charter with legislation to be tabled this spring.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2023.

The Canadian Press

WestJet pilots vote in favour of strike mandate, could walk before May long weekend

The Canadian Press
Tue, April 18, 2023 


CALGARY — The union representing WestJet pilots says they have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike mandate.

The Air Line Pilots Association says the 1,600 WestJet pilots it represents can launch a strike as early as the week leading up to the May long weekend, which typically kicks off the summer travel season for thousands of Canadians whose plans could now be upended.

Bernard Lewall, who heads the union's WestJet contingent, says the workers' issues revolve around job protection, pay and scheduling at the airline as well as at WestJet Encore and discount subsidiary Swoop.

He says 95 per cent of pilots voted, with 93 per cent of them in favour of the strike mandate.

WestJet said last month the threat of a strike is a common tactic in negotiations.

Talks continue through the federal conciliation process, which will end April 24 followed by a three-week break, unless the parties agree to extend negotiations.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2023.

The Canadian Press

CANADA

Singh proposes corporate tax hike tied to CEO-worker pay gap

CBC
Tue, April 18, 2023

New Democratic Party Leader Jagmeet Singh has proposed a corporate income tax hike tied to pay gaps between workers and CEOs. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press - image credit)

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh pitched a plan Tuesday to increase corporate taxes based on the size of the gap between worker and CEO pay — but the legislation may run afoul of House of Commons rules on who can bring forward tax measures.

Singh said he was inspired by legislation United States Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders put forward in Congress two years ago.

"Right now, when we're experiencing unprecedented inflation, we're seeing people that are feeling squeezed. They can't afford their groceries, they can't afford their bills," Singh told a news conference Tuesday.

"At the very same time, the CEOs of the companies they work for are making more salary, making more compensation than they've ever made before."

The plan would raise the corporate income tax on a sliding scale, depending on the ratio between the pay of a company's CEO and the median pay of the company's workers. According to an NDP news release, the tax increase would be 0.5 per cent if a CEO makes 50 to 100 times the median income of workers, and would rise to a five per cent increase if a CEO makes a salary 500 times or more higher than the median income of workers.

House of Commons rules forbid private members' bills from making changes to taxation, with an exception for bills that create exemptions from new taxes or new tax increases.

"A private member's bill cannot impose, increase or extend the application of a tax," says the House of Commons guide on practice and procedure.

Singh did not say how he would get around the rule, adding he hasn't drafted the bill yet.

Singh has attacked grocery companies and executives repeatedly, saying that greed is responsible for a rise in food prices. Grocery chain representatives, including top executives, have told a House of Commons committee that higher supplier costs and other factors are responsible for the rising price of food, and that other products, such as pharmaceuticals and hygiene products, have a higher profit margin.

Loblaw president Galen Weston Jr. has been the most frequent target of Singh's criticism; the two traded barbs at a House of Commons committee meeting last month. Loblaw announced Tuesday that Weston will step down as president — a move that comes just weeks after news broke that he'd received a $3 million raise in 2022.

Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press

Statistics Canada reported Tuesday that food prices are up 9.7 per cent compared to last year. The overall inflation rate was 4.3 per cent.

Singh called on other parties to support his proposal.

"This is to decrease inequality. This is to force companies to stop the inequality that continues to grow," he said.

"This is a concrete way, a measure, that's going to lift up workers and tell companies a clear message that the inequality that exists in those companies is wrong, and that we're going to incentivize having less inequality."

The NDP's plan would increase the corporate income tax according to this scale:

0.5 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is between 50 and 100


1 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is between 100 and 200


2 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is between 200 and 300


3 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is between 300 and 400


4 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is between 400 and 500


5 per cent if CEO-to-median-worker pay ratio is 500 or more

Weston to step back from Loblaw's day-to-day operations as company announces new CEO

The Canadian Press
Tue, April 18, 2023 


Galen Weston is stepping back from day-to-day operations of Loblaw Companies Ltd. in a senior leadership shuffle that will see a European retail executive take over as president and CEO.

Canada's largest grocer and drugstore chain said Tuesday the chief executive of Denmark’s leading grocery retailer Salling Group A/S, Per Bank, will join the company in early 2024.

The hiring will see Weston step aside from the president role, which he took on in 2021 when Sarah Davis retired from the job. He will remain chairman of Loblaw and chairman and CEO of holding company George Weston Ltd.

"I'm not leaving. I'm stepping back into what I consider to be my natural role as the controlling shareholder," Weston said during a call with analysts.

"The takeaway here is this is not a sharp left turn," he said. "This is about evolution and building on the platform that's been established."

Weston took on the role of president just as Canada entered a sustained period of high inflation. Food costs have risen at the fastest rate in decades.

Higher grocery prices have largely been attributed to supply chain disruptions, extreme weather, soaring input costs and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But some Canadians have questioned whether competition factors or so-called greedflation by grocers have also played a role.

It’s an accusation most often levelled at Loblaw, as the country’s biggest operator, and more specifically at Weston.

Industry experts have noted that while the claims may be unfounded, having the wealthy scion of a powerful family empire as the face of the grocer — as some Canadians struggle to buy food — is part of the perception problem.

Meanwhile, Bank worked his way up through the retail sector ranks over the last three decades.

He started in supply chain operations and eventually became CEO of Scandinavian retail chain Coop Norden.

In 2012, Bank became the fourth CEO of the more than century-old Salling Group, which operates department stores, supermarkets and discount stores.

Under his tenure, the company has grown its market share by more than 20 per cent, Loblaw said.

"We needed somebody who had deep retail knowledge, retail pedigree and retail excellence," Weston said. "That's what we built the success of Loblaw's performance over the last few years on, and (Bank) rang the bell in every way on that."

The global search for a new president and CEO was launched last August, which resulted in a shortlist of five candidates, he said.

"We took our time with this process ... and (Bank) was the clear standout," Weston said, noting that the parallels between Loblaw and Salling Group are "quite remarkable."

"He has extensive experience working for a controlling family, and understands what that relationship needs to be in order for a partnership to be successful," he said.

"He has been leading an organization that has an outsized cultural and financial place inside his country and that's the case for Loblaw," Weston said. "We're a big company in a small country."

RBC Dominion Securities Inc. analyst Irene Nattel said Bank is "a strong operator with a deep background in multi-channel food retail across geographies."

"Bank will be taking the helm of a Loblaw enjoying strong momentum and results, well-positioned against the backdrop of high prices and value-seeking, cash-squeezed consumers," she said.

Meanwhile, Loblaw chief operating officer Robert Sawyer — who came out of retirement to take on the role in 2021 — plans to retire at the end of the year.

Sawyer worked for grocer Metro Inc. for more than 30 years, including in the role of executive vice-president and chief operating officer, before becoming president and chief executive of Quebec-based home improvement retailer Rona in 2013.

"With Robert's deserved retirement approaching, his shoes were always going to be hard to fill," Loblaw chief financial officer Richard Dufresne told analysts.

"However, having spent some time with (Bank), it's clear that he is a seasoned grocery retailer with a broad and deep skill set, much like a slightly younger version of Robert."

Weston added: "If you could find a Robert Sawyer who was 55, that would be an ideal combination for us and here with (Bank) we think we found that."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 18, 2023.

Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:WN)

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press

'Nothing will change': Canadians react to Loblaw CEO Galen Weston stepping down, amidst soaring grocery prices

The news of the Loblaw CEO's exit from his role isn't impressing shoppers who feel betrayed by soaring costs

Loblaw CEO earned an additional $1.2M as grocery prices rise

Abhya Adlakha
·Editor, Yahoo News Canada
Tue, April 18, 2023 

Many Canadians have taken to social media to celebrate, lament after Loblaw announced that their current CEO Galen Weston will be replaced by a Danish retail executive Per Bank starting next year.

In a press release on Tuesday morning, the company announced that Bank will join the company by 2024 followed by a "global talent search initiated" by the company in August 2022.

"It comes after two years of superb performance at the company as it executed against a strategy anchored in retail excellence," Loblaw said.

This news comes after it was revealed that Weston received a 55 per cent raise in 2022 after consultants thought he was "underpaid".

Weston will remain chairman of Loblaw and chairman and CEO of holding company George Weston Ltd.

"I'm not leaving. I'm stepping back into what I consider to be my natural role as the controlling shareholder," Weston said during a call with analysts.

"The takeaway here is this is not a sharp left turn," he said. "This is about evolution and building on the platform that's been established."

In 2012, Bank became the fourth CEO of the more than century-old Salling Group, which operates department stores, supermarkets and discount stores. Under his tenure, the company has grown its market share by more than 20 per cent, Loblaw said.

RELATED from Yahoo Finance Canada: Here's how much grocery prices went up in March 2023

Not long after the news, many Canadians took to social media to express their feelings about the controversial executive leaving the company—while some were overjoyed, others feel that this is a PR move by the company after months of outrage over rising grocery prices, and there will be no substantial changes in the future.

"Buh bye Galen Weston": Twitter reacts to the news

  

Rat ambassadors try to counter bad press amid NYC's rat war

As an ambassador for rats, it’s never easy to win over the public

ByJULIE WATSON Associated Press
April 17, 2023, 


SAN DIEGO -- As an ambassador for rats, it's never easy to win over the public. There's that hairless tail after all.

But Runa at the San Diego Zoo is doing her best to counter the bad press. She is one of a handful of such so-called ambassadors showing off the virtues of rats at three U.S. zoos. The rats were provided by a Tanzania-based organization that is training African giant pouched rats to combat wildlife trafficking, detect diseases and perform other useful tasks.

At least twice the size of the common brown rats found in cities, African giant pouched rats like Runa are best known for ferreting out landmines and other explosive material on old battlefields in Angola, Mozambique and Cambodia, earning them the nickname “hero-rats.” Efforts are underway to expand the use of their keen sense of smell to finding people trapped in collapsed buildings, detecting diseases in laboratory samples and alerting officials to illegal goods at ports and airports.

Six African rats completed their first trial working in the field in March, spending a month at a port in Tanzania where they were tasked with detecting smuggled goods, including Pangolins. The scaly anteater is coveted by poachers and is among the most trafficked animals in the world. Its meat is considered a delicacy in Vietnam and some parts of China, and its scales are used in traditional Chinese medicine.

Wildlife contraband is concealed among vast numbers of shipping containers that annually leave Dar es Salaam in Tanzania and other African ports.

Runa initially was trained to find landmines, but she often got distracted on the job. She has been excelling, however, as an ambassador, said Cari Inserra, lead wildlife care specialist at the San Diego Zoo.

On a recent day, her trainers hid small vessels of chamomile tea under the dirt in a box. As soon as she was released from her cage, Runa's tiny nose was abuzz with twitching as she set out to work. Within seconds she had found all the vessels, and was racing over to suck on a syringe filled with a pellet-and-banana smoothie.

“One of the most fun things to see is how she changes the perceptions of people,” Inserra said.

Nicki Boyd, of the San Diego Zoo and Wildlife Alliance, said rats offer an important tool to combat wildlife trafficking, which the zoo wants to highlight since the illegal animal trade "is very destructive to the species that we are actively trying to save and protect in the wild."

“I do think there is the ability to scale this up,” she said.

But rats still have a ways to go in winning over everyone. Last week, New York Mayor Eric Adams introduced Kathleen Corradi, a former elementary school teacher and anti-rat activist, as his new “rat czar" whose job is to battle potentially millions of rats lurking about the city.

The city's help-wanted ad for the post stated it was seeking applicants who are “bloodthirsty,” possess “killer instincts” and could commit to the “wholesale slaughter” of rats. At her first news conference in her job, Corradi, standing next to Adams, stated her hatred of rats and vowed to use “science” to rid the city of them.

Rats can spread disease like leptospirosis, which on rare occasions can lead to meningitis and cause the kidneys and liver to fail.

Izzy Szott, a behavioral research scientist at the Tanzania-based organization APOPO, which is training the rats to work for governments, said she was not surprised to hear rats had been named enemy No. 1, but she wants people to know the full picture. Her hope is having ambassador rats at renowned zoos, like San Diego's, will lead to more understanding and support for rat research.

New York City spokesman Fabien Levy called his city’s rats “dirty, diseased” and a public health risk that the city is intent on ridding itself of using humane techniques where possible. But he added: “Our priority remains our city’s residents, not its rodents.”

Rats in general, Szott said, “actually are quite clean animals," adding that they groom themselves constantly and often affectionately lick their trainers' arms after getting a good scratching.

Szott said rats often “get a bad rap," but that it's important to “consider our responsibility towards the wildlife around us and that we share the planet with.”

“We need to understand the capabilities that these animals have and see them in a humane way and treat them in a humane way,” she added.

African giant pouched rats have sniffed out more than 150,000 landmines to date, according to her organization. They've also helped health clinics in Africa diagnose people with tuberculosis, detecting the bacteria in the sputum samples of 25,000 patients.

At their facility in Morogoro, Tanzania, Szott and the other researchers are also working on training the rats to someday aid in the detection of contaminated soil or help rescuers in finding people trapped under the rubble after earthquakes and explosions. The rats, which can be dispatched into hard-to-reach areas, have been outfitted with tiny vests with a pendant they can pull to send an alert to their handlers when they find a person. So far they have succeeded in alerting their handler when given such a task in a mock disaster setting, Szott said.

And Szott said she believes someday they could be a regular fixture at some ports and airports, offering a cheaper option to drug-and-explosive-sniffing dogs. One of her program's rats has already shown they can sniff out multiple species, she said, adding that they could be used to stop the trafficking of elephant ivory and rhino horn.

New York City's common brown rats share the same traits, but their shorter lifespan makes them unlikely candidates for such trainings, Szott said. African rats can live up to a decade whereas small brown rats only live for a few years.

“We think they make great zoo additions,” she said of the African rats, adding that the ambassadors will broaden people's understanding of “just how smart they are and how we can co-exist with them.”