 By Staff
April 26th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
It wasn’t tank top and short shorts weather but it was an improvement over the weather the city experienced the past two weeks.
Previously, when the weather was warm and did invite short shorts there were complaints about the number of people who were using the Promenade at Spencer Smith Park and just hanging around the downtown core.
 No crowds, many people were masked and traffic moved nicely. The Covid19 infection reports are still a serious threat – the prevailing attitude in Burlington seems to be that those reports concern Toronto and the Region of Peel – Burlington is safe.
Far from the truth – many people in Toronto and within the Region of Peel do the best they can to get out of their communities and visit places like Burlington. The waterfront is a huge attraction.
 Families gather in the Square opposite city hall enjoying the warmer weather. The Emergency Control Group that oversees just how the city administration responds to the infection threat is working double time putting together plans to limit the number of people who use the park and the Beachway where there are long stretches of sandy beachfront that will become very inviting when the summer weather is upon us.
For City Manager Tim Commisso this is a problem that keeps him awake at nights; he knows full well that should there be a spike in the number of Covid19 infections in Burlington the public howl will fall on his shoulders.
 Running a city with some exceptionally good people supporting him is a job Tim Commisso, City Manager could do with his eyes closed – that may be why he took on the job when asked to serve as interim and then applied for the job. The task he deals with now is not what he saw coming – but it is something he has to deal with. The public doesn’t hear all that much from the Emergency Control Group. At their most recent report to Council Commisso said that he expected to have to meet with Council more often than the on average monthly report in that takes place.
The Emergency Control Group is tasked with adjusting service delivery levels and allocating staff to where it is needed most.
There are now 10 bylaw enforcement officer on the payroll – while parking is something they used to spend a lot of time on – parking is no longer getting the same attention.
The rate of calls to the bylaw enforcement office is up over 200% from last year. The staff in that office often have to tell people that it is going to be awhile before they can get the attention they want.
Meanwhile, the running of a city has to take place, with the city hall basically closed; open if you need a marriage license – by appointment only. Transit is still running the system.
Parks are now open and the people at Parks and Recreation have acquired an ability to pivot on about two hours notice skill set.
For people at the municipal level everything is in a state of flux; with the vast majority of the 700 plus full time people working from their homes. They have all gotten very good at slipping into Zoom meetings.
Finances are in good condition; the province has provided short term and long term funds creating enough of a cushion for Joan Ford, City Treasurer to have the confidence she needs to assure the public that we will not be going broke.
By Pepper Parr
April 26th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Committee of Adjustment (CoA) is the place you appeal to when you need a small adjustment to the zoning of a piece of property
The CoA is an independent body appointed by Council under authority granted by the Province of Ontario. The Committee has seven members and two alternates who are all residents of the City of Burlington.
 Item posted on Kearns Facebook page The Committee of Adjustment is authorized by the Planning Act to consider applications for:
Minor variances from the zoning bylaw.
Extensions, enlargements or variations of existing legal non-conforming uses under the zoning bylaw.
Land division and consents – severing a new lot from an existing lot, adding land to an existing lot, easements, mortgages or leases in excess of 21 years.
Conformity to the zoning bylaw for a particular use.
There have been some boisterous CoA meetings in the past; the hearing that related to the Jack Dennison application to sever the property he once owned on Lakeshore Road took years to be completed and in the end went to the OMB where the CoA decision was set aside.
Dennison, who was the ward 4 Councillor at the time eventually got the decision he wanted – it raised more than eyebrows.
Members of Council are rarely involved in CoA meetings. However in the past former Councillors Rick Craven and John Taylor have appeared. Craven attended but did not speak to an application nor did he identify himself as a ward Councillor. John Taylor did speak to an application.
 Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns The current Councillor for ward 2, Lisa Kearns has appeared before the CoA twice and in a notice on her Facebook page is advising people of the meeting this week.
 Maurice Desrochers, talking to residents who live near the block long development he was proposing for the St. Luke’s ward. The application she refers to is one made by Maurice Richard Desrochers, no stranger to CoA procedures. There are three separate applications, all related to a property on the corner of Caroline and Burlington Street, a part of the city that is seen as a choice location to live where re-sale prices are well into the million dollar level.
There appear to be people either on the CoA or involved in the administration of the hearings who take exception to members of Council appearing.
The Gazette source asked not to be identified
 By Staff
April 24th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
A message to the community from Eric Vandewall, President & CEO Joseph Brant Hospital
Across the province, the hospital system is experiencing significant pressures, as the Variants of Concern have now become the predominant strain of COVID-19. Hospitals are reaching full capacity.
 33 Covid19 patients in Intensive Care Unit As of today, (April 22, 2021) Joseph Brant Hospital (JBH) is sitting at 91% capacity. Last week, the Ontario government expanded the four-week lockdown to six weeks, in the hopes of bringing down case numbers. They are also working to increase critical care capacity and bring in health care workers from other jurisdictions.
Long-Term Care homes are expediting admissions for Alternative Level of Care patients, as the need for acute care beds is rising faster than the system can currently accommodate. At JBH, for over a year we have been preparing for what is happening now – the worst-case scenario.
Our teams continue to work hard to review and revise plans for potential situations we may experience. To manage capacity pressures, JBH has enacted a team-based model of care on some patient care units. Team-based care shifts patient care from “I” (i.e. nurse as the “primary” caregiver) to “We”, where nurses are paired with other care providers. In a team approach, each team member’s skills and knowledge are utilized to share the responsibility for meeting patient care needs.
It is all hands on deck to ensure that we keep our patients and our community safe. Yet, as I referenced last week, it is distressing to see continued skepticism on social media and through ongoing anti-lockdown demonstrations. Many falsely contend – still to this day, despite urgent, emotional pleas from the medical community – that the severity of this pandemic is over-inflated.
Today, at JBH we are caring for 33 patients admitted with COVID-19, including several critically ill patients on ventilators in our ICU.
Our critical care department is currently working at 160% of its standard capacity, with nine additional ICU patient beds added in the last week. Some of these patients were immediately hospitalized after going to emergency with symptoms that were non-existent only days prior. These are people with families, loved ones, living their lives before contracting this virus. I cannot state our current reality more clearly. It is the same reality taking place in hospitals across Ontario, and across parts of this country. The numbers continue to increase daily and we are living and working in extraordinary times.
This is not a time for skepticism, but empathy, understanding and hope. Because yes, despite the bleakness of this picture, there is much hope. I’m happy to report that we are actively hiring more healthcare workers. This week, we put a call out to the community to apply for temporary full and part-time Pandemic Assistant positions to help support our clinical teams or assist in our screening stations.
Visit www.josephbranthospital.ca for more information and to apply.
This week, we surpassed 13,000 vaccinations administered at JBH, and we continue to vaccinate over 400 community members daily. We will continue to vaccinate as many as we can, based on available supply. I am also encouraged to see eligibility for the Astra Zeneca vaccine expand to the 40-59 age group. If you are eligible for COVID-19 vaccination, please remember:
• Book your COVID-19 vaccination appointment – in Halton, visit www.halton.ca/covidvaccines or call 311 to book by phone • If you vaccinate elsewhere (i.e. pharmacy or doctor’s office) and book multiple appointments in an attempt to get the earliest time, please do not forget to cancel your appointments at the other locations. This causes a significant backlog with wait lists and further delays for those waiting to get the vaccine
 Eric Vandewall. President & CEO Joseph Brant Hospital • Read the scientific evidence available online to support that vaccination is a key factor in stopping the virus – Halton Region and the Province of Ontario share evidence and FAQ information
• As always, continue to follow public health measures including washing your hands, wearing a mask, adhering to physical distancing, before and after vaccination.
Thank you again to our community for the ongoing support, encouragement and cooperation. We must take collective action to get through Wave 3. I know that many people are tired and concerned about the road ahead – but together, we are strong and we will rise to the challenge, and we will get through this extraordinary time.
 By Pepper Parr
April 24th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
The Burlington Food Bank managed to have 7 plots in the community Garden on Maple Avenue assigned to them.
They then had to find a volunteer who would oversee the operation of those 7 plots.
That volunteer would then have to recruit a volunteer crew to manage each of the plots.
 Sam LeGrand and Robin Bailey at the market garden site on Maple Avenue Robin Bailey, Executive Director of the Food Bank did the interviewing and felt he had the ideal volunteer – Samantha LeGrand, who prefers to be known as Sam.
The two of them did a short interview on-site where Sam asked for people to foster some of the seedlings she has – she has run out of space at her own dwelling.
 Sam LaGrand – Good Bank gardener If you think you could look after some of those seedlings please go to the Food Bank web site and register as a volunteer and then select the tab on the registration to do with Community Garden help.
In early May Sam will need volunteer help for planting, and then subsequently help for watering and weeding throughout the season. You can contact Sam at garden@burlingtonfoodbank.ca
Sam brings an eclectic education to the gardening she is going to supervise – she is the kind of gardener who gets her fingers dirty.
She was a student at OCAD, the Ontario College of Arts and Design where she studied drawing and painting – she has had a number of gallery showings. She was also a student at Western University where she studied astro-physics and creative writing.
She said she loved the job she has at the Children’s Place; retail was something she liked.
Gardening is as much a passion as it is working. Sam knows gardening – she has some ideas for the different designs she wants to use – high yield is one of her objectives.
The community gardens in Burlington – there are now seven of them – was the result of work done by Michelle Bennett and Amy Schnur when they approached city council in 2015 looking for support on an application they had made to the provincial government to create community gardens.
The province required municipal support for every grant they provided – at the time city council wasn’t all warm and fuzzy about the idea. They were reluctant to put up some real dollars.
Amy and Michelle weren’t prepared to walk away from the project – they convinced the Parks and Recreation department to put in the water service that was needed. From that point on community gardens were real – they sold out the day they were opened.
Related news stories
Community gardens a hit
How Burlington community gardens got started
 By Pepper Parr
April 24th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
The week was a media bonanza for ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns.
 Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns On Wednesday she handled a two hour webcast on what is known now as Fairview LP, the gigantic development that will rise on the 8.5 acre property to the east of the Burlington GO station; on Thursday she held a ward meeting in which she jammed in everything she could possibly tell you about what she is achieving at city hall.
There was one item of significant interest in the city hall recap – that was what appears to be a new and very welcome approach to creating budgets.
Kearns first explained that the 4.14% increase on the city portion of your tax bill was really necessary – that can be argued at some future date.
Kearns also explained how hard council had worked to get a budget in place before the end of March.
The Finance department prefers to get a budget in place before the end of a calendar year but Covid19 has screwed up everything everyone is trying to get done.
 The practice in the past was to invite the public to “review” the budget that had already been decided upon. It was community engagement at its worst – getting public input before city departments did their work would be classic community engagement. The plan, if we heard to ward Councillor correctly, was to start budget thinking in June and ask the public what they would like to see before having the various departments submit their first cut on a budget.
The Gazette has been advocating this for years – maybe, just maybe, they will ask the public how they would like to see their money spent.
Done properly this could be very effective.
Time will tell.
Salt with Pepper is the musings, reflections and opinions of the publisher of the Burlington Gazette, an online newspaper that was formed in 2010 and is a member of the National Newsmedia Council.
 By Staff
April 23rd, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Construction of Lowville Park has begun for the 2021 construction season. As part of the Lowville Park Master Plan, work continues on park improvements. The return of park reservations will occur later in the spring.
 A river runs through the park where the salmon spawn and children get to play. Parking Lot Closures
During construction, the park will be open to the public but there will be temporary parking lot closures:
Weekdays – Monday, April 26 to Thursday, May 20
Entire parking lot closed
There will be no parking; the parking lot will be closed for construction
Weekends – Saturday, May 1 to Sunday, May 16
A third of the parking lot will be closed for construction staging
The rest of the parking lot will be open for public parking. First come, first served.
 Rob Peachey, on the left, Manager Parks and Open Spaces for the city, talks through some solutions to managing the very large weekend crowds. They are standing on the school house steps overlooking the park. Vehicles parked illegally will be ticketed and/or towed at the owner’s expense by City of Burlington Parking Bylaw Officers.
The park will remain open for pedestrians and cyclists. Areas of the park under construction will be closed. For your safety, please stay out of the areas marked as closed.
Park Reservations
Visitors are reminded to continue to be vigilant about public health practices and provincial directives to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
Starting May 24, visitors to Lowville Park will be required to make an online reservation before they can enter the park. The reservations are free and available in three-hour time slots.
• Reservations are open to book:
o Weekdays between 4 and 8 p.m.
o Weekends between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m.
• Due to the limited number of spots available, we ask that one spot per day be booked to allow everyone the opportunity to enjoy the park
• One vehicle per reservation
• Reservations for those walking or biking into the park are not required
• Visits are three hours in length. Arrive and depart within your scheduled times
• An automated gate will match vehicle license plates match the reservation
• Changes/cancellations can be made up to 48 hours before your arrival time, including change of date, name, license plate and number of people
• Late grace period: we understand unexpected circumstances may arise. It’s ok to be a few minutes late
• City of Burlington reserves the right to cancel park visits due to adverse trail conditions. Trail networks may close completely if conditions are too wet and damage will be unavoidable. Should your visit be cancelled, you will be notified by email
• City of Burlington reserves the right to cancel park visits due to COVID orders and restrictions. Should your visit be cancelled, you will be notified by email
• Details about how to make a reservation will be made available next month.
Washrooms are available at Lowville Park and visitors are reminded to continue to be vigilant about public health practices and provincial orders to reduce the spread of COVID-19:
• Maintain a physical distance of at least 2-metres from others.
• Only visit the park with members of your immediate household.
• Stay home if you feel sick.
• Wash and sanitize your hands before and after visiting the park.
Burlington is a City where people, nature and businesses thrive. City services may look different as we work to stop the spread of COVID-19. The City’s commitment to providing the community with essential services remains a priority. Sign up to learn more about Burlington at Burlington.ca/Enews and download the free City of Burlington app.
 Vito Tolone, Director of Transportation Vito Tolone, Director of Transportation explains some of the issues people need to be aware of: – “We are working to open the parking lot for the summer season. Through the initial construction this spring, please bear with us when the parking lot is closed and keep in mind that there are very few parking spaces available on Lowville Park Road.
The City saw success in reopening and managing parking and park capacity using the reservation system last summer. This year, we have been able to automate this system so we can allow residents the chance to reserve their parking spot. This reservation system allows us to manage the number of visitors and control parking.”
 By Pepper Parr
April 23rd, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
The big dollar grants from various levels of government can overwhelm a bit – just how any zeros are there in a billion?
It is the smaller grants, those under the $100,000 level that are understood and appreciated.
This afternoon, Karina Gould announced three grants to Burlington organizations that we all know about.
There was $71,000 distributed with $25,000 going to Community Living; $24,900 going to the Legion and $21,667 going to Community Development Halton.
 This is how media events now take place. I need a haircut so badly that I chose not to be seen. All the grants had a Covid19 connection.
Community Living cares for 400 people and is the oldest community organization in the city.
Their grant got applied to technology which allows them to take basically all of their programs virtual. This includes the music classes, the art classes and the friendship circles.
The cheer leading team and the news team wouldn’t be able to do anything were it not for the ability to Zoom .
The residential program is able to continue but under very strict limitations. Those in the residential program have at times gone for a significant number of days without seeing family.
 A Friday evening Fish Fry at the Legion; they managed to coax MP Karina Gould into the kitchen The Legion once got MP Karina Gould into their kitchen during one of the Friday Fish Fry Nights – that will be back on once the level of social mobility improves. The Legion needed to upgrade the HVAC system – the grant will help them get that job done.
Community Development Halton, (CDH) a non profit organization that does social planning research and operates Volunteer Halton as well as running an Age Friendly program.
CDH partnered with Food for Life preparing meals for 800 people who are isolated during the pandemic.
They found when talking to people while the meals were being delivered that many were finding the social isolation very difficult.
CDH has this practice of talking through problems and issues; they began to brain storm over what could be done to alleviate the sense of being alone and isolated.
Lap blanket were knitted and distributed; young people were encouraged to write cards to people they had never met – the cards were included with the meals when they were delivered.
Heather Thompson told the people taking part in the media event virtually of an occasion when one woman opened her lunch and found the card – burst into tears. An act of kindness she didn’t expect struck a chord.
The funds that were distributed came from the federal New Horizons for Seniors program.
Those dollars made a huge difference to three organizations in this city who take care of people with real needs.
 By Staff
April 23rd, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
In March of 2021, members of the Halton Regional Police Service – 2 District Criminal Investigations Bureau began an investigation into an individual who was trafficking drugs throughout the Town of Oakville. On April 22, 2021, a 16 year-old male from Oakville was arrested charged with the following offences:
• Possession of a Weapon for a Dangerous Purpose
• Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking – Fentanyl
• Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking – Cocaine & Crack Cocaine
• Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking – LSD
• Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking – Psilocybin
• Possession – Oxycodone
• Trafficking a Controlled Substance
• Possess Cannabis for the Purpose of Selling
• Young Person to Distribute Cannabis (of one or more classes of Cannabis the total amount of which is equivalent as determined with Schedule 3 to be more then 5g of dried cannabis)
• Unauthorized Possession of a Firearm
• Possession of a Firearm Knowing its Possession is Unauthorized
• Careless Storage of a Firearm
• Possession of a Restricted Firearm with Ammunition
Following the arrest, a Controlled Drug and Substances Act warrant was conducted at a residence in Oakville. Through the course of the investigation the following items were seized:
• A loaded .45 calibre restricted firearm
• 14 rounds of .45 Cal ammunition
• 19.1 grams of Fentanyl
• 22.1 grams of Cocaine
• 20.9 grams of Crack Cocaine
• 0.6 grams of Oxycodone
• 0.7 grams of LSD
• 122.6 grams of Psilocybin
• 335.4 grams of cannabis marijuana
• 66 (22 gram-24.5 gram) packages of Cannabis Edibles
• 283 (1 gram each) Cannabis Vape Pens
The accused was held in custody pending a bail hearing.
The Youth Criminal Justice Act prevents the police from releasing the name of an accused. Interesting that the police take steps to protect a youth that needs help – where are the parents.
Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to contact the 2 District – Criminal Investigations Bureau at 905-825-4747 ext 2216.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
By Staff
April 23, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton Region Public Health Unit released the follow:
Getting our community vaccinated and protecting our most vulnerable residents from COVID-19 continues to be Halton Region’s top priority. As of Thursday, April 22, 2021, 158,938 doses have been administered in Halton to priority populations identified by the Province. This represents about 30 per cent of Halton’s population who have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Our vaccination status dashboard is updated Monday to Friday between 12 and 2 p.m. Please click here to view the full dashboard.
Our team would also like to share the following videos:
• April 21 COVID-19 Vaccine Safety from Dr. Hamidah Meghani 4:06 minutes
• April 21 COVID-19 Council update from Halton Region Associate Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deepika Lobo 9:34 minutes
• April 21 COVID-19 Vaccine Council update from Halton Region Associate Medical Officer of Health Dr. Joana Oda and CAO Jane MacCaskill 25:53 minutes
Editor’s note: Keeping a public informed is vital; using video is often better than something written – putting out a video that is close to half an hour long is vert poor communications practice.
By Pepper Parr
April 22nd, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
That the development is going to proceed is not in doubt.
 Development will begin at the back of the site – next to the railway line. Parking will be next to the tracks with green space on the roof of the parking structures. \this is a long term development which the developer has said they will be part of for decades. Is it the best deal the city can get ? Probably not but the property on the north side of Fairview between Drury on the east and the Legatt auto dealership on the west has a lot of baggage.
Under the Official Plan this development comes under there is no height limit. Under the new Official Plan, which has not gotten to final approval yet, things would be different.
The 2010 and the 2014 Council, led by Rick Goldring, had numerous opportunities to amend the zoning on the property and get reasonable height limits in place. It was becoming clear in 2010 that the province was going to require high rise intensive development along the rail corridor. Was it a blind eye that couldn’t see or was it wilful neglect. All that is water under the bridge.
The development now has a slightly different corporate makeup and is described at Fairview LP (the LP stands for ‘limited partnership’)
CLV, an organization that has significant apartment interests in Burlington, along with a reputation for terrible service to tenants.
Check out CLV on line and read what past tenants have had to say about the way they were treated. Get the link HERE
Brookfield Property Group is one of the partners along with with InterRent REIT and CLV Group. A REIT, is an income trust – they are sometimes publicly listed companies.)
In an annual report Brookfield describes the company as a diversified global real estate company that owns, operates and develops one of the largest portfolios of office, retail, multifamily, industrial, hospitality, triple net lease, student housing and manufactured housing assets. Its investment objective is to generate attractive long-term returns on equity of 12%−15% based on stable cash flows, asset appreciation and annual distribution growth in-line with earnings growth. The company is listed on the following exchanges: NASDAQ: BPY, TSX: BPY.UN).
 The development will not appear to be over-bearing. It will change the look and feel of the mid-section of the city. The development will not get a thorough public review. It does not require changes to either the Official Plan or the zoning bylaw.
The city’s planning department will be limited to a site plan review, which in itself does offer some opportunity for influencing the look of the project that sits on an eight acre site of which about two acres will be parkland in various forms.
 The circles identify walking distances of 5, 10 and fifteen minute walks. Not much in the way of places to walk to other than places to shop. A city council has the right to un-delegqte a site plan review – which means decisions are made by council and not just the planning department. At this point all the discussion with the developer takes place with the Planning department. Nothing gets put before Council until it decides to invoke the decision they made to take the authority away from planning.
The motion to undelegate reads a follows:
“Undelegate the site plan approval for application 535–001/20 (2020, 2243, 2269 Fairview Street and 864 Drury Lane –CLV Group Inc) from the Director of Community Planning to Council”
Ward two Councillor Lisa Kearns, who hosted the virtual community event Wednesday evening, that had 98 people taking part during a two hour session.
The Fairview LP people are not required to present anything to the public – that have done so willingly and have answered the questions put to them.
They have not proven to be media responsive.
The visuals that were made available were impressive.
 These are architectural renderings. More aspirational than actual at this point. That walkway through the middle has the potential to become a self-sufficient community. But a there are a lot of questions yet to be answered.
The schools boards have yet to say what they will need in terms of space for classrooms.
Traffic was a concern for many people on the call. The development will create something in the order of 2500 units, of which 60% will be condominiums and 40% rental units.
There will be affordable units – how many – no one said but it is obvious the developer has been working with the Region which has responsibility for affordable housing.
 Jenn Morrison, the CLV person stick handling the progress of the site plan review said they wanted 1.18 parking spaces per unit would work out to 3000 cars entering the site. There will be two entrances off Fairview and one off Drury Lane – add to that the traffic to the GO station parking lot and one is looking at a lot of cars.
A traffic study is being done – it wasn’t available last night.
When will the development have shovels in the ground ? Jenn said she hoped to be able to start in Q1 of 2022 – THAT is a stretch.
The property comes under the Interim Control Bylaw (ICBL) which has all development within the Urban WORD on hold until ICBL which will not be lifted until all the LPAT appeals have been heard – there are 30 of them working their way through the Local Planning Act Tribunal.
In a document presented to Council on this development the planners explained the impact the ICBL and the LPAT hearings have on this development:
“While the City awaits the LPAT process to conclude, new applications, including the subject application, are being circulated for comment to relevant departments and agencies. No planning decisions are being formalized and recommendation reports are not being prepared until the LPAT has issued decisions on the aforementioned ZBA 2020.418 appeals. The application will be held in abeyance until the ICBL is no longer in effect.”
That however doesn’t stop the planners from collecting input from the numerous internal and external agencies that are required to comment. The Fairview LP people said they are already in conversations with parks and recreation
 The development will have a ‘big city’ feel to it. Nothing quaint about it. The site is a developers dream – with the demand for accommodation in Burlington higher than it has ever been the
The architectural renderings suggest an almost ‘swishy’ look to that part of the city. Mark Sindell, speaking for either Brookfield or the architects said there were plans for everything you can imagine on the retail side; a supermarket, several types of coffee shops, bars, restaurants, day care centres and maybe a nursery.
The Burlington Library has yet to set out what it might need in terms of accommodation.
At the start of the virtual meeting Kearns was most enthusiastic about the development. It is unusual for a city Councillor to wax as eloquently as she did did Wednesday evening.
One would expect the ward Councillor to be looking out for the public interest and not telling the audience how accommodating the developer has been.
Kearns pointed out that the development will be the biggest thing ever done in the city. Maybe – but that shouldn’t put stars in the eyes of the Councillor.
It is a huge development. There is nothing the city can do to stop it – and there is no reason to do so. Housing is needed and on the surface this development has much going for it.
 Almost one quarter of the 8.5 acre site will be green space – a real plus. What has to be ensured is that transparency and accountability are front and center. Someone has to speak up for the 2500 families that are going to call the place home. This reporter didn’t log out of the virtual event feeling that the public interest was in good hands.
 By Staff
April 22, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
The following statement was released by the Chair of Regional Council and the fiour municipalities within the Region
Halton’s Mayors and Regional Chair stand with the guidance provided by the COVID-19 Science Advisory
Table for Ontario supporting sick pay, encouraging safe outdoor activities and accelerating vaccines for
essential workers, among other measures to fight COVID-19.
Throughout this pandemic, Halton’s Mayors and Regional Chair have advocated for a targeted and
evidence-based approach and believe that measures should target the sources of community spread.
On behalf of all our residents and businesses hanging on during these challenging times, we add our
voices to the call from the Science Table to:
• Permit only truly essential indoor workplaces to stay open and strictly enforce safety measures;
• Pay essential workers to stay home when they are sick, exposed or need time to get vaccinated;
• Accelerate vaccination of essential workers and those who live in hot spots; and
• Encourage safe outdoor activities.
The guidance from the Science Table is that being safe outdoors means allowing small groups of people
from different households to meet outside with masking and two-metre distancing. It means keeping
playgrounds open and clearly encouraging safe outdoor activities.
While we continue to discourage large gatherings, small groups can be at the same amenity at the same
time as long as they are following the health guidelines.
In light of this advice, we ask the Province to review and reconsider the list of currently prohibited
outdoor activities. As noted by the Science Table:
“Policies that discourage safe outdoor activity will not control COVID-19 and will disproportionately harm
children and those who do not have access to their own greenspace, especially those living in crowded
conditions.”
Regarding closing non-essential businesses, further financial supports for workers must be in place if the
government is considering closing additional workplaces.
Yesterday’s comments regarding paid sick days by Labour Minister Monte McNaughton, Government
House Leader Minister Paul Calandra, Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy and Deputy Premier Christine
Elliot are welcome but they need to be backed up by urgent action and implementation, as well as a
timeline. To avert a fourth wave and break this cycle of lockdowns and restrictions, the government
needs to launch and fund a paid sick leave program in the coming days.
In addition, the Ministry of Labour should have further resources and staff allocated to increase
inspection blitzes and enforce safety measures. These blitzes should not be advertised or announced ahead of time, and they should target the facilities that have had multiple outbreaks ad employers that have not followed public health guidelines.
We need to focus on measures that work, backed by science and evidence, to get through this Third Wave and plan for recovery.
Sincerely,
Halton Regional Chair, Gary Carr Mayor Marianne Meed Ward, City of Burlington
Mayor Rob Burton, Town of Oakville Mayor Gordon Krantz, Town of Milton
Mayor Rick Bonnette, Town of Halton Hills
 By Harry Green
April21st, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Since its advent, online poker has, in many ways, represented a closed ecosystem – a self-sustaining microcosm of the wider world of gaming – which continues to thrive and succeed within a significant, global player base despite the slightly more capricious tides of the gaming industry as-a-whole.
What it offers is something that was capable of withstanding years of development and innovation across the entire industry. When gaming moved away from browser-based titles, and toward expensive and powerful console shaped by the AAA developers of the world, the realm of online poker persisted – buoyed up by its own prestige within a growing market.
But that was then, and now represents an entirely new phase for the gaming industry. Since early 2020, the promise of a new generation of gaming – one that would be ushered in by the near-simultaneous launch of new, power-hungry consoles from Sony and Microsoft – has begun its long and highly anticipated journey into realization.
And, to be sure, the future does look bright for gaming – and for the 2.69 billion active gamers in the world. With cloud gaming promising unbridled freedom of choice to gamers, the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X enabling better speeds and graphics than gamers could have imagined in their wildest daydreams, and other factors such as 5G ensuring that the framework is there for this new order to fall into place.
With this in mind, can the usual status quo continue on? Or will this genre begin to suffer beneath the weight of the entire industry?
 Australian gamers have descended on California for BlizzCon, a video gaming competition. Read more below.
Events Continue to Grow in Significance
In the real world, poker has long since represented a significant sport, drawing in spectators and professionals from far and wide. As the internet found its foothold in everyday usage, poker’s global influence naturally trickled across the boundary that lies between IRL and online gaming, thus giving rise to a wide variety of online and hybrid tournaments.
Most notably, the World Series of Poker – an event which finds its origins in the 1970s – has made waves via its online circuit in recent years. Just last year, leading online destination and official partner of the WSOP GGPoker broke a Guinness World Record for the prize pool generated within its tournament, which totaled more than $27,500,000.
Continued Growth Enabled Continued Improvement
It stands to reason that the larger a site is, the more scope it has for organizing a near-continuous stream of promotions and tournaments throughout any given day. This is why so many players are drawn to the industry’s largest providers – a continuously expanding pool of players naturally entails that the provider is able to expand their offerings, and hone the daily, monthly and annual events on offer.
In this way, the ecosystem of online poker is essentially self-sustaining. The industry’s biggest providers make use of the growing availability of competitors to ensure a steady stream of cash games and tournaments, and, in turn, they attract yet more players onto their site. This has been one of the key driving forces within this industry for many years, and will continue to push it forward indefinitely.
Software Development Stands at the Forefront of the Gaming World
In the very early days, online poker rested on software that would, by today’s standards, be considered pretty simple and in many ways primitive. Now, however, providers need to be prepared to keep up with their players – and players are growing increasingly discerning when it comes to strong game design and development.
Between their browser-based titles, downloadable software and their mobile platforms, the best providers are well aware of the necessity that exists to remain at the cutting-edge of development, and will continue to prioritize this going forward.
 Players are primed and ready for a new ‘high standard’, and an increasingly discerning global player base, as they emerge in the coming months and years. While it remains a universal truth that the gaming world is accelerating far beyond the parameters that have, for many years, defined it, the fact remains that the world of poker – both online and off – is primed and ready for a new ‘high standard’, and an increasingly discerning global player base, as they emerge in the coming months and years. We can anticipate plenty more development in this arena, and for the world’s biggest operators to continue to push the bounds further still, and ensure that players never grow restless within this historic and massively influential genre.
 By Sarah Miller Liana
April 21st, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Reprinted from the Christian Science Monitor
The headline read:
‘Humbling’: Canada’s self-image slides in pandemic as US rebounds
Last year, as the first wave of the pandemic waned, Canadians were grieving from the toll of it all. Yet they were also relatively grateful – especially as they looked at their neighbor to the south.
 The pandemic amplified all the things Canada lauds itself for when it compares itself with the United States – as a nation that is a fraction of the size of the powerhouse next door often does. Its universal health care, a functional government, a communal spirit, and a rule-abiding culture were held up as reasons that case numbers stayed reasonably low. The U.S., meanwhile, bickered about masks and whether the virus was a hoax as cases surpassed anywhere else in the world.
Now Canada finds itself amid a daunting third wave. And as the U.S. has flexed its muscle in an ambitious inoculation campaign, a counter-narrative is emerging among some Canadians that finds them unsettled but also humbled. It underscores a national inclination toward comparative assessment that can often blind the country to its own shortcomings on everything from gun violence to racism to health care – and make it too hard on both the U.S. and itself.
For months, Canada looked at the U.S. pandemic response and felt a sense of superiority. But now the narrative has flipped, and it’s pointing to the danger of building a sense of self-worth on comparisons.
“A year ago it was all about how America breaks the rules … while we are a ‘play by rules crowd,’” says Michael Adams, the president of the Environics Institute, which measures Canadian attitudes. Now the narrative centers around just how much of a global leader in science, manufacturing, and distribution the U.S. is while Canada waits.
“You need a balanced view,” he says. “We – the world and Canada at the head of the list – are benefiting from American innovation and an American can-do philosophy. You can’t just look at America through all the problems they have.”
For the first time, as the world enters year two of the pandemic, Canada has surpassed the U.S. on a per capita basis for the number of new COVID-19 cases, shaking its sense that its compliant culture or commitment to public health would protect it from the worst playing out south of the border.
Today, while many Americans start traveling and tasting a return to normalcy, many parts of Canada have entered their darkest moment. British Columbia has issued a “circuit breaker” shutdown. Quebec extended a months long curfew, ordering residents home by 8 p.m. in some cities like Montreal, leading to protests there.
Ontario, where 40% of Canadians live, has been hardest hit. This week it announced it was shuttering schools indefinitely. Hospitals have canceled all but emergency surgeries for the first time since March 2020 and are preparing field hospitals as record cases wallop the province.
Meanwhile, the U.S. has been far faster at providing shots to those who want them, with 38% of Americans receiving one dose versus 22% of Canadians. Canada is dependent on global supply chains for its doses, and is hoping to get more surplus from the U.S. All this feeds directly into Canadian perceptions of how they stand next to the U.S.
Aisles of non-essential goods are cordoned off at a Walmart store, as new measures are imposed on big-box stores due to the pandemic, in Toronto, April 8, 2021.
 Randy Boyagoda: professor of English at the University of Toronto “Canadians define themselves against the United States, and did so perhaps with greater satisfaction and justification over the past four years, and in particular during the dramatic playing out of the pandemic over the past year,” says Randy Boyagoda, a Canadian novelist and professor of English at the University of Toronto. “Now Canadians are forced to reconsider one of the fundamental features of their self-understanding.”
The founding idea of Canada lies in “peace, order, and good government.” Dr. Boyagoda saw proof of that reiterated in the orderly, yet slower, vaccine rollout where he is in Ontario. But is orderly always the best way forward if it gets in the way of dynamism and speed? “Eight months ago, we were taking great satisfaction in not having the same public health situation as in the United States. I think right now we take less satisfaction.”
The current situation is just a snapshot in time; Canada’s per capita death toll is still only a third of that of its neighbor. But the reversal comes as a punch, particularly because it involves health, one area where Canadians overwhelmingly agree their model is superior to the market approach taken in the U.S.
Kate Snider, a high school student in Toronto, is a Canadian American contemplating where to go to university next year: “Last year I was apprehensive about applying to any U.S. schools.” Right now “it seems to be a lot safer in the U.S.”
What Canadians fault most is what they see as a political response in many provinces that they find incoherent. The country’s current plight has spurred important debate, on topics ranging from the demise of Canadian manufacturing capability to provinces not offering workers paid sick leave. But there is also some sense of “humbling,” says Richard Nimijean, who teaches Canadian studies at Carleton University in Ottawa.
Rethinking the comparison
Comparing Canada with the U.S. often has a distorting effect on issues, whether it’s pandemic response, racism, police and gun violence, or poverty. Faring better than the U.S. on most measures can promote a complacency that makes it difficult to tackle internal problems.
 Richard Nimijean: teaches Canadian studies at Carleton University in Ottawa. Dr. Nimijean, for example, often talks about Canadian health care in his classes and asks if students would feel superior about their system if they compared it not with the U.S., but with Scandinavia. An answer, he says, “is not even in their mindset, because the U.S. dominates so much.”
“But in international comparisons of wealthy countries, Canada doesn’t perform that well. It performs better than the United States,” he says. “So we need to be careful about how we assert these ideas.”
Canadian activists trying to address discrimination in policing or racism generally also complain that their fight is discounted because problems here are overshadowed by incidents in the U.S. On the flip side, Niel Avendano, a Canadian in Toronto who lived in Texas for 20 years, says Canadians often assume that the U.S. is just the worst of what is seen on the nightly news, without any nuance.
Living next to the neighbor with the “10,000-square-foot house” compared with your “1,500-square-foot house” can also lend itself to outsize expectations, Mr. Avendano says. He is not surprised that a country a tenth of the size of the U.S. isn’t a leader on the world stage, and Canadians can have a “complex” for not being an economic, military, or diplomatic force. “Israel is not a world leader. Australia is not a world leader. Why is it we expect Canada can be?”
And despite a harsh third wave, Canadians remain firm in acknowledging that that shouldn’t take away all that Canada has done right, while the U.S. fights culture wars around the pandemic. Nelson Wiseman, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, says the pandemic has not been politicized like it has in the U.S. “I think Canadians can be too smug about themselves,” he argues, “but on the other hand, it is objectively the case that our society is, at the present time, more sane, more coherent, and just more together.”
 “… our society is, at the present time, more sane, more coherent, and just more together.”
By Staff
April 21st, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
 The Science Table yesterday released the following:
Fighting COVID-19 in Ontario: The Way Forward
Enough financial support
An emergency benefit that offers more money, is easily accessible, immediately paid and that, for the duration of the pandemic, is available to essential workers – when they are sick, when they’ve been exposed, need time off to get tested, or when its their turn to get vaccinated – will help limit spread.
▪
Accelerating the vaccination of essential workers and those who live in hot spots:
Vaccines are essential in slowing the pandemic. This means immediately allocating as many doses as possible to hotspot neighbourhoods, vulnerable populations, and essential workers. It also means accelerating the distribution and administration of vaccines overall, making it easier for at risk groups to get vaccinated, and promoting the vaccine with more intensive and effective on the ground community outreach.
 The challenge is to reduce the amount of mobility to below that threshold level. Individual decisions will make this happen. ▪
Limiting mobility:
This means restricting movement between regions of the province and restricting movement into the province. COVID-19 is not a single pandemic, because different regions of Ontario and Canada face distinct problems. Moving around the province risks creating new hotspots, especially because the variants of concern are so transmissible. Simply put, Ontarians need to stay in their local communities.
▪
Focusing on public health guidance that works:
This means Ontarians can’t gather indoors with people from outside their household (with the very limited exception of safe indoor work in essential workplaces). It means Ontarians can spend time with each other outdoors, distancing two metres, wearing masks, keeping hands clean.
Keeping people safely connected: Maintaining social connections and outdoor activity are important to our overall physical and mental health. This means allowing small groups of people from different households to meet outside with masking and two – metre distancing. It means keeping playgrounds open, and clearly encouraging safe outdoor activities.
What Won t Work
Policies that harm or neglect racialized, marginalized and other vulnerable populations will not be effective against a disease that already affects these groups disproportionately. For these reasons, pandemic policies should be examined through an equity lens to ensure that all communities benefit.
 Dr. Adelstein Brown; Chair of the Science Table As noted in repeated studies from around the world, inconsistent policies with no clear link to scientific evidence are ineffective in fighting COVID-19.
Policies that discourage safe outdoor activity will not control COVID19 and will disproportionately harm children and those who do not have access to their own green spaces, especially those living in crowded conditions.
There is no trade -of between economic, social and health priorities in the midst of a pandemic that is out of control. The fastest way back to work – and to all the other things that make life in Ontario great is to get this disease under control as quickly as we can together.
By Staff
April 21st, 2 021
BURLINGTON, ON
 City Hall – where the bylaws get debated and set at what is permissible. How does your municipal government do it?
How do they create the rules that determine what you can do – what the city will be doing about different issues.
They read staff reports, debate amongst themselves and decide.
That decision is shown as a bylaw.
Yesterday Burlington city council passed the following bylaws:
 By Staff
April 21st, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Lane closures:
North Shore Blvd East, between QEW On-ramps, April 21 to December 2021
North Shore Blvd East, between QEW Toronto On-ramp and QEW Niagara On-ramp will have lane closures.
Wednesday, April 21 until December 2021
One lane in each direction and pedestrian access will stay open at all times.
By Pepper Parr
April 20th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
While it was a virtual meeting of city council one could ‘feel’ the concern and the anguish as city staff and city council wrestled with the problems and the very limited tools they had to work with.
 What’s to understand – the facts were there for everyone to see – the province blew it in February and lives have been lost needlessly. Last Friday at 1:00 pm the Science Table gave its advice to the province’s Chief Medical Health Officer. Slides with data that was pretty easy to understand were used to make the points needed to support the recommendations.
At 4:00 on that Friday the Premier took to the podium and issued a Stay at Home order. He gave police the authority to stop people at random to ask where they lived and where they were going. He also ordered the closing of public parks – that particular order was not as clear as it should have been.
The scientists, there are 120 of them, all volunteers, gagged. The Stay at Home order was a small part of what they recommended.
The people close to the thinking that goes into the decisions that get made were aghast. The public didn’t know it at the time but many were giving serious consideration to resigning.
Burlington’s Mayor Meed Ward called an Emergency meeting of city council for Saturday to look at the options. Staff spent time Friday night and early Saturday morning pulling together data that set out what the provincial recommendations meant to the city.
Three hours of debate ended up with nothing concrete but did produce a list of questions that needed answers for the regular meeting of city council that was to take place today, Tuesday. Between the Friday and Tuesday there was a lot of public debate across the province over the closing of parks.
Mental health for all was in poor shape. There was fear, worry, concern and doubt. While Burlington didn’t have infection figures that were off the wall, the variants of the Covid19 virus were known to move around quickly and do much more damage than the virus we had to deal with when the pandemic was declared.
The public consensus seemed to be that the parks could be open for use and had to be open if people were to have a place to go and get some exercise.
 Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna Ward 6 Councillor Angelo Bentivegna made the point rather well when he excitedly told his colleagues that he was flooded with phone calls – “people were stopping me on the street” he said and asking if the rule applied to football fields or the skate park. He added that there was no clear message and people were confused.
City manager Tim Commisso pointed out that people are asking why the outdoor amenities are closed – this puts us in a very difficult position. Executive Director Sheila Jones said “people are not willing to change their behaviour and we cannot enforce our way out of this”.
City Solicitor Nancy Shea Nicol pointed out that while many agree that some of the rules just didn’t make a lot of sense the fact is that the regulations are in place and until they are rescinded they are the law and have to be obeyed and enforced if necessary.
The city is required to take all steps necessary to ensure the health and safety of its citizens – actually doing that.
 It looked pretty good at the Saturday Emergency of Council – by the time Council met on Tuesday it didn’t make any sense and was withdrawn. On Saturday the city council set out instructed that were in the form of a recommendation to the Tuesday council. They were withdrawn in a rather dramatic fashion with the displayed of a GET THIS.
The very clear lack of leadership from the province was evident when Mayor Meed Ward told Council there was supposed to be a virtual meeting with the Premiers and the Mayors from across the province (imagine trying to organize an event like that) on Wednesday but it had been moved to Friday.
There was a sense that everyone was waiting for better number as we worked our way through the week. The Tuesday numbers were below 4000 (3723)- he hope being that they would drip quickly allowing the Premier to declare that he was doing the right thing and all we had to do was wait it out.
That didn’t jive with what the Science Table said last Friday. Dr. Adelstein Brown said that the numbers for the next two weeks are “baked in”. The people who are going to end up in hospital acquired the virus a few days ago – and that it takes a bit of time for the disease to really hit a person.
 That was six feet – but that coffee shop isn’t open these days. Marianne Meed Ward in a coffee shop. During the Council meeting on Tuesday Mayor Meed Ward spotted a statement from the Science Table on-line that said it was important to keep people safe and connected and “allow small groups to meet outside wearing masks and remaining six feet apart. The science table was speaking over the head of the Premier.
“We need your help” said the Mayor, ” to be patient; we are all tired, frustrated and worried.”
 By Pepper Parr
April 20th, 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Word from the Burlington Food Bank;
 Burlington Food Bank Executive Director Robin Bailey We are low for cereal right now which is unusual for us. What it comes down to is more people, families being supported while donations are dropping off.
If you’re planning to do some grocery shopping and can remember to grab a box of cereal for the food bank bin it’s much appreciated.
Our current top 10 are
- Canned Fruit
- Rice (1kg or 2kg sizes)
- Cereal
- Large Juice (1L Tetra or Cans)
- Juice Boxes
- Shampoo, Deodorant, Toothpaste and Toothbrushes
- Feminine Hygiene Products
- Peanut Butter
- Crackers
- Canned Meat (Ham, Turkey, Chicken)
By Staff
April 20th 2021
BURLINGTON, ON
Starting Tuesday, April 20, 2021, Ontario will offer the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine to individuals aged 40 and over at pharmacy and primary care settings across the province.
In the media release the province announced: “As we continue to fight COVID-19, we are doing everything possible to get as many vaccines into arms as quickly and safely as possible. We continue to be actively engaged with Health Canada on updated AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safety. Last week, based on the review of available data from Europe and United Kingdom, Health Canada announced that it was not restricting the use of AstraZeneca vaccine in any specific populations at this time.
 The line-ups are not that long. 40 and over are eligible for a vaccination. “By extending vaccination eligibility for the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine at pharmacies and primary care settings to individuals aged 40 and over, Ontario will be able to offer the protection of the vaccine to more Ontarians earlier than anticipated. With supply of AstraZeneca available at this time, the expansion of eligibility will also significantly increase access to vaccines in hot spot communities.
“The health and safety of Ontarians is always our top priority, and for that reason, only COVID-19 vaccines that Health Canada determines to be safe and effective are approved for use in Ontario. All COVID-19 vaccines available in Ontario have been shown to prevent serious illness, hospitalization and death. Adverse reactions are extremely rare. We strongly recommend that everyone book their appointment as soon as they are eligible.
“Ontario has administered over 3.86 million doses of the vaccine to Ontarians to date, and all of our partners and health care workers are continuing to work hard to administer doses as quickly as possible to Ontarians.”
 By Andrew Drummond
April 20th, 2021
BURLINGTON,, ON
Monday morning the Ford government again voted down an NDP motion to introduce paid sick days to Ontario.
 Difficult to say that we are actually conquering the virus. Ford and the Conservatives have been consistent in opposing any implementation of paid sick days with their most common excuse being that it would conflict with existing federal programs. However, despite this, paid sick days has been a key recommendation from many groups to fight the COVID pandemic. Ontario’s associate chief medical officer of health, Dr. Barbara Yaffe; The Ontario Medical Association and the Ontario Hospital Association are among those beyond the NDP who have consistently called for this to be a primary measure in Ontario’s fight against COVID, and the lack of its implementation is a key reason Ontario has fallen behind in this fight.
As of April 18, there have been more than 21,000 COVID-19 cases directly attributable to workplace outbreaks according to the Ontario government’s data (Likely source of infection | COVID-19 (coronavirus) in Ontario). That is in addition to the massive but difficult to quantify numbers of people who have been infected with COVID-19 from caretakers or other health employees.
Throughout this pandemic, workers have been going to work sick because they have no other reasonable choice. Until that is stopped, Ontario will still be at risk.
 The most common excuse the Ford government has given for why they won’t implement a paid sick leave policy is that is conflicts with the federal government’s Canada Sickness Recovery Benefit (CSRB). Ford has repeatedly referenced this program. “There’s paid sick leave from the federal government,” Ford said on April 7. However, there are many differences between the CSRB and a mandatory sick leave policy and showing the details of the limitations of CSRB, helps to understand why it hasn’t been enough to slow workplace outbreaks.
The first major limitation with CSRB is that it is only paid out if a person actually has COVID or is isolating because a close contact does. You do not get any payments if you were sick for any other reason. So, if you have a cough and are having trouble breathing, you need to get a COVID test. However, you also must still go to work in the meantime, and you are not eligible for CSRB unless that test comes back positive. This obviously doesn’t help people stay home the first day they are symptomatic, which will also be the time where they are most likely to communicate it to others. This limitation alone makes it unlikely that CSRB is doing anything to reduce the spread of COVID in Ontario.
The second major limitation is that CSRB doesn’t provide any job protection. If you are a worker in a factory or warehouse and you catch COVID, CSRB will give you 2 weeks of income. However, your employer can still fire you for not showing up to work. For anyone whose employment is precarious, this is an obvious dealbreaker. It doesn’t matter if that worker gets 2 weeks pay, they are still without a job in an economy that isn’t doing well. If a worker must choose between trying to hide their illness or losing their job, many will choose to try and save their job. In some of those cases, it leads the rest of the workplace to get sick.
The third limitation of CSRB is the logistics of receiving the credit. There are two major technical limitations. First, the benefit only pays out in full weeks. You cannot get the benefit for any part of a week (since all COVID cases would require multiple full week’s isolation). Secondly, a worker won’t receive any money until 4 weeks after they have applied as the government processes the claim. This means that anyone living paycheque to paycheque will have no ability to get the money they need for rent or food because their income would be delayed for 4 weeks. Another reason that precariously employed workers can’t take time off and depend on this program.
Ontario at one time was a province that had mandated sick leave for all workers. It was only 2 days per year, but it offered some protection. However, Ford’s government removed those days in 2018 when they took office. Since that time, the pandemic has made clear what a disastrous mistake that was. Hopefully with all the public pressure being put on the government by Andrea Horwath, the NDP, and various community and medical groups, Ford will relent to the expert’s advice and bring in a long overdue program to ensure that we reduce the number of workplace outbreaks in the future.
Andrew Drummond was the NDP candidate in the last provincial election.
|
|
