Image shows two medical personnel in white lab coats, with face masks and face shields, standing on either side of a hospital bed. There's lots of medical equipment in the background.

Soaring COVID infections among health-care workers prompt hospitals to cancel surgeries, redeploy nurses

COVID-19 infections of health-care workers — among the highest levels since the start of the pandemic — are resulting in surgery cancellations or delays and reduced emergency department hours and capacity in several hospitals across the province. Staff absences are also forcing hospitals to redeploy nurses to cover for sick colleagues and to ask some…

Image shows Ontario Premier Doug Ford standing in front of a podium, smiling into the mic and gesturing with his left hand outwards. The podium reads "Back to work, back to life" and features the Runnymede Healthcare Centre logo.

Doug Ford’s government is quietly privatizing health care

Words matter. Recently, Health Minister Christine Elliott announced the expansion of private hospitals in Ontario. Missed this? So did many of us, possibly because of the words she selected: “we can let independent health facilities operate private hospitals.” That offhand reference to “independent health facilities” sounds a whole lot better than this: “We will award…

Interior of office hallway, with OMERS logo on wood panelling along left-hand side of picture, along hallway wall.

OMERS posts 2021 gain, reversing losses with a 15.7 per cent return

While OMERS was able to report what Mr. Hutcheson called “exceptional returns,” it has not been able to quiet unions whose members are part of the OMERS plan. The unions have been criticizing OMERS’s costs and long-term financial performance, particularly after 2020. The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Ontario, which called for an independent…

Image shows power lines and towers with cars driving below.

FAO: Ontario electricity bills not going down by 12 per cent, despite PC promise

In Wednesday’s report, the FAO noted Ontario will spend about $118.1-billion between 2020 and 2040. About one-third ($39.8-billion) of the money is estimated to help out “non-residential ratepayers.” That term applies to businesses and factories – any place that is not a house that buys electricity. “While two-thirds of the spending will benefit Ontario households,…

Image shows power lines against a blue sky

Ontario’s energy subsidies to reach $118 billion over 20 years

CUPE Ontario, the political wing of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, also criticized the subsidies given to large businesses. “Companies like Loblaws, which have actually profited during this pandemic, are getting government money to pay their hydro bills, while public services are stretched thin due to years of underfunding,” CUPE Ontario president Fred Hahn…