Parents keen to join kids in interviews; Privacy commissioner OKs biometrics use; Gossipy e-mail costs sender $7,800; Sask. labour groups complain to ILO; Big Three pay severance when suppliers bankrupt; Feds pump $80 million into deal with Ford
Parents keen to join kids in interviews
Montreal — Employers might soon start seeing parents at job interviews, with one in five Canadians surveyed saying parents should be allowed to go on job interviews with their children. The survey of 2,000 people was commissioned by RSM Richter after the accounting firm received numerous calls from parents of applicants asking about the interview process. Dads are more likely, at 22 per cent, to want to sit in on interviews than moms, at 16 per cent.
Privacy commissioner OKs biometrics use
Edmonton — Alberta employers can use biometric scanners, according to a ruling by Alberta’s privacy commissioner. The privacy watchdog investigated the use of biometrics when a former employee of Edmonton’s Empire Ballroom Nightclub and an employee at Calgary’s Southwood Care Centre complained about their use in the workplace. Because the systems collect a measurement of the employee’s thumbprint, then generate and record a unique identification number, instead of scanning the actual print, the commission ruled the scanners don’t invade people’s privacy.
Gossipy e-mail costs sender $7,800
Kitchener, Ont. — Under Ontario law, a statement sent electronically can be defamatory and costly, even if it is only sent to one person. In an e-mail, Rick Sullivan said Ronald Harrington was fired from his previous job for “cooking the books.” The recipient, Jason Wade, director of operations at Harrington’s new company, WesTower Communications, forwarded the e-mail to Harrington and George Patton, Harrington’s former employer. Patton called the e-mail slanderous and “completely false” and threatened legal action. Sullivan wrote apologies to both Patton and Harrington, saying he shouldn’t have engaged in “pure gossip.” But Harrington launched a $50,000 defamation suit against Sullivan. Harrington and Sullivan reached an out-of-court settlement of $5,000 plus costs. And a Superior Court judge, who was to be the Kitchener trial judge, ordered Sullivan to pay Harrington another $2,800 to cover disbursements.
Sask. labour groups complain to ILO
Regina — The Saskatchewan Federation of Labour is teaming up with 21 provincial and national labour groups to lodge a complaint with the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva about changes to the province’s labour laws. The changes, passed into law earlier this year, include maintaining essential public services during a strike and requiring a secret ballot before a union can be certified. The groups hope a ruling by the ILO against these changes, known as Bills 5 and 6, will strengthen the fight against them.
Big Three pay severance when suppliers bankrupt
Kitchener, Ont. — Canada’s Big Three automakers have paid nearly $2 million to cover severance for workers at bankrupt auto-parts manufacturers in Ontario. Kitchener-based Ledco, which shut down after the Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) turned down a 25-per-cent wage cut in January, couldn’t afford to pay severance. CAW pursued the company’s customers, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, to cover the $1.2-million severance during contract negotiations earlier this year. One week after the Ledco deal, CAW announced another $500,000 payment from Chrysler to the employees of the bankrupt Plastech plant in Leamington, Ont.
Feds pump $80 million into deal with Ford
Windsor, Ont. — The federal government is teaming up with Ford to create or sustain up to 757 jobs in Canada’s auto sector. Under the new agreement, Ottawa will invest in Ford’s Renaissance Project, which includes a new flexible engine assembly plant in Windsor and a new engine efficiency and fuel technologies research centre. The total investment could reach $730 million, with Ottawa providing up to $80 million through the Automotive Innovation Fund.
