The City of Halifax could save millions of dollars if it were to expand its permanent staff rather than pay for expensive consultants. That is the conclusion of a business case developed by the Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) division of the city acquired by the Nova Scotia Advocate through a Freedom of Information request.
Good letter by Danny Cavanagh, president of the Nova Scotia Federation of Labour, on the Chamber of Commerce complaining about civil servants’ wages. “What is the Chamber’s position on secret government handouts to hand picked universities? What is the Chamber’s position on the fact the majority of Nova Scotia children live in poverty? The Chamber of Commerce supported tax cuts for business, when big businesses have been sitting on hordes of cash. Tax cuts were a promise as the solution to create jobs. These jobs never came.”
I went to yesterday’s Prisoners’ Justice Day event in the Halifax North End public library. Two full hours of information on prisons in Nova Scotia, not easy to summarize, and I am not even trying, to be honest. I just offer some fragments here, there is so much to learn.
A message from behind bars, in recognition of Prisoners’ Justice Day, the day many prisoners refuse work and food to honor the memory of inmates who died while in custody and in protest to inhumane practices such as solitary confinement.
“Keep in mind Canada is a leading country on the world stage but incarcerates some of the most people, and its justice system is a revolving door for those coming from marginalized communities and impoverished environments which leaves some of us forgotten, swept under the rug, and overlooked in life located in the so-called correctional facilities in this land of the free.”
If you worked on Monday, Natal Day, and thought you’d be entitled to holiday pay, think again. Frequent contributor Judy Haiven explains the ins and outs of “retail closing days” or statutory holidays and what that means for you if you work in a store or restaurant.
No longer strictly a rural issue, a recent approval by the Department of Environment suggests the spraying of chemicals to control vegetation is coming to the railway corridor in downtown Dartmouth and along the Bedford Highway.
Why do you have to pay a fee month after month for an unlisted number, Kendall Worth asks. For many people privacy is not a luxury, it is a necessity and a safety issue. Yet unlisted numbers are expensive. Adding to the problems is that Community Services seldom picks up the bill, meaning that for people on welfare it has to come out of their tiny food budget.
This month’ Nova Scotia Barristers Society’s newsletter contains a powerful segment of essays and poems written by people in prison, and guest edited by El Jones, with help from guest editor “R”. You definitely should check it out.
Long-time anti poverty activist Brenda Thompson read about the surplus in last year’s Community Services’ income assistance budget, and she doesn’t like it.
I couldn’t attend last week’s Nova Scotia ACORN community meeting, but the results of their tenants survey presents some interesting (and rather shocking) findings. From cold-only showers to garbage in the common areas, from too cold in winter to too hot in summer, here are the reasons why we need landlord licensing.