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Labour shortages: Quebec to fast-track training for some in-demand construction jobs

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

QUEBEC — The Quebec government is offering paid fast-track training programs for workers in skilled trades that are most in demand in the province’s construction industry. Quebec Premier François Legault told reporters today he hopes to train anywhere from 4,000 to 5,000 new carpenters, excavator operators, heavy machinery operators, refrigeration technicians and tinsmiths — workers who make things with sheet metal.He says the province is launching one-time accelerated training programs in which students in those specific trades will receive $750 per week to obtain a professional studies certificate.Those who enrol could be eligible for scholarships of between $9,000 to $15,000 upon graduation.The Quebec government will also be increasing the capacity of the diploma programs in electricity, plumbing and heating beginning in January.Legault says the new fast-track programs, which will cost $300 million, are necessary for the province to complete major projects, such as new scho...

Smoke’s Poutinerie founder and CEO Ryan Smolkin dead at 50

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

AJAX — Smoke’s Poutinerie Inc. says the founder of the fast-food chain has died.The company attributed the Sunday death of 50-year-old Ryan Smolkin to unexpected complications from a recent surgery.Smolkin started the Ajax, Ont.-based brand in 2009, calling himself the company’s chief entertainment officer. Under his leadership, Smoke’s locations cropped up all over Canada and the brand expanded into the U.S.Prior to Smoke’s, Smolkin owned a branding and design company that counted Nike, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, Molson Breweries and Corus Entertainment as clients.Smoke’s president and chief operating officer Mark Cunningham will take on Smolkin’s role.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2023.The Canadian Press

B.C. coalition seeks ‘critical’ crackdown on violent retail crime

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

VANCOUVER — A group of more than 30 British Columbia retailers, trade associations and other organizations is calling for a co-ordinated government response for repeat offenders they say are behind a wave of theft, vandalism and violent crime.The Save Our Streets coalition says the need for immediate action is “critical” to meet threats to staff safety, rising security costs and the community impact.The group says federal and provincial governments can’t succeed by addressing “singular aspects” of the problem, such as drug decriminalization, policing resources or mental-health reform.Members of the group include retailers London Drugs, Lululemon and Save-On Foods, as well as the Surrey Board of Trade and Metro Vancouver Crime Stoppers. Karen Kuwica with the Nanaimo Area Public Safety Association says the problems cover the entire province.The group says retailers are facing growing losses from theft, and that added to increased security is costing an av...

Canada to deport Montreal man facing death sentence in Egypt

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

OTTAWA — An Egyptian refugee claimant in Montreal says the Canadian government is deporting him to face a death sentence at the hands of the Egyptian legal system.Ezzat Gouda has been ordered to return to Egypt by Nov. 1, despite claims that he will be persecuted and killed in Egypt because of his political affiliations in the aftermath of the Arab Spring revolution.Gouda had already been arrested without charges several times by the time he helped establish the Freedom and Justice Party, which was affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood group and came to power following the country’s 2012 elections.In 2013, Egypt’s army chief seized power in a military coup against the elected party’s government, and since then, Egyptian authorities have arrested thousands of the party’s members and Muslim Brotherhood supporters after labelling them as terrorists. Gouda says he showed Canadian officials court documents that prove he has been sentenced to death in Egypt, but w...

Wickenheiser calls for neck protection at ‘every level’ after Johnson’s death

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

Hayley Wickenheiser is calling for mandated neck protection at “every level in hockey” after former NHL player Adam Johnson died from a cut by a skate blade during a game in England on Saturday.Wickenheiser is a four-time Olympic women’s hockey gold medallist who completed medical school after her playing career and currently works as an assistant general manager for the Toronto Maple Leafs.She posted to X platform, formerly known as Twitter, that the risk is far too great not to wear neck protection, even if it doesn’t pass the “cool factor.”Neck guards are not mandatory in the NHL. The Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League mandate players to wear neck guards.READ MORE: American hockey player dies after ‘freak accident’ during game in EnglandHockey Canada also requires players registered in minor or women’s hockey to wear neck protection.Winnipeg Jets interim head coach Scott Arniel says he expects the NHL to look into...

Canada expands drug strategy to prevent more overdoses, provide additional services

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

The federal government is expanding its drug and substance use strategy to try to save more lives and provide more services to people disproportionately affected by Canada’s overdose crisis.The Public Health Agency of Canada says the drug landscape has changed with an increasingly toxic supply since the strategy was first developed in 2016. It also says the COVID-19 pandemic revealed gaps in the government’s approach and the need for a more holistic, integrated response. The strategy’s priorities include funding more community-based programs for prevention, treatment and support.It also includes support for law enforcement, including training on stigma amongsubstance users, and testing out an overdose monitoring tool.  The government has also announced that $21 million from the federal budget will be used to fund 54 harm reduction projects across the country. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 30, 2023.Canadian Press health coverage receives...

Mississauga transit bus driver charged in fatal June crash

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

A Mississauga (MiWay) transit bus driver has been charged after a “complex” months-long investigation into a multi-vehicle collision that claimed the life of a 50-year-old woman and injured eight others.It happened on the morning of June, 8, 2023, at the intersection of Derry and Rexwood roads in Mississauga.At the time, Peel Regional Police Const. Sarah Patten said the transit bus “was the first initial contact in the collision,” which forced a chain reaction.“It’s my understanding that quite a few vehicles were stopped at a red light facing eastbound on Derry Road at Rexwood Road, at which time the transit bus continued through, causing the collision,” Const. Patten said at the scene.The driver of the bus, Baljeet Dhaliwal, 49, of Brampton, was arrested on October 26. She’s facing a single count of dangerous operation causing death.With files from Lucas Casaletto

Pasadena police investigate report of missing items from Colorado locker room following UCLA game

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

The police in Pasadena, California, confirmed an investigation is underway after a report that several items went missing from the Colorado locker room while the Buffaloes played No. 20 UCLA at the Rose Bowl over the weekend.UCLA is in communication with law enforcement, Rose Bowl Stadium officials and the University of Colorado concerning the matter, Lisa Derderian, the city’s public information officer, said Monday.The production crew of “ Well Off Media,” which chronicles coach Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes, posted a video on YouTube titled, “Colorado Loses to UCLA: Thieves at Rose Bowl Steal From Colorado’s Locker Room.” In the video, players gathered around the bus after a 28-16 loss to the Bruins on Saturday night and discussed items being taken from inside the locker room, including jewelry.One person had a chain he recently purchased go missing. He said in the video: “I just got mine, bro. I had the jewelry box and everything. They took it out of my jewelry box...

Alaska faces new backlog in processing food stamp benefits after clearing older applications

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska state agency faces a new backlog in processing applications for people seeking food stamp benefits, more than a year after it first fell behind in recertifying applicants.The current backlog of new and returning applications totals about 6,000, the Anchorage Daily News reported. It was created after resources were focused on clearing an older backlog in applications from Alaskans who in some cases waited as long as 11 months for benefits from the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, said Deb Etheridge, director of the Alaska Division of Public Assistance. Etheridge said officials from the U.S. Food and Nutrition Service directed her agency to prioritize the older applications, even if meant newer applications might get delayed.The state also has resumed interviews and income verifications that were waived as part of the federal public health emergency related to the pandemic.“We knew that alone would also create probably some...

Plainfield landlord pleads not guilty in brutal killing on 6yo. Muslim-Palestinian boy

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 12:04:00 GMT

JOLEIT, Ill. — Joseph Czuba, in a red jail jumpsuit, remained silent during his appearance inside Will County Courhouse Monday morning. The 71-year-old Air Force veteran, pleaded not guilty to eight counts against him.Last week, a Will County grand jury indicted Czuba on first-degree murder, attempted murder, battery and hate crime charges.Czuba is accused of fatally stabbing a young boy and seriously hurting his mother who were his tenants in unincorporated Plainfield Township.Prosecutors said 6-year-old Wadea Al-Fayoume was stabbed 26 times.  ‘He was my best friend’: Mother recuperates after 6-year-old boy killed in attack police call a hate crime His mother, Hanaan Shahin, was stabbed at least a dozen times.Joseph Czuba, 71, in Will County Courthouse Monday morning Investigators day Czuba targeted the mother and son because of their Muslim faith, and because of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas and wanted them to move out believing that he and his wife “were in dang...