worker

Wednesday November 28, 2012

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Wednesday November 28, 2012

A British Take on Mark Carney

Mark Carney, the new Governor of the Bank of England, is a remarkable man. He studied economics at Harvard, racked up a Master’s and a doctorate at Oxford, and, for the past four years, he’s been governor of his national bank – all before the age of 50. Carney is married to a glamorous British economist and has four lovely daughters. According to Time magazine, he’s one of the 25 most influential people in the world.

But – wait for it – there’s something even more remarkable about England’s new top banker. He’s a Canadian! Carney, he of the snappy suits and slicked-back hair, hails from the nation affectionately known as “America’s attic”. What’s more, he’s proud of it. He’s a maple syrup-drinking, poutine-loving, moose-spotting, beer-swilling ice-hockey fan, who once dreamed of playing for his local team, the Edmonton Oilers.

A couple of decades on, his selection for the coveted BoE job has raised a few eyebrows – not least because of his nationality. “Canadians have a reputation for being the boring good guys,” says Oxford academic (and bona fide Canadian) Margaret MacMillan. “If you want to say something is really tedious, you say ‘as dull as a Sunday in Canada’. We’ve never been loudly patriotic, probably because we live next to the US. As a result, people think we’re dull and quiet all the time.”

You see, even Canadians admit it: their country has an image problem. It has long been subjected to stereotypes – perpetuated by South Park and Due South – and rather than deny them, Canadians have simply got used to being the butt of bad jokes. “A Canadian,” goes the gag by the author Pierre Berton, “is someone who knows how to make love in a canoe.” (Source: The Telegraph) 

 

Monday May 28, 2012

By Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator, Monday May 28, 2012

EI Reform Arrives

Proposed changes to Employment Insurance will divide claimants into three categories:

• Long-tenured workers who have paid into the EI system for the past seven of 10 years and who, over the last five years, have collected EI or fishing benefits for 35 weeks or less.

• Frequent claimants who have had three or more claims for regular or fishing benefits and collected benefits for a total of more than 60 weeks in the past five years.

• Occasional claimants would be all other claimants.

The changes will hit each group separately. Long-tenured workers will be given more time to find a job in their usual occupation and at a similar wage (starting at 90 per cent of previous hourly wage.) After 18 weeks on EI benefits, long-tenured workers would be required to expand their search to jobs similar to the one they normally perform and to accept wages starting at 80 per cent of their previous hourly wage.

Frequent claimants would be required to expand their job search to jobs similar to the one they normally perform at the onset of their EI claim (one to six weeks) and accept wages starting at 80 per cent of their previous hourly wage. After receiving benefits for seven weeks, they would be required to accept any work they are qualified to perform (with training, if required) and to accept wages starting at 70 per cent of their previous hourly wage.

Occasional claimants could limit their job search to their usual occupation and wage (at least 90 per cent of previous hourly wage) for the first six weeks of their claim. After that, they would be required to expand their search to jobs similar to the work they normally perform with wages at 80 per cent of previous earnings. (Source: Toronto Star)