BC Ferries ordered to reinstate ship’s captain; Canadian Women launch complaint with UNited nations; Quebec workers optimistic about jobs; ‘Roadmap’ for hiring, integrating immigrants; U.S. unemployment hits 8.5 per cent
BC Ferries ordered to reinstate ship’s captain
Vancouver — Three years after the Queen of the North ferry sank off British Columbia’s coast, killing two people, the province’s health and safety agency has ordered the captain be reinstated. WorkSafeBC has ruled Capt. Colin Henthorne must be back on the job by May 25. Henthorne was off duty and not on the bridge when the ferry struck Gil Island, rupturing its hull on March 22, 2006. A 2007 BC Ferries report blamed human error for the accident and singled out three other crew members, who were in charge of navigation and steering at the time, for failing to make a required course change.
Canadian Women launch complaint with UNited nations
Ottawa — Representatives of women’s groups and labour unions are filing a complaint against the federal government with the UN Commission on the Status of Women. The complaint condemns the government’s pay equity legislation, which will make it difficult for women in the federal public sector to get equal pay for work of equal value. Representatives of more than 40 organizations, including the Public Service Alliance of Canada, the Syndicat de la fonction publique du Québec, the Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions and the Feminist Alliance for International Action, signed the “notice of communication” to the UN. The complaint also takes aim at the 2009 federal budget for failing to fix Canada’s employment insurance system.
Quebec workers optimistic about jobs
Quebec — Only 12 per cent of Quebec employers are planning layoffs in the next 12 months, according to a survey of 1,001 Quebec workers by the Ordre des conseillers en resources humaine agrées. The provincial HR association’s survey found the majority of workers are optimistic in the face of the recession, with 38 per cent saying their employer plans to hire new staff in the next six months and 44 per cent saying their employer isn’t planning to make any staffing changes. One-third of workers who have changed jobs in the past year cite flexible work arrangements as the number-one incentive (when salary isn’t a factor).
‘Roadmap’ for hiring, integrating immigrants
Toronto — A new online tool, Roadmap, from the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council will help employers hire, integrate and retain skilled immigrants. For more information, visit www.hireimmigrants.ca/ roadmap.
U.S. unemployment hits 8.5 per cent
Washington — The United States lost 663,000 jobs in March, pushing the unemployment rate to a 16-year high of 8.5 per cent. Since the recession began in December 2007, 5.1 million jobs have been lost, 3.3 million of which were lost in the last five months, according to the U.S. Department of Labour. In March, 13.2 Americans were unemployed. March job losses were seen in all sectors, including manufacturing (161,000), construction (126,000), service (72,000), retail (48,000), financial services (43,000) and transportation and warehousing (34,000).
