Hundreds of workers from almost two dozen long-term care homes in Nova Scotia, including Maritime Odd Fellows Home in Pictou, hit picket lines Monday morning after contract negotiations reached an impasse.  The Canadian Union of Public Employees says more than 2,200 staffers from 22 facilities are striking, but more are expected to follow in the coming days.  Affected workers include continuing-care assistants and licensed practical nurses, housekeeping staff and physiotherapists.  Union spokesperson Ty Loppie says the workers feel they have been pushed to the job action as they fight for a living wage.

 

 

As part of an investigation into a recent break-and-enter and theft, Pictou County District RCMP have released photos and are looking to the public for help in identifying two people in those photos.  During the afternoon of March 26th, two vehicles were reported stolen from a residential garage in Salt Springs. Both vehicles were later recovered abandoned.  Anyone who recognizes either of the people pictured is asked to contact Pictou County District RCMP or Nova Scotia Crime Stoppers.

 

 

A program teaching teens about healthy relationships is expanding in some Nova Scotia schools, but not all.  The course covers consent, boundaries and recognizing different forms of violence.  It’s now in about 20 high schools, with students helping teach younger peers.  Advocates say more training and provincewide access are still needed.

 

 

The Liberals swept three byelections on Monday, giving Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government 174 seats and a majority in the House of Commons.  The Liberal candidates won the byelections in two Toronto ridings and a riding in a Montreal suburb. The result gives Liberals full control of legislation and committees, while Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre criticized the shift as a “cynical power grab.”