Union executives yesterday questioned a feared loophole in a long-promised Pay Equity Act. The labour department did not explain the nine-word reference on the 342nd page of Bill C-86: 'Our lawyers are looking at that.'
The billion-dollar failure of a federal payroll system has now garbled cheques for 62 percent of employees, Auditor General Michael Ferguson yesterday told the Commons public accounts committee. Ferguson estimated workers this year were shortchanged by more than a third of a billion dollars: "How do we know this won’t be repeated over and over again?"
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers last night called for members to refuse all overtime just weeks ahead of the profitable Christmas parcel season. Canada Post has warned of a general slowdown nationwide due to a series of rotating strikes: "We've had it."
Media groups testifying at the Senate legal and constitutional affairs committee yesterday criticized a cabinet Access To Information bill as weak. The Halifax-based Centre for Law and Democracy earlier rated Canadian legislation worse than Bulgaria’s: "We recommend it be rejected out of hand."
Dividing the old Department of Indian Affairs into two new agencies cost taxpayers more than $150 million, according to a federal report and financial accounts. Authorities had declined comment to date on the extra expense: 'Some participants expressed concern it could result in confusion.'
Airport managers testifying at the Commons transport committee yesterday depicted noise complaints as overblown. One authority said just four people accounted for hundreds of complaints to the Vancouver Airport Authority. Calgary managers credited 2 people with logging 2,700 complaints: "Some feel they need to complain three times a day."
The National Research Council yesterday said it will try to calculate costs and benefits of climate change upgrades to municipal infrastructure. The Council identified “knowledge gaps” that could cost ratepayers billions nationwide: 'Consequences can be quite significant.'
The Department of Justice made a federal court case out of 10 apples, according to documents. Lawyers fought to uphold an $800 fine against a woman who carried fruit from her mother’s garden through Customs: ‘I did not mean to lie about those apples.’
The CRTC yesterday revived a decade-old proposal to fine broadcasters rather than pull licenses for breach of regulations. No television station has ever had its license forcibly revoked by Commission, though five radio licenses have been pulled since 1970: "That’s not going to happen and we know it."
Cabinet yesterday introduced a long-promised Pay Equity Act mandating compensation for underpaid women in federally-regulated workplaces. The law would not take effect until 2022 at the earliest. Estimating costs is impossible, said Labour Minister Patricia Hajdu: "It's a very difficult thing to assess."
Environment Minister Catherine McKenna yesterday would not disclose the impact of new carbon tax exemptions on federal emission targets. Cabinet's plan was 29 percent short even before cabinet approved new waivers for greenhouse gas polluters: "It is hard."
Copyright and trademark owners yesterday appealed to the Commons industry committee to tighten piracy laws. The Public Prosecution Service has not prosecuted a single counterfeiter since 2014: "If you look for it, you’re going to find it."
The Senate banking, trade and commerce committee yesterday expressed dismay over RCMP inaction on cyber crime. The Mounties earlier testified corporate breaches of Canadians’ personal data are not a Criminal Code matter: "It is alarming."
The Federal Court of Appeal yesterday upheld an ethics ruling one advocacy group called a charade. The Commissioner of Ethics was sued over a 2016 decision allowing then-Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc to endorse a so-called “conflict of interest screen” over dealings with a New Brunswick millionaire: "They are a reasonable exercise."
Environment Canada in a rare emergency order admits it miscalculated greenhouse gas emissions by more than a million tonnes. Staff blamed a faulty survey that would have seen Canada violate a treaty to cut emissions of a common coolant: "Immediate action is required."
