Blacklock's Reporter

The Canadian Union of Public Employees is asking that a federal judge cite Labour Minister Patty Hajdu for unlawful misuse of her powers to  quash a legal strike by 10,500 Air Canada flight attendants. Hajdu yesterday did not comment but earlier told reporters she did not like strikes: “Is your government anti-union?”

The number of homeless veterans has declined steadily, by at least 17 percent in the past two years, says a Department of Veterans Affairs memo. Managers credited in part a program that pays tax-free emergency grants in hardship cases: “I could literally save their life.”

Most high schoolers of the Covid generation spend far in excess of recommended “screen time” on the internet, says a Public Health Agency report. New findings drawn from questionnaires with 26,000 students nationwide followed warnings that pandemic school closures disrupted childhood activities like sports and clubs: ‘Frequent internet use has become especially common.’

Retail startups in Canada are down by more than a fifth since the pandemic, says new Department of Industry research. It followed a 12 percent rise in bankruptcies last year to near levels not seen since the 2008 financial panic: “This report is one of the first to examine the impact of Covid-19 on entrepreneurship.”

A four-day strike by Air Canada flight attendants ended this morning after management came to terms, says the Canadian Union of Public Employees. The tentative agreement at 4:23 am Eastern came a day after strike leaders defied a picket ban imposed by the federal cabinet: “We will not turn our back on these workers.”

Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre last night reclaimed a Commons seat. “I will never give up,” he said after winning a byelection in Battle River-Crowfoot, Alta. with 80.4 percent support: “The road to success is never a straight line.”

Parks Canada yesterday hurriedly issued a public designation of Brian Mulroney as a national historic person. It followed disclosures the agency’s Historic Sites and Monuments Board voted in secret session to delay for 25 years a public honour for the late Prime Minister that was previously awarded promptly to his Liberal predecessors: “We will continue to monitor this situation.”

The nation is too reliant on the Canadian Armed Forces for firefighting, Emergency Management Minister Eleanor Olszewski said yesterday. Cabinet for years has proposed to federalize wildfire response by creating a Canadian version of the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency: “You know, this is not their primary responsibility.”

A labour board has overturned the 2021 firing of a Toronto schoolteacher for wearing an awkward Halloween costume. The appearance of blackface was inadvertent and unintentional, an arbitrator ruled: “He was asked if he was aware of the controversy over Justin Trudeau appearing as Aladdin in blackface.”

Labour Minister Patty Hajdu yesterday would not substantiate her claim a legal strike by 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants threatened deliveries of life-saving medicine and organ tissue. Hajdu was previously cited for fabricating stories to justify strike bans “This is simply unacceptable.”

Tax filers face $50 a day fines and mandatory oaths under threat of perjury for failing to cooperate with the Canada Revenue Agency. Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne outlined the proposals Friday in draft amendments to the Income Tax Act: “These proposed amendments are intended to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of tax audits.”

Department of Immigration employees are invited to workday festivities marking “public service pride week” at an undisclosed cost, according to an internal staff notice. Events include a workday bingo game Thursday with a “sexy drag rock star.”

Climate change is causing “ecological grief” in First Nations, says a federal report. The Department of Indigenous Services said more funds are required for climate counseling under a “wellness program” already budgeted at nearly $1.6 billion: ‘Wildfires can create ecological grief.’

Public Works Minister Joel Lightbound will not comment on his department’s attempt to fast-track a review of proposed Canada Post service cuts. The department in the past has discussed elimination of daily mail delivery at a saving of more than $70 million a year: “Most Canadians are willing to accept changes in the delivery of mail once they were made aware of some of Canada Post’s financial challenges.”