The bonuses given to medical imagery technicians in 2024 are set to expire in March, which has the head of regional health authority CISSSO, Dr. Marc Bilodeau, worried.

According to Le Droit, Bilodeau said it would be a “mistake” if these bonuses weren’t renewed, as it would inhibit CISSSO’s ability to retain staff. However, the decision about renewing the bonuses is “out of his hands” as the discussions are taking place between the provincial authorities and the technicians’ union, l’Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux (APTS).

The bonuses, of roughly $20,000, were given to Outaouais imaging technicians in the summer of 2024 to entice them to keep working in Quebec rather than move to Ontario. The bonuses caused a stir due to the fact that they were initially only given to technicians in the city, and not rural hospitals like Pontiac (though that was changed following outcry). They were given to achieve near parity with the salaries offered across the river in Ontario, one of the reasons the CISSSO cited for the difficulty in retaining staff for this and other specialties.

Quebec court approves class

action against Ticketmaster

The Quebec Superior court has approved a class action lawsuit against the company Ticketmaster, which accuses the company of “abusive” fees on ticket sales.

In a ruling earlier this month, Justice Eleni Yiannakis agreed that the case brought by Montreal law firm Paquette Gadler merited a full trial, with potential compensation for the plaintiffs if they succeed. According to CBC News, the suit argues that the site’s fees fluctuate based on ticket prices rather than the actual cost of the service, in violation of Quebec’s Consumer Protection Act and the Quebec Civil Code.

The action was initially filed in Aug. 2024, and includes Quebecers who have bought tickets to North American events through the website since July 2021.

East Gatineau company fined $1.3M

for dumping chemicals in river

An east Gatineau company was fined $1.35 million by federal authorities for dumping harmful chemicals in the Lièvre River in 2019. The Lièvre flows into the Ottawa River near Buckingham, and thousands of fish were found dead in both bodies of water during that summer.

Superior General Partner Inc., the owner/operators of the Erco Mondial chemical manufacturing plant, pleaded guilty to 12 counts of dumping sodium chlorite in the river over the span of several weeks in the summer of 2019. Environment Canada announced the fines on Jan. 8. According to CBC News the chemical is commonly used as a disinfectant or bleaching agent.

The company waited five days before notifying authorities of the spills, which they said was caused by an equipment failure. The plant’s technical director at the time, Jean-François Roux, was personally fined $15,000 for failing to inform authorities.

CBC notes that Ottawa Riverkeeper’s CEO would like the federal and provincial authorities to shed more light on the incident.

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