Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 1d

I've had the privilege of supporting #library workers across Ontario the last couple of years. Here's a story about some of them coming together when the Ford government closed save consumption sites.

cupe.ca/working-unsa...

#OPLW2025

Working in an unsafe consumption site: A library perspective

It is impossible not to know there is an overdose crisis in Canada. You might think that no one is more aware of it than nurses, paramedics and social service workers – tens of thousands of whom are C...

cupe.ca

Reposted by Craig Saunders

Al Jazeera English @aljazeera.com · 1d

Climate-related hazards have killed more than 2 million people in 50 years, said the UN meteorological agency.

UN pushes for worldwide disaster alerts as extreme weather ‘spirals’

bit.ly

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 3d

Image of Toronto Star headline reading: Workers in Ontario were shortchanged nearly $200 million in unpaid wages, a new report says: ‘A massive crisis happening in plain sight’

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 3d

A gentle reminder of what the Ford government means. Conservatives are no friends to rural communities.

Ghost Gurney @ghostgurney.bsky.social · 3d

UPDATE : in 2025, temp ER closures in #ONTARIO are @ 6️⃣7️⃣9️⃣hours, perm closure/hour reduction in #Durham #Minden #Chesley #Clinton are @1️⃣9️⃣4️⃣3️⃣2️⃣hr

Ghost Gurney @ghostgurney.bsky.social · 4d

UPDATE : in 2025, temp ER closures in #ONTARIO are @ 6️⃣7️⃣9️⃣hours, perm closure/hour reduction in #Durham #Minden #Chesley #Clinton are @1️⃣9️⃣3️⃣5️⃣8️⃣hr

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 4d

Is it actually hard to hire a goon squad?

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 4d

This is a really interesting story about a very unusual landlord/tenant relationship in #Toronto

Nick Hune-Brown @nickhunebrown.bsky.social · 4d

In the spring, student journalist Ella MacCormack came to us with an intriguing story: Toronto frats, starved for members, had become de facto landlords, renting rooms in their houses to desperate renters. We teamed her up with The Local's @wencyleung.bsky.social and the result is this wild story.

The Local Magazine @thelocal.to · 4d

Without enough brothers to fill their houses, some fraternities have begun renting rooms to non-students desperate for cheap rent. Ella MacCormack and @wencyleung.bsky.social on what happens when your landlord is a frat. thelocal.to/fraternities...

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 4d

I get that the client's focus was on home ownership, but I'd love to have seen views on the solutions to the housing crisis, which aren't all about ownership. And crosstabbed with the views on causes and with demographics (who doesn't dream of more crosstabs???)

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 6d

One more vehicle I won't be getting when my car comes up for replacement next year.

Toronto Star @thestar.com · 6d

‘Shock after shock:’ Ontario’s automaking heartland devastated after Stellantis’ Brampton bombshell

Industry watchers fear 'more shoes to drop' after company says it's moving assembly of Jeep Compass in Brampton to Illinois in $13B U.S. expansion.

www.thestar.com

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Reposted by Craig Saunders

Jean B. @jeanbfromtoronto.bsky.social · 6d

Excellent reporting and writing. As a TMU alumna, I always heard from students about York U being the bastion of humanities, art, critical thought and social sciences. So, reading this story was really eye-opening. I knew York U had several issues but I had no idea about the depths of it all.

The Local Magazine @thelocal.to · 6d

“We could no longer work things out.” Our Higher Education series continues with Sabika Zaidi and @kunalchaudhary.bsky.social on how York University lost the trust of its community. thelocal.to/york-univers...

How York University Lost the Trust of Its Community | The Local

After program closures, questionable major capital projects, and increasingly fractious labour relations, what is the future of York University?

thelocal.to

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 7d

"I was so mad," said Ford of the alleged thief. "I saw so much of myself in him, and knew he could have gotten waaay more than a saw blade. Dream big, buddy!"
(At least, that's what Ford said in my mind)

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 7d

The GTA has had a lot of growth in regional rail service in recent years. There have been GO lines to a lot of cities for decades, but trains never (or rarely) ran on them. That's improved a lot over the last decade.

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 7d

I travel to Quebec for a cycling vacation every summer. I always end up driving because there's no regional rail and even to Montreal and Quebec City there is no train that allows one to travel with a bicycle.

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 9d

www.thestar.com/news/ontario...

‘Discriminatory and devastating’: New Ontario rule for medical residency that would exclude most immigrant physicians sparks outrage

The province’s health ministry now requires international medical graduates to have attended an Ontario high school for at least two years. This excludes the majority of immigrant physicians from the ...

www.thestar.com

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 11d

Arresting and intimidating free press is one of the clear signs your government has truly embraced fascism.

Jacqueline Sweet @jsweetli.bsky.social · 11d

WGN, this woman’s employer, is now reporting she was not charged with any crimes and was released.

DHS said earlier she was arrested for assault for throwing objects at agents.

Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 11d

Wonder how long they struggled to avoid saying "Something's fishy."

Investigative Journalism Foundation @theijf.org · 11d

Organized criminals including drug traffickers may be laundering money through Canada’s fishing industry. Read about the findings in our latest story.

zurl.co/Mac5q

#cdnpoli

International gangs launder money through Canada’s fishing industry, reports suggest

Criminals may be cleaning cash through government-issued licenses on the west coast

zurl.co

Reposted by Craig Saunders

Marit Stiles @maritstilesndp.bsky.social · 11d

Two years ago, the RCMP launched a criminal investigation into Doug Ford’s Greenbelt Grab.

Two years later, it’s déjà vu — Labour Minister David Piccini admits he personally picked which of his friends got millions from the Skills Development Fund.

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 12d

He's concerned about $1.8 million for crisis workers, but wants to use police instead, who cost at least $200k each (and often well over $300k each)???

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Reposted by Craig Saunders

Tu Thanh Ha @tuthanhha.bsky.social · 14d

When major renovations at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital were announced, it was supposed to turn the facility into “the premier critical care hospital in Canada.”

Instead, the project is now 7 years late and two key figures were convicted of fraud today. www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/artic...

What to know about the hospital redevelopment at the centre of the Bondfield fraud case

A former executive at Toronto’s St. Michael’s Hospital and the former president of Bondfield Construction were convicted of fraud related to the $300-million project

www.theglobeandmail.com

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Reposted by Craig Saunders

Liz Renzetti @lizrenzetti.bsky.social · 14d

Bay Street's enthusiasm for diversity has disappeared, and the findings here are depressing as hell. Only 16 per cent of companies even responded to questions about the pledges they made five years ago! www.theglobeandmail.com/gift/e33036f...

Five years after vowing to hire more Black employees, Bay Street’s enthusiasm for DEI is waning

In The Globe and Mail’s latest survey of BlackNorth signatories, far fewer companies responded to questions about their diversity progress than in prior years

www.theglobeandmail.com

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 14d

I dug deep down in my pocket to try and find some coin, but much to my chagrin...

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Reposted by Craig Saunders

David J. Doorey (aka The Law of Work) @thelawofwork.bsky.social · 21d

Private conservative club for the wealthy claims it can’t find any Canadian “servers”.

This means:

- the wages are crap and below comparable server jobs;

- the servers are treated like crap by the “members”;

- the club is lying.

Which is it?

www.thestar.com/politics/fed...

Exclusive Tory club hires foreign workers under program Pierre Poilievre vows to kill

Toronto's Albany Club, a bastion of the conservative establishment, used the temporary foreign worker program to hire staff.

www.thestar.com

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 15d

If you want a good read on the subject and its history, here's a great article by the inestimable @thelawofwork.bsky.social

lawofwork.ca/the-mysterio...

The All-Powerful Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code: A Liberal Love Story – The Law of Work

lawofwork.ca

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 15d

or differences and to those ends the Minister may refer any question to the Board or direct the Board to do such things as the Minister deems necessary.

2/2

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 15d

S.107 reads: The Minister, where the Minister deems it expedient, may do such things as to the Minister seem likely to maintain or secure industrial peace and to promote conditions favourable to the settlement of industrial disputes 1/2

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Craig Saunders @craigsaunders.bsky.social · 15d

I say "clearly," but I'm not a lawyer. I do know that case law makes it pretty clear that workers who are stripped of their right to strike (e.g. hospital workers) have to have access to a third-party dispute resolution mechanism like interest arbitration. S.107 has no such requirement.

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