Strike vote expected by school support workers
The union representing 55 thousand educational support workers in Ontario says strike votes will be
held in a month’s time, but that doesn’t mean a walkout will follow.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees held meetings across the province yesterday, to tell its members that the voting will be held between September 23rd and October 2nd unless a new contract is reached with the provincial government.
The union represents special education teachers, administrative staff, and custodians.
Union President Laura Walton says the Ford government has to stop picking on the lowest-paid educational workers in the province.
The two sides remain far apart in their contract negotiations.
The Union has been pushing for an 11.7 percent pay increase.
The government has offered a two percent hike for those earning under 40 thousand dollars a year, and 1.25 percent for everyone else.
COVID-19 mandates implemented at Western University
Western University says students, faculty, and staff, will have to be fully inoculated against COVID-19, including booster shots.
The university, located in London, says face masks will also be compulsory in all classrooms and seminars.
The university says the new policy, announced yesterday, supports the need to protect those on campus while retaining the in-person experience at the school.
Those moving into residence will be given until October 1st to bring their vaccinations up to date.
Increased fighting expected in Ukraine
Ukraine is bracing for a surge in Russian military activity, as it gets ready to mark its independence anniversary tomorrow.
Wednesday is also the six-month anniversary of the launch of the Russian invasion.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has banned any celebrations
in the capital of Kyiv, fearing Russian artillery and missile strikes.
The move comes after U-S intelligence officials reported that Russia is likely to step up its attacks on Ukraine’s civilian infrastructure in the coming days.
Yesterday, the Russian security service officially accused Ukraine of being responsible for a Moscow car bomb explosion that killed the daughter of Alexander Dugin, a prominent philosopher who has strongly backed Putin’s decision to invade and absorb, Ukraine.
Zelensky says, unlike the Russian government, Ukraine is not a criminal or terrorist organization.
Push to get rid of the Arrive-Can app
The Canadian American Business Council is stepping up the pressure on the federal government to scrap
the use of the Arrive-Can app for those arriving in Canada.
The Council is mobilizing businesses on both sides of the border to scrap the app, which has experienced several problems since it was introduced.
The Council also wants the government to clear the backlog facing the Nexus system, a pre-clearance
program for frequent border-crossers.
While the issues are only two of the problems facing travellers entering Canada, the Council says these are the easiest to fix.
