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Section X of the November 07, 2012 edition of the Prince George Free Press
Citation preview
Maude Barlow of the Council of Canadians speaks out against pipelines
A3
FREE PRESS
NOVEMBER 2012
Big NorthDELYNDA [email protected]
Most people’s lives have been touched by cancer in some way, and Premier Christy Clark is no exception. Her mother won the battle against skin cancer and breast cancer, ulti-mately losing her life to brain cancer.
Clark said she understood how important it is to be near your support group and for your loved ones to be able to be close to you when you are struggling with the disease.
Every morning during her mother’s battle with brain cancer she would drive to the Royal Columbian Hospital, help her mother shower and eat, then put her to bed. After work she would pick up her son and they would go see her mother. Clark would feed her dinner and help her brush her teeth.
Her mother may not have survived her final battle with cancer, but Clark said she did get to spend those final days with her in the best possible way.
“It was her final gift,” she said. “Now fami-lies in Prince George will also have that gift.”
With tears in her eyes, Clark shared her story during the grand opening of the B.C. Cancer Agency Centre for the North on Oct. 29. In a room filled with proponents who worked hard to make the centre a reality, local and provin-cial dignitaries as well as many of the 82 pro-fessionals who will staff the centre, she talked about the importance of a community coming together with a vision, then bringing it to life.
“This is something you have needed in this community for a long time,” she said.
She added the province has the best cancer survival rate anywhere in North America, thanks in great part to the B.C. Cancer Agency and the specialists who work there.
Prince George now has the most recently built clinic, one of six throughout the province, filled with state-of-the-art equipment.
“But the real difference is the people who work in the building,” she said. “It is these people and their passion for wanting to save lives ... that is what makes the differ-ence.”
Prince George Health Authority board chair Wynne Powell said that for the first time in the north, the newly constructed centre will allow patients to undergo radia-tion therapy.
He added the centre is a key part of the northern can-cer control strategy.
In addition to being on time and below budget, the centre, he said, will enhance service across the cancer care continuum through the north.
Dr. Michelle Sutter broached the subject of a local cancer centre when she noticed there was an abnormal number of mastectomies being performed in the North.
“Women were unwilling to leave their support sys-tems,” she said.
The initial meeting with local MLAs Pat Bell and Shirley Bond led to several more, until Dr. Charles Jago, someone who has garnered a great deal of respect among a range of people, was put in charge of a steering com-mittee, advocating for the project.
A first report by the committee projected the earliest
such a clinic could become a reality was 2015.Bond said they knew that just wasn’t fast enough.“Northern B.C. has been asking for equity in health
care for a long time,” Bond said.Over the time it has taken to make the centre a reality,
she said she was asked about it many times.“It’s not a matter of if,” she said she told people. “It’s a
matter of when. And when is today.”“Everyone south of Williams Lake told us it couldn’t
be done,” Bell said. “When people tell northern British Columbians it can’t
be done, they just roll up their sleeves. Today proves we can get it done in northern B.C.,” Bond said.
Construction for the centre began in July of 2010, with a capital cost of $91.5 million. The first patients were expected to walk through the doors on Nov. 1.
Clark opens cancer centre
DeLynda PILON/Free Press
Premier Christy Clark toured the radiation unit at the B.C. Cancer Agency Centre for the North during its grand opening Monday. Patients will begin treatment at the centre Nov. 1.
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HYUNDAI PREDICTING SUCCESS FOR 2013
Once upon a time there was a little car maker that changed the game when it arrived on our shores in 1985. It went on to make many improvements and is still a part of the imports story nearly thirty years later. The Korean Hyundai was fi rst known as a producer of small economy cars, but today Hyundai has a full array of cars and light trucks to offer, starting with the good-looking Accent sub-compact, available as a hatchback or sedan. The company’s true star this year is the compact Elantra, an already popular sedan now offered as a coupe or a sporty GT hatchback for 2013. We can’t ignore the popular Sonata, a mid-sized sedan available with one of
three four-cylinder engines including a turbo and a hybrid-electric version. Then comes the bigger Genesis sedan, a rear-wheel drive powered by a V-6 or a V-8, also available as a coupe with the same V-6 or with an optional turbocharged four-cylinder. If you are looking for a majestic-looking luxury sedan, ask your Hyundai dealer to show you the full-sized V-8 powered Equus. And don’t forget to take a look at Hyundai’s latest offering in the sports car segment, the futuristic looking Veloster, powered by a regular or turbocharged four-cylinder engine. We could also talk about all the light trucks that your Hyundai dealer has to offer,
starting with the smaller Tucson, a compact SUV that needs no introduction since it has become one of the most popular in its segment. And this year, Hyundai is introducing an all-new redesigned Santa Fe mid-sized SUV that will also be offered as a seven-passenger version to replace the former Vera Cruz model.
HYUNDAI SANTA FERedesigned
It was forgivable, but let’s admit that Hyundai’s ever-popular Santa Fe SUV was starting to get a bit grey at the temples. Despite its excellent reputation, the time had come for its maker to do a redesign that would help it stay com-petitive with all the new products hitting the market.Fear not, though: the Santa Fe has not changed dramati-
cally. It still remains a just-right-sized SUV that will satisfy consumers. What’s great news for 2013 is that there will be two versions of the Santa Fe. Indeed, Hyundai has decided to drop the Vera Cruz — a longer and beefi er version of the Santa Fe will be offered in replacement. The 2013 Santa Fe will be available with front- or all-
wheel drive. The base engine will be the 2.4-litre, four-cyl-inder engine or it will come with a new 2.0-litre, turbo four or a V-6 engine that will be offered in the long-wheelbase version. All use a six-speed automatic transmission, while the maximum towing capacity will be 1,587 kg.
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Hyundai is offering a coupe and hatchback version of its Elantra this year.Hyundai is offering a coupe and hatchback version of its Elantra this year.
For more details call your Hyundai dealership’s
toll free number.1-866-564-66631-866-564-6663
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BIG NORTH 3 BIG NORTH FREE PRESS - NOVEMBER 2012
Suzan brings over 23 years sales experience and is excited to be back in the Auto Industry.
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You shall not pass!Maude Barlow, chairperson
for the Council of Canadians, quoted the famous line, issued by the wizard Gandalf in Lord of the Rings when confronting a demon, to illustrate the firmness citizens need to show in order to stop further pipeline projects from expanding and snaking across the province.
Barlow, along with Caleb Bain and Sven Biggs, were the fea-tured speakers during the No Pipelines! No Tankers! Solidarity Speaking Tour which visited the university on Oct. 30, filling the Canfor Theatre with city resi-dents interested in learning more about the adverse effects of pipe-line expansion.
Barlow said people must stand in solidarity against not only the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline, but the Kinder Morgan expansion and the Pacific Trails pipeline as well.
The Northern Gateway is a twin pipeline project with one carrying bitumen west and another carrying condensate east along a 1,177 km path that goes through northern B.C. to Kiti-mat where it will be shipped via tanker to China.
The Kinder Morgan expansion would increase the capacity of that already twinned pipeline from 300,000 barrels per day to 850,000 barrels per day and increase tanker traffic along B.C.’s coast line.
The Pacific Trails pipeline is about a 460 km pipeline that would carry liquefied natural gas from northeastern B.C. to Kitimat.
Barlow, a Canadian author and activist, said the pipeline projects in B.C. are part of a larger agenda being set in Ottawa, facilitated by Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
“Harper has a very clear plan,” she said, adding he intends to create a Canadian superpower based on mineral extraction and natural resources.
She said she has learned a lot about Harper and his phi-losophy over the years, pointing out he was once the head of the National Citizens Coalition, a group she characterized as being very right wing.
“They have fought pretty much all the progressive causes,” she said.
Pointing out that if you take into consideration the number of people who actually voted versus the of-age population of Canada, among other factors, in effect only about 25 per cent of Canadi-ans voted for Harper.
Barlow inferred this may make
the Conservative majority a one-term government and quoted Roger Douglas, a Minster of Finance in New Zealand, saying when that is the case you should ‘hit ‘em hard, hit ‘em fast and hit ‘em all at once. This, she said, is what Harper is doing.
She said he is eviscerating the infrastructure in Canada that pro-tects the environment.
Tools protecting democratic proceedings have been thrown out the window. Inspectors have been cut, Parks Canada has received devastating cuts, science centres and research facilities have been shut down and the environmental department has been gutted.
He is doing this, she said, to remove any blocks in place that would stop large energy com-panies from setting up shop in Canada.
Simultaneously, she said, Harper is negotiating as many free trade agreements and invest-ment agreements as he can.
She pointed out Canadians have only seen the wording of a trade agreement with China that could be law within a few days.
“There has been no vote, no public debate,” Barlow said.
And the agreement would be in place for 31 years.
Combine this with Chapter 11 of the NAFTA agreement, which gives corporations the right to sue any level of government if any public policy or government action denies them investment or profit opportunities, and a seri-ous concern arises.
Barlow talked about what a
Chinese company, armed with the same clause within that country’s free trade agreement, could do if it invested in the oil sands with the understanding the pipeline would be built, and then it was not.
She pointed out, China is a communist superpower, meaning investment com-panies are state owned.
“We are calling on pre-miers to say something. We’re really under the gun here trying to stop this,” she said.
From gutting the Fisher-ies Act, she said, to draft-ing free trade agreements, Harper is putting the coun-try at risk.
“It seems like an act of treason to me,” Barlow said. “And I don’t say that lightly.”
The pipelines, she said, are the arteries of the oil sands.
“If we can’t stop them we can’t stop the tar sands.”
If we don’t stop the oil sands, she said, it is the end of climate.
She said even if every-thing went perfectly every time within the operations of the pipeline, building it would still end tragically.
“It would still be a Canadian carbon bomb in another part of the world.”
“We need to come together,” she. “We need to come together with First Nations.”
3
Barlow speaks out on pipelineDELYNDA [email protected]
DeLynda PILON/Free Press
Maude Barlow, chairperson of the Council of Canadians, spoke on pipelines and politics at UNBC Tuesday night.
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4 BIG NORTH BIG NORTH FREE PRESS ~ NOVEMBER 2012 BIG NORTH FREE PRESS ~ NOVMEBER 2012 BIG NORTH 5
Bentley steps down
After over 40 years in the banking industry, Brian Bentley, Integris Credit Union CEO, has decided to retire on June 30, 2013.
Bentley brought extensive experience to the role at Integris. He began his financial career as a personal lender with HFC, Trans Canada Credit, and the Royal Bank of Canada in the early 1970s. In 1975, he switched to commercial lending, becoming a small business lender with the Bank of Montreal and then the Royal Bank of Canada. In 1985 he joined First Heritage Savings Credit Union where he was responsible for a large com-mercial/personal branch in the Fraser Valley with over $200 million in loans.
He was also responsible for a large full-service insurance office, a financial planner, and a small credit union branch in an adjacent community. In 1996, he moved to Prince Rupert to take up the posts of chief operations officer and chief credit officer for Northern Savings Credit Union.
In 2000, he came to Prince George as the chief executive officer of Prince George Savings Credit Union, which at the time had assets of approximately $150 million. In 2003, talks began between Prince George Savings, Nechako Val-ley Credit Union in Vanderhoof and Quesnel and District Credit Union to see if there was any appetite to work together. On June 1, 2004, Inte-gris Credit Union officially came into being, with seven branches in five communities and assets of approximately $350 million, and Bentley became the CEO of this new organization.
Under his leadership, Integris has grown to over $512 million in assets and over $1 billion in assets under management. It has a full service insurance agency and a financial planning sub-sidiary with a substantial portfolio.
As an employer, Integris placed sixth in the 2008 BC Business Best Companies to work for in B.C. and in 2009 Integris came in second. Integris has won or been nominated for several other awards in our communities such as Health & Wellness Innovator, Employer of the Year, Green Award, and Customer Service.
Teresa MALLAM/Free Press
Andrea Fuentes pauses to consider her next cut in her “untamed spirit” themed pumpkin at CNC’s pumpkin carving and Halloween costume event on Oct. 31. Her pumpkin’s face shows the good and bad sides, she says, “kind of like marrying a guy you like and finding out he’s not so nice.”
UNTAMED SPIRIT
The 2015 Canada Winter Games Host Society is currently recruiting six key planning volunteer positions to help execute the 2015 Games.
Volunteer positions include:• Sport Committee Chair• Venue Committee Chair• Venue Team Leaders• Sport Leaders• Volunteer Committee Chair• Chief Medical Officer/Medical Services Com-
mittee ChairTo apply, please visit www.canadagames2015.
ca / www.jeuxducanada2015.ca for full volunteer descriptions and closing dates. Resumes can be for-warded to: Human Resources, 2015 Canada Winter Games, 545 Quebec Street, Prince George, B.C., V2L 1W6 or e-mail [email protected] and include volunteer position title in the sub-ject line. The Prince George 2015 Canada Games Host Society is an equal opportunity employer and encourages all individuals to apply for volunteer postings.
Winter Games looking for key
positions
Teresa MALLAM/Free Press
Daniel Dyck has a Hello Kitty motif painted on his face by Hailee Pitkethly at CNC’s annual Halloween costume and pumpkin-carving event on Oct. 31, Halloween, in the atrium.
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4 BIG NORTH BIG NORTH FREE PRESS ~ NOVEMBER 2012 BIG NORTH FREE PRESS ~ NOVMEBER 2012 BIG NORTH 5
Bentley steps down
After over 40 years in the banking industry, Brian Bentley, Integris Credit Union CEO, has decided to retire on June 30, 2013.
Bentley brought extensive experience to the role at Integris. He began his financial career as a personal lender with HFC, Trans Canada Credit, and the Royal Bank of Canada in the early 1970s. In 1975, he switched to commercial lending, becoming a small business lender with the Bank of Montreal and then the Royal Bank of Canada. In 1985 he joined First Heritage Savings Credit Union where he was responsible for a large com-mercial/personal branch in the Fraser Valley with over $200 million in loans.
He was also responsible for a large full-service insurance office, a financial planner, and a small credit union branch in an adjacent community. In 1996, he moved to Prince Rupert to take up the posts of chief operations officer and chief credit officer for Northern Savings Credit Union.
In 2000, he came to Prince George as the chief executive officer of Prince George Savings Credit Union, which at the time had assets of approximately $150 million. In 2003, talks began between Prince George Savings, Nechako Val-ley Credit Union in Vanderhoof and Quesnel and District Credit Union to see if there was any appetite to work together. On June 1, 2004, Inte-gris Credit Union officially came into being, with seven branches in five communities and assets of approximately $350 million, and Bentley became the CEO of this new organization.
Under his leadership, Integris has grown to over $512 million in assets and over $1 billion in assets under management. It has a full service insurance agency and a financial planning sub-sidiary with a substantial portfolio.
As an employer, Integris placed sixth in the 2008 BC Business Best Companies to work for in B.C. and in 2009 Integris came in second. Integris has won or been nominated for several other awards in our communities such as Health & Wellness Innovator, Employer of the Year, Green Award, and Customer Service.
Teresa MALLAM/Free Press
Andrea Fuentes pauses to consider her next cut in her “untamed spirit” themed pumpkin at CNC’s pumpkin carving and Halloween costume event on Oct. 31. Her pumpkin’s face shows the good and bad sides, she says, “kind of like marrying a guy you like and finding out he’s not so nice.”
UNTAMED SPIRIT
The 2015 Canada Winter Games Host Society is currently recruiting six key planning volunteer positions to help execute the 2015 Games.
Volunteer positions include:• Sport Committee Chair• Venue Committee Chair• Venue Team Leaders• Sport Leaders• Volunteer Committee Chair• Chief Medical Officer/Medical Services Com-
mittee ChairTo apply, please visit www.canadagames2015.
ca / www.jeuxducanada2015.ca for full volunteer descriptions and closing dates. Resumes can be for-warded to: Human Resources, 2015 Canada Winter Games, 545 Quebec Street, Prince George, B.C., V2L 1W6 or e-mail [email protected] and include volunteer position title in the sub-ject line. The Prince George 2015 Canada Games Host Society is an equal opportunity employer and encourages all individuals to apply for volunteer postings.
Winter Games looking for key
positions
Teresa MALLAM/Free Press
Daniel Dyck has a Hello Kitty motif painted on his face by Hailee Pitkethly at CNC’s annual Halloween costume and pumpkin-carving event on Oct. 31, Halloween, in the atrium.
HALLOWEEN FUN
HOW TO WIN HOW TO WIN THE SHOWCASE!THE SHOWCASE!
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KYLA CORPUZNortheast News
The resource industry the North has continued to grow over the last decade – and with it, industrial work camps.
An industrial work camp
is a “work place and living space,” which is sometimes located outside of town, near an operational oil and gas or mining site.
Camps can accommodate anywhere from 50 to 1,000 peo-ple and the impacts it has on
workers’ health has triggered concerns with the Northern Health Authority.
“When considering the deter-minants of health in a popula-tion health approach, industrial camps are an important work setting that merit attention and
health resources,” states a report, conducted by NHA, called Understand-ing the State of Industrial Camps in Northern BC: A Background Paper.
It also adds that it is challenging to gain a full understanding of the impact camps have on workers’ health, sur-rounding communities and health services.
Charles Jago, NHA’s board chair, said it’s dif-ficult to gather the infor-mation because there isn’t much of it that exists.
“I think the camps are established for mining and oil and gas, they’re in a different industry,” he said. “There are different regulations and require-ments, they report to dif-ferent agencies, there is no central source that we are aware of within govern-ment or elsewhere where you can chart the devel-opment of these camps.”
Northern Health’s latest report is the first and only documented piece with combined information on industrial camp life.
“We’ve had to go to multiple sources to put
together the information that is contained in this first report. I think it’s a significant phenom-enon, that over time … gov-ernment will be disciplined in terms of monitoring this kind of thing – but right now there is no central source and the researchers have done a tre-mendous job to pull together the information that has been presented.”
However, it’s not complete.“We have a lot more ques-
tions than we have answers,” said Jago. “So the study you have right now is the first shot at [trying to get a sense of the scale and scope of indus-trial camp activity]. Mainly it’s identifying location and look-ing at the overall health issues related to camp life.”
According to the report, camps located around Fort St. John have a “party”-like atmo-sphere, which then translates to drug and alcohol use.
“Overall, these types of camps can have ‘negative con-sequences’ for individuals, families, and the communities where they live,” states the report.
However one oil and gas labourer, who has been in the industry for the past decade, said the scene has changed for the better.
“Most of the camps I attend are strictly monitored with being a dry camp.”
He said that he doesn’t notice the drug prevalence as much as he did when he first started out, adding that bigger
camps now have search dogs to ensure the camps stay dry.
“There’s no bringing any-thing to camp.”
He noted that it’s usually the “remote camps that aren’t looked after quite as well.”
However, the report states that even though there are stringent corporate policies in place and designated dry camps, alcohol use is still “prevalent.”
Drinking alcohol in the camps has potential to result in “on-the-job” accidents, anxiety and stress.
“These and other factors such as social isolation and lack of integration among new or temporary workers and per-manent residents of host com-munities can lead to struggles with problematic use of sub-stances,” the report states.
On a scale of one to 10, the labourer who spoke with the Northeast News rated the qual-ity of life in camps at a five to six, with one being the poor-est.
“It can be pretty secluded sometimes, depending on the camps.”
Camps vary in size, based on how big the project is. The bigger the job, the better the camp, he said.
“In the larger camps they do try to put in an effort. In the smaller camps, not so much, they’re moreso tempo-rary. The permanent camps will have recreational rooms for people to be physically active.”
The NHA report states that the indus-trial camp regula-tion is being looked at again; however, it is unlikely that additional respon-sibilities regarding general health and wellness or health promotion will be included in any future versions.21
DELYNDA [email protected]
Data Northern Gateway collected on the effects of a spill on fish, par-ticularly salmon, was questioned Oct. 31 afternoon during the joint review panel hearings, which convened again in Prince George on Oct. 29.
Richard Overstall, a lawyer with the Northwest Institute for Bioregional Research, asked several technical questions of Northern Gateway, show-ing particular interest in the model they used to determine spill effects on fish like salmon.
He asked if the model accommo-dated where the salmon were within the river and their reactions depend-ing on the day and time.
“In the model, we actually assume that any receptor could be present at
any location in the water column,” Dr. Matthew Horn, a Northern Gateway expert witness, said. “The sensitive receptor is present at any location within the river so, therefore, it can experience the highest concentration, have the largest effects.”
Overstall also asked about hypo-thetical spills on the Morice River, which has a high concentration of salmon, and whether or not the model created by Northern Gateway took into account a major spill. He pointed to an area where a spill could affect a number of streams that run off the Morice.
The location of the hypothetical spill did not occur there, he was told, because valves along either side of the river in that area would actually result in less oil spilled.
The location that was chosen, Horn
said, would produce the highest spill volume.
Overstall asked if they could have chosen, instead, to have the hypothet-ical spill in an area where there was a high concentration of fish to study the effects on fish population.
“We chose this region of the Morice, in general, because it is a high conse-quence area.
“This is a sensitive river,” Horn said.
Jeffery Green, another expert North-ern Gateway witness, said they chose four hypothetical release locations first, then deliberately focussed on the Morice River because many groups, including First Nations, had expressed concerns.
The area Overstall was referring to when he asked why it had not been chosen as the hypothetical spill area,
he said, had very little to do with the specific biological effects.
They could have gone further upstream, he said, but they wanted to choose what they felt was the reason-able worse case effect.
“The third and I think really impor-tant point is we considered all species to be present and to be sensitive. So, again, we’re looking not at very spe-cific species of fish, we’re looking at -- as fish life stages and species that are sensitive and fish life stages and species that are less sensitive,” Green said.
“And so by doing those two, I think we fairly capture all of the concerns that you would have for very spe-cific species of salmon and that’s the approach we took to get to the four scenarios and then the specific loca-tion.”
Pipeline spill effects focus of hearing
Northern Health studies camp lifeand the effects it has on the health of workers
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BIG NORTH 7 BIG NORTH FREE PRESS - NOVEMBER 2012
MLAs reveal expenses
VICTORIA – B.C.’s 85 MLAs have begun disclosing their travel expenses, posting total amounts charged on their government-issued credit cards but not the details of where they drove, flew or dined.
The B.C. legislature’s internal finances are being dragged into the 21st century in response to a damning report from Auditor General John Doyle released in July. The audit found that MLA credit card bills were being paid without receipts, and the legislative assembly hadn’t produced financial statements despite a 2007 recommendation from the previous auditor general.
In response, the Legislative Assembly Man-agement Committee, chaired by Speaker and Penticton MLA Bill Barisoff, began holding its meetings in public. Two new financial officers were hired to address what Doyle described as “pervasive deficiencies” in financial account-ability of legislature operations.
The management committee authorized the first release Wednesday, showing six months of expenditures for each MLA up to the end of September.
The report breaks spending down in cat-egories, including accommodation, daily meal allowance and three categories of travel.
MLAs representing districts farthest from Victoria generally run up the highest expenses. Leading the pack in the first report is Robin Austin, NDP MLA for Skeena, with $53,606 in
expenses from April to September.Austin’s total includes $19,486 in “Speaker
approved travel,” including a trip to Colombo, Sri Lanka in September to attend a Com-monwealth Parliamentary Association confer-ence. Speakers, deputy speakers and legisla-tive clerks typically attend these conferences, aimed at strengthening parliamentary practices around the world.
Routine expenses include the “capital city allowance,” for which most MLAs who live outside Greater Victoria claim $1,000 a month without receipts. With receipts, out-of-town MLAs can claim up to $19,000 a year for rent, mortgage or hotel accommodation while in Victoria on legislature business.
MLAs are also eligible for $61 a day for meals while in Victoria on legislature business.
Prince George-Mackenzie MLA Pat Bell racked up $11,597 in travel expenses, Prince George-Valemount MLA Shirley Bond spent $6,230, Nechako Lakes MLA John Rustad’s travel bill topped $39,653, while Cariboo North MLA Bob Simpson’s travel costs were $25,511.
MLA expenses are to be posted quarterly from now on at www.leg.bc.ca/mla/remu-neration/travel_expenses.htm where the first reports are posted.
Cabinet minister travel expenses are reported separately on the B.C. government’s “open gov-ernment” website initiated by Premier Christy Clark.
They receive similar accommodation and meal payments to other MLAs, but they are paid by their ministries and do not show up on the new disclosures.
TOM FLETCHERBlack Press
The temporary foreign worker program not only exploits the imported tradespeople but under-cuts wages and makes it more dif-ficult for Canadians to get local jobs according to B.C. Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair.
Sinclair visited the College of New Caledonia on Oct. 26 to talk about the permits HD Mining will use to bring 200 Chinese peo-ple to Tumbler Ridge, employ-ing them as underground mine workers in the coal mine being constructed there.
Sinclair said the province needs the mines, however they must bring an economic benefit to the people of this province.
Having the Chinese invest in a mining project is fine, he said, but the biggest benefit that comes from those mines is the wages locals earn, then spend in their communities.
“But the companies are trying to get cheap labour and ignoring the local labour market,” he said.
On average, miners earn between $34 and $35 per hour, but the company is only obliged to pay according to their local scale, meaning somewhere between $20 and $25 per hour.
Sinclair mentioned the possibil-ity of job buying, a recent allega-tion set to be investigated.
“It’s un-Canadian for the employer to have that much power over that person,” he said.
He added the temporary for-eign worker program originally allowed the person to work in Canada for six months. The time limit has been changed to four
years.That is no longer temporary,
Sinclair said.If foreign labour is necessary,
he said they should bring the workers in as immigrants so they can have the same rights and privileges as Canadians.
“We have seen an influx of temporary foreign workers at all levels.”
He said there are actually a higher number of temporary for-eign workers in Canada now than there are immigrants.
“All the jobs that they are filling are permanent jobs. The program is completely skewed from what it once was. Put a moratorium on it right now.”
Immigrants, on the other hand, no matter what country they are from, would be welcomed.
“Temporary foreign workers are wrong. Wrong for the workers and wrong for the country. The Chinese company never made one effort to train locals. They always planned to hire temporary foreign workers. And the govern-ment knew from the beginning they were coming.”
Sinclair pointed out that the Northern Miner, the place where industry posts job openings, never received one posting from HD Mining.
“There was never one word in Northern Miner,” Sinclair said. “Lift the permits. If workers are needed, then bring them in as immigrants and give them the rights and privileges of Canadi-ans.”
The rights, he said, for appro-priate wages and the privilege to join a union if they wish.
Sinclair added it is time for the focus to be directed on training locals to fill the positions avail-
able now and in the future. He said labour, companies and the government must be brought to the table and work together.
“The union movement led to some of the best train-ing in the country,” he said. “We need to put money into really upgrading the machinery. There needs to be a major public invest-ment in that, and we need more apprenticeships.”
Sinclair hammers mining planDELYNDA [email protected]
DeLynda PILON/Free Press
B.C. Federation of Labour president Jim Sinclair says the temporary foreign worker program has become exploitative.
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ral S
treet
Hwy 9
7S
10th Ave
15th Ave
1-877-563-7174
*Based on double occupancy. Not to be combined with any other offer or promotion.
One coupon per customer per stay
$1000OFF
*
Regular Room Rate901 Central Street,
Prince George, BC CanadaV2M 3C8
BN
Expires January 31st, 2013
Grama’s Inn offers you clean, comfortable rooms, reasonable rates, homestyle cooking from Grama’s
kitchen. Free wireless internet, kitchen suites, executive suites available.
Ask About Our…
PREFERREDGUEST CARD*
(Stay 10 Nights, Get 1 FREE!)Call for details.
*Not to be combined with any otheroffer or promotion
BEST SPORTS TEAM RATESStarting at $78(not to be combined with any other offeror promotion. Call for details)
PET FRIENDLY
FREE PLUG-IN PARKING
RECOGNIZED BUSINESS FOR CUSTOMER SERVICE EXCELLENCE
Grama’s Inn is the place to stay
!
An
y way you look at it…
20
8 BIG NORTH BIG NORTH FREE PRESS - NOVEMBER 2012
NO CHARGE
AWD
2649 Queensway, Prince George, BCOUT OF TOWN BUYERS STAY FOR FREE!
DISCLAIMER: All prices and payments plus taxes and fees ON APPROVED CREDIT. Lowest cash prices shown above using all dealership incentives. Weekly payments are based on 0 down over 96 months at 5.99% OAC. Prices above include $589 Administrative Fee which has been waived for this sale. All Vehicles available at time of Printing. Cash down payment may be required up to 90% of vehicle purchase price depending on credit history. Vehicles may not be exactly as shown. See Dealer for details.
www.northlandnissan.com
DL#30757
Peter SiaGeneral Manager
LET US HELP YOUCLOSE A DEAL!
250-961-5040
In CashDiscountsOn OtherSelectModels
$91Weekly
$81Weekly
$13,888STARTING AT:
Stk# 12VS4910
$17,888STARTING AT:
Stk# 12SE69022012
NISSAN SENTRA
2012NISSAN VERSA$64
Weekly
Weekly
$50
$88Weekly
$81Weekly
$112Weekly
2012NISSAN ALTIMA $31,888
STARTING AT:
Stk# 12AS8225
$24,888Stk# 12TC2600
STARTING AT:
2012NISSANTITAN C/CAB
2012NISSANFRONTIER
STARTING AT:
$22,888
$22,888STARTING AT:
Stk# 12JK5000
2013NISSANROGUE 2012
NISSAN JUKE$25,888
STARTING AT:
Stk# 13RO1770
DOSM
$14,000$14,000$14,000on SELECT vehicles
up to 84 months (on select models)
FINANCINGFINANCING
n n CCaasshIInn
FINAL 2012 CLEAROUTFINAL 2012 CLEAROUTFINAL 2012 CLEAROUTOR UP TO
SaveSave
NO CHARGE
AWD
Stk# 1NISSANNNNNNNNNNNNN VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVER
Dave ForsterSales Manager
250-983-5120
Stk# 12FK9645
FULLYLOADED V6!
P/W,P/L,A/C
HEATEDSEATS!
CHRISTMASCHRISTMASCHRISTMASCASH BACK!CASH BACK!CASH BACK!
1-866-920-40581-866-920-4058
HOW TO CLAIM YOUR $2000 SAVINGS VOUCHER AND UPGRADE YOUR VEHICLE 1) Visit www.NissanBuyback.ca and enter Access Code: NLN222) Complete the Brief Upgrade Program survey3) Print your $2000 Savings Voucher4) Present your voucher at Northland Nissan
Access Code:
NLN22
1-866-995-59111-866-995-5911
6