Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Without clear directive from governments, businesses have to decide whether to make vaccines mandatory for employees and patrons, a decision they say leaves them vulnerable to attacks from anti-vaxxers.
For the first time since 2019, live music will be back at Ottawa's Escapade Festival in September. However, guests must be fully vaccinated to attend.
By making vaccines mandatory, Ali Shafaee, director of the Escapade Music Festival, told CTV National News organizers are trying to protect patrons.
"We're not trying to make this debate on whether someone should get vaccinated or not," Shafaee said. "We're just trying to plan a safe event for 2021 and we feel that this is the best way of doing it."
However, the mandating of doses has become a difficult conversation that more businesses are having to weigh in on as they try to reopen.
Staff at the People's Pint Brewing Company in Toronto voluntarily got vaccinated against COVID-19, posting a proud photo on social media to celebrate the occasion.
While the shots were a choice for staff, the photo was met with negative reviews and online threats from a small but vocal minority of anti-vaxxers.
Doug Appeldoorn, the brewery's owner, said the negative reaction was unexpected.
"That was the hardest thing to kind of combat,” Appeldoorn said.
He recommends other businesses do what they “feel is right” when it comes to making their vaccine status public.
“Don't worry too much about the negativity because even though it's vocal, it is a very small minority of people,” Appeldoorn said. “The vast majority of people support this and will support your business for doing it.”
The brewery was also listed on a website to help guide virus conscious shoppers to stores and restaurants where staff had been vaccinated. The site was met with swift backlash online from anti-vaxxers and was subsequently forced to shut down.
But the criticism also goes the other way.
Last week, an unvaccinated server in Drayton, Ont. said she was targeted and shortchanged on a tip because of her vaccine status.
"The fact that he’s basing my tip off of the vaccination, not on the service provided, is really upsetting to me," server Brooke Rew told CTV Kitchener.
To help navigate the divisive discussion, Ontario's science table recommended the use of vaccine certificates on Wednesday, similar to those already in use in Europe to easily prove one's vaccination status.
Dr. Peter Juni, scientific director of Ontario’s science advisory table, said at a press briefing that proof of vaccines is "inevitable" for the province to return to normal.
"Nobody wants to start to restrict again more. The only way to deal with this is to make a distinction between vaccinated and unvaccinated unfortunately," Juni said.
Should Canada experience a fourth wave of COVID-19 infections, Juni said vaccine certificates would help in keeping the society and the economy open while reducing the risk of contributing to further outbreaks.
"Rather than asking whether vaccines certificates actually should be considered, it's probably more appropriate to ask whether they can be avoided," he said.
A new poll from the Angus Reid Institute reports that nearly 60 per cent of Canadians surveyed believe proof of vaccination should be mandatory in public places including restaurants, shopping malls, theatres and offices.
Despite the controversy, Ottawa-based employment lawyer Paul Champ says rules around vaccinations are fair game.
"There's obviously a lot of competing rights and interests here, but an employer's obligation or their interest here is to maintain a safe and healthy workplace," Champ said.
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
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A Quebec man who pleaded guilty to threatening Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier François Legault has been sentenced to 20 months in jail.
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Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
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Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.
Out of more than 9,000 entries from over 2,000 breweries in 50 countries, a handful of B.C. brews landed on the podium at the World Beer Cup this week.
Raneem, 10, lives with a neurological condition and liver disease and needs Cholbam, a medication, for a longer and healthier life.