In the news today: Canada Post says no end to strike in sight

By The Canadian Press on December 10, 2024.

Canada Post employees and supporters rally as they are reflected in a window at Canada Post headquarters in Ottawa, Thursday, Nov. 28, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Here is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to bring you up to speed…

Canada Post says no end to strike in sight

With the Canada Post strike nearing four weeks, the postal service says it doesn’t see an end in sight.

On Monday, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers sent over its latest list of proposals, which include wage gains and job protections.

But Canada Post said in a statement that the proposals don’t bring the two sides any closer together in a dispute that’s brought millions of deliveries to a halt.

Despite calls for the government to intervene, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday that the government is putting pressure on the two sides to reach an agreement.

One of the key issues in bargaining has been a potential expansion into weekend deliveries, with the two sides at odds over how to staff the expansion.

The strike began Nov. 14, and though a federal mediator was appointed, that was put on hold nearly two weeks ago due to the sides being too far apart.

Here’s what else we’re watching…

How tariffs could pressure Canadian agriculture

As Donald Trump’s inauguration looms, Canada’s agriculture industry is waiting with bated breath to see whether the sweeping tariffs he’s threatened will come to pass.

If they do, producers would have to plug the gaps left by restricted access to the country’s largest trading partner and consumers could be left paying higher prices.

“When you have a new administration coming into your No. 1 market and they’re talking about their interest or intention to impose tariffs, that’s certainly not something to be ignored,” said Chris Davison, president and CEO of the Canola Council of Canada.

President-elect Trump recently threatened Canada and Mexico with 25 per cent tariffs.

Canada has responded swiftly, with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau touting the need for a united front to deal with the new administration and flying to dine with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.

Parliament to hold 11th hour vote on spending bill

Members of Parliament are set to vote on a government bill asking for billions in funding as the clock ticks down on a deadline.

Last month, the Liberals made a request for Parliament to approve $21.6 billion in spending.

The money will go to fund the First Nations child and family services program, and to compensate the Quebec government for services for asylum seekers, among other programs.

But there had been uncertainty over whether the vote would even happen before today’s deadline.

Parliament has been paralyzed for months as the Conservatives press the Liberals to hand over documents relating to hundreds of millions of dollars of misspending on a green-tech fund.

TikTok hoping for ‘solution’ to Canadian shutdown

The Liberal government’s move to order the shutdown of TikTok’s Canadian operations over national security concerns has left hundreds of the company’s Canadian employees in limbo.

Ottawa hasn’t publicly specified the date by which TikTok has to comply, and while the company has pledged to fight the order in court, it’s also talking to the government in hopes of finding a “solution.”

On Nov. 6, the federal government announced it ordered the dissolution of TikTok’s Canadian business after a national security review of the Chinese company behind the social media platform. That means TikTok must “wind down” its operations in Canada, though the app will continue to be available to Canadians.

Steve de Eyre, the company’s director of public policy and government affairs, is getting down to business as usual – which includes lobbying the same federal government that has ordered the company to shut down.

He said his work includes “making sure that government agencies, members of Parliament, regulators, understand what the impact of this order would be.”

Newfoundland towns light up harbours for fishers

On a twinkling wharf in a small Newfoundland town, a crowd of about 100 people stopped singing and chatting on Friday night to bow their heads in a moment of silence for local fish harvesters.

Now in its 26th year, the boat lighting in Port de Grave, N.L., draws visitors from all over the province, but organizers have kept the town’s fishers at the heart of the ceremony.

The event kicks off with Christmas carols and hot chocolate, but it includes a solemn prayer for the fishers – those who died in the past year in the community from any cause, and those who continue to make it home safe while doing one of the deadliest jobs in Canada.

Atlantic Canada is knit together by the fisheries and, as a consequence, by a shared grief wrought by tragedy at sea. An average of 12 fishers were killed on the job each year between 1999 and 2021, according to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.

All of Newfoundland and Labrador celebrated this summer when seven men made it home to New-Wes-Valley, N.L., after a fire aboard their fishing vessel more than 220 kilometres from shore forced them to jump into the sea. They spent three days adrift in a life raft before being found.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 10, 2024.