Montreal and Laval paramedics reject agreement in principal
Paramedics in the Montreal and Laval areas
voted 60 per cent in favour of rejecting an agreement in principle that their union had reached with the provincial government last month, Radio-Canada reported. The results from other regions are still pending.
The paramedic’s union, which is affiliated with the Fédération de la santé et des services sociaux (FSSS-CSN), represents 3,500 paramedics, including more than 1,000 from the Montreal ambulance service, and have been without a contract for over three years. The disagreement mainly concerns wages and overtime hours deemed excessive.
The union has been using several pressure tactics over the last year, including refusing overtime hours in several Quebec regions.
Gatineau mosque targetted with hateful graffitti, threats
The Centre islamique de l’Outaouais (CIO) in Gatineau issued a statement last week denouncing what it called a campaign of “hateful and Islamophobic acts of intimidation” that have been targeting its community for “several weeks”, Radio-Canada reported.
The CIO wrote that graffiti in English stating “Deport Islam” was written on a door, window and garbage can at its facility, which was confirmed by the Gatineau Police. A police spokesperson told Radio-Canada that several incidents of graffiti had taken place starting in early July. The perpetrators returned to redraw graffiti in the area surrounding the mosque after it had been removed by municipal services.
The CIO also states that members of its community have been the target of threats and harassment online and in-person.
Back in July, a 34-year-old Gatineau man was sentenced to six months in prison for making threats against the mosque and the region’s muslim community.
Quebec municipalities banning wildlife transfers because of rabies
Quebec is expanding a ban on transporting certain wildlife between regions due to the detection of several cases of rabies in racoons, CBC News reported.
The move adds 53 municipalities to the list, which totals 283 municipalities in the Montérégie, Estrie, and Centre-du-Québec regions. The ban applies to raccoons, red and grey foxes, skunks and coyotes.
“Moving an unwanted, injured, or seemingly orphaned animal can contribute to the spread of rabies in areas currently free of cases,” a statement from the Ministry of Environment notes.
The province urges the population to remove the food sources of unwanted animals or call a pest management specialist rather than moving them off your property.
The ministry is distributing more than 800,000 oral vaccines across a 5,500 square-kilometre area to combat the spread.
