News Briefs

Religious objector to union dues loses appeal

Ottawa — A devout Catholic and public servant lost her legal bid last month to have her union dues of $800 a year be diverted from the Public Service Alliance of Canada because it supports gay marriage. Susan Comstock said the union’s stance of “zero tolerance” for homophobia and heterosexism goes against her religious belief and sought to have her union dues go to her church instead. The Federal Court of Appeal ruling upholds an earlier ruling at the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

Opponents of TILMA say trade deal unconstitutional

Victoria — Labour unions in Alberta and British Columbia are gearing up to fight a pending bilateral trade agreement between the two provinces on the grounds the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement Implementation Act (TILMA) would prohibit all non-exempt government measures that “operate to restrict or impair” trade, investment or labour mobility, which means a “broad landscape of public policies, laws and programs” may be challenged under the agreement, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees.

Cost of office space in Calgary soars

Calgary — Downtown office space in Calgary is the most expensive in Canada and second only to New York in North America, according to the Global Market Rents May 2008 report by real estate firm CB Richard Ellis. In the list of 50 cities worldwide, Calgary’s rate of $66.27 US per square foot places the city at number 42, more expensive than Toronto (number 47), which averages $62.44. The average rent in West End London, number one on the list, is $299.54 and in New York, number 13 on the list, $103.43.

B.C. loosens rules for security work as Olympics nears

Vancouver — New regulations are expected in September that would loosen the rules so foreigners can fill security jobs needed during the Olympics. About 900,000 hours of security would be needed from January through March 2010, RCMP Cpl. Gursharn Bernier said in a newspaper report, and B.C. security firms can’t handle that workload with only 7,000 licensed security guards. A new Security Services Act was passed last year but will not take effect until regulations are passed, possibly in the fall. The new act allows people “normally resident” in Canada to become guards, including foreigners with work or student visas.

Work stress costs employers: Study

Ottawa — A Health Canada survey on workplace stress at 100 organizations found the cost to employers is $2.8 billion a year, including visits to the doctor and hospital stays. The report Reducing Work-Life Conflict: What Works? What Doesn’t? co-authored by Carleton University professor Linda Duxbury, found 11 per cent of the 31,000 respondents used drugs as a coping mechanism. Those reporting high stress were twice as likely to spend more than $300 a year on prescription drugs. More than one-half of those surveyed reported high levels of stress and one in three reported high levels of burnout and depression.

Ont. farm workers take union fight to court of appeal

Toronto — Farm workers went before Ontario’s Court of Appeal last month to argue for the right to form a union. Backed by the United Food and Commercial Workers, the group argues agricultural production is increasingly done in large-scale industrial farming operations. Ontario and Alberta are the only jurisdictions that ban farm workers from joining unions. The NDP government gave them that right in the 1990s, but it was quickly revoked by the Conservative government of Mike Harris. Following a Supreme Court of Canada ruling in 2001 that the ban was discriminatory, the Conservative government under Ernie Eves brought in the Agricultural Employees Protection Act, which allows farm workers to join associations but not to bargain collectively.

Wages up and workers returning to Atlantic Canada

Halifax — Workers heading West have caused a drop of two per cent in the Atlantic Canada population in the last decade, and 10 per cent of those aged 15 to 34, according to a report by the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council. The report noted, however, that out-migration has contributed to lower unemployment rates in the Atlantic provinces and pushed up wages in the region, where 2007 average weekly wages rose faster than the national average. Alberta wealth is also raising housing prices in the region, according to another report released around the same time. Partly responsible for the increased buying interest are Maritimers coming home “after living in Western Canada for many years,” stated the Re/Max Atlantic Canada Market Trends Report.