Long-term care workers at the Maritime Odd Fellows Home in Pictou have unanimously voted in favour of a strike mandate.

The workers, represented by CUPE 2330, have cited low wages, issues with overtime and improvements needed to bereavement leave as the reasons for striking.

The union says long-term care workers are among the lowest paid workers in Atlantic Canada, making under $20 per hour.

 

 

New Glasgow Regional Police have charged a man with assault and damage to property following an incident at a New Glasgow shelter.    On Tuesday at approximately 9:20 p.m., Police responded to a report of a man outside the New Glasgow shelter who was acting disruptive and threatening to light a garbage can on fire.   When officers arrived they saw a garage can burning in the shelter’s parking lot, and they made the arrest and safely extinguished the fire.

Police say that further investigation revealed that the man assaulted a staff shelter member prior to setting the fire.

A 64-year-old man was arrested, charged and released on an undertaking with conditions.  He will be appearing in Provincial Court in Pictou on January 16th.

 

 

An agreement has been signed among all provinces, territories, and the federal government to reduce interprovincial trade barriers.  The deal allows more businesses to sell their products across Canada’s 14 jurisdictions, and was developed in response to the U-S trade war.  The agreement, taking effect next month, applies to tens of thousands of products but excludes food, beverages, tobacco, plants, and animals. The deal was signed by the country’s trade ministers gathered in Yellowknife on Wednesday.

 

 

The Nova Scotia government has introduced a new program to make more local food available in public institutions, such as hospitals and universities.  The 860-thousand-dollar plan is to make funding available for public institutions to buy more local food through their food service programs.  Agriculture Minister Greg Morrow announced the program Wednesday in Greenwich.  Morrow says the initiative — known as the Institutional Development Expansion and Advancement program — will open new markets for farmers.

 

 

The RCMP says business email scams are on the rise in Nova Scotia.

The Mounties say cybercriminals are impersonating trusted businesses in emails and tricking people into sending them money.

They say scammers are creating fake but convincing email addresses and telling people that the trusted business’ bank information has changed.

When clients go to pay their bills, they unknowingly deposit the money into the scammers’ accounts.

 

 

In sports,

The Crushers host the West Kent Steamers at 7:00pm tonight in Maritime Junior Hockey League action.