By Judy Haiven KJIPUKTUK (Halifax) – Recently, two Halifax restaurants , the Athens Restaurant and the Old Triangle Irish Alehouse, have been repeatedly targeted by people who have ordered and eaten a meal, only to leave without paying their bill. It’s called “dine and dash” – and it’s probably every server’s nightmare. The server at Continue readingDine and dash – gouging restaurant servers
Nova Scotia
By Robert Devet Halifax CAO Jacques Dubé was getting a bit carried away when he told CBC yesterday that “we’re making good progress” to rid the Municipal Operations workplace of racism, misogyny and ableism. That’s not what the African Nova Scotian workers thought when they rallied at City Hall, and it also isn’t what the Continue readingHalifax action against workplace racism moving along at snail′s pace
By Robert Devet Here in Nova Scotia we hear about racism in the workplace too often. It’s terrible, and there is little we can do, apart from writing a letter or maybe boycott a store. But when that workplace is our very own city than we own that problem. In 2016 a report by an Continue readingWhen your very own City Hall is a racist employer
By Robert Devet As traffic infractions go, driving with a (lightly) tinted front window must be pretty low on the seriousness scale. At least, that is what Jason MacLean, president of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) always assumed. After all, he had interacted with police several times while driving that same Continue readingFighting for the union, fighting systemic racism in Halifax
By Robert Devet A private for-profit blood supply system is not welcome in Nova Scotia, and the provincial government should enact legislation as soon as possible to ensure private companies such as Canadian Plasma Resources (CPR) do not get to set up shop here. That was the main message at a Tuesday morning press conference Continue readingUnions want paid-for plasma in Nova Scotia outlawed
By Jason Edwards Two weeks ago, a story came to light about seven cleaners who had received notice of layoff after the contractor who employed them lost the cleaning contract at central Halifax’s Founders Square. Of the eight cleaners who had been working at the site, all seven of African dissent were given notice of Continue readingNova Scotia workers need protections against contract flipping
By Robert Devet “Our bias is the market,” said Marco Navarro-Génie, president of the Atlantic Institute for Market Studies (AIMS) as he introduced education pundit Paul Bennett. Bennett was there to give a talk on governance in Nova Scotia’s education system at the Central Library on Spring Garden Road this morning. It’s exactly that market Continue readingTeachers confront Paul Bennett, AIMS, on business agenda for education
By Robert Devet Look at it whichever way you want, the decision by the NSTU not to strike was a retreat. Government gave up very little. The pent up anger of 83% of all teachers willing to engage in civil disobedience will remain untapped. This is not to argue with the NSTU decision not to Continue readingLabour in Nova Scotia has its work cut out
By Andrea Heans I am angry! I am outraged! But mostly, I feel cheated for myself and for my students; because we are being robbed of a sound educational system. A system in which students can thrive, achieve, dream and believe in themselves with the guidance and support of teachers, principals, parents, educational assistants and Continue readingHow government let my students down
By Robert Devet Asking teachers and others who work in the school system directly what it is that works in today’s schools and what needs fixing, now there is a novel idea. Members of Educators for Social Justice (ESJ) are doing exactly that. Their recently posted online survey asks just a few simple questions: what Continue reading“It’s a calling, but it’s getting so hard.” Online survey aims to amplify Nova Scotia teachers’ voices
By Liette Doucet, President of the Nova Scotia Teachers Union. Last week, on the advice of private consultant Avis Glaze, the McNeil government announced it is once again eroding the collective rights of teachers. Instead of investing more resources to support students with special needs, this government has decided to ban school principals and vice Continue readingNova Scotia continues to place needs of students last
By Chris Parsons With the holidays coming to an end, negotiations between the Irving family’s Halifax Shipyard Inc. and its unionized workers are set to resume this month with the help of a mediator. In December, the workers, members of UNIFOR Marine Workers Local One voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike mandate after the Continue readingClass warfare and the Irving Shipyard