Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Canadian Black, Indigenous, and people of colour (BIPOC)-owned small businesses showed greater resiliency amid the pandemic and their owners report feeling more optimistic about the future than non-BIPOC small business owners, according to a recent Scotiabank report.
The second annual Path to Impact Report, which surveyed over 900 businesses across the country, found 69 per cent of BIPOC business owners feel extremely or very optimistic about their business’ future, compared to 55 per cent of non-BIPOC small business owners.
Thirty-one per cent of BIPOC business owners reported an improvement in their pre-pandemic performance, compared to 14 per cent of non-BIPOC businesses, thanks to BIPOC businesses offering a greater selection of online services and products and improving their digital capabilities to a greater degree than their peers.
"Canadian small business owners have found ways to adapt their business, investing heavily in digital and prioritizing flexibility to meet the expectations of customers,” Jason Charlebois, senior vice president of small business at Scotiabank, said in a press release.
"BIPOC small business owners have demonstrated their adaptability and fortitude by reaching new markets and incorporating new technologies to grow their businesses. While uncertainty remains, small business owners can benefit from seeking qualified advice, taking advantage of the various tools and supports, and looking broadly for new talent and customers as they pivot to succeed in the new normal.”
Still, 47 per cent of BIPOC small businesses say they are disproportionately faced with systemic barriers that put their businesses at a disadvantage.
Despite ongoing uncertainty about COVID-19 case rates heading into the winter, the Scotiabank report found that business optimism is on the rise as vaccination rates rise and economies begin to reopen.
More than half (54 per cent) of small business owners surveyed reported doing the same or better than they were pre-pandemic and 77 per cent say they are well equipped to survive a future wave.
Despite that optimism, 51 per cent of small businesses expect they will need additional financial support in the future, especially as many of the federal government's key pandemic supports are set to expire soon.
Programs like the Canada Emergency Rent Subsidy (CERS) and the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) are scheduled to terminate on Oct. 23, after being extended several times since their launch in 2020, despite acknowledgments from the government that the pandemic continues to pose a challenge to businesses.
“Only 40 per cent of small businesses are at normal levels of sales, 60 per cent are not there yet. I think a lot of people see businesses open and they just assume that we’re back to normal, but it’s definitely not the case,” Canadian Federation of Independent Business president Dan Kelly told CTVNews.ca last week.
“January to March is already just a terrible season for most businesses and so having at least a little bit of assurance that they’re going to have programs to rely upon will allow them to plan.”
With files from Sarah Turnbull
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly Knight, a Grade 4 student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.