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Non-profit boards: try not to ‘Zoom’ past equitable governance

August 31st, 2020 by Karly Wilson

This article was first published on rabble.ca.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had the unique ability to highlight social areas where inequality and inequity have been lurking for ages. Gender discrimination in the workplace is no exception.

There have been countless articles addressing the extra burden that the pandemic has placed on women, often centring the many complexities of domestic labour division and child care. Even without these larger issues, smaller forms of discrimination, or microaggressions, persist during the pandemic as well, even as our work lives have moved almost entirely online.

It has never been easier to work remotely, and professionals across the country have been lauding the advancements in technology that have made working possible during the pandemic. Zoom meetings, “fax by email,” Facetime calls, constant texting — they all allow employers to replicate the workplace experience for employees from the comfort of their home offices (or living room couches, or kitchens, or bedrooms). For many women, these technologies have not only replicated the issues they already experienced at work, but have exacerbated them.

Continue reading “Non-profit boards: try not to ‘Zoom’ past equitable governance”

Brian Iler profiled in Corporate Knights magazine

February 27th, 2020 by Iler Campbell

Corporate Knights magazine, which bills itself as “the voice for clean capitalism,” has a profile of Brian in their current issue. Among other things, Brian talks of his love for sailing, his work on social finance and a proposal to convert the closing Oshawa GM plant to build electric vehicles. Did you know that the wind turbine at Toronto’s Exhibition Place got built by classifying it as an amusement device?

Check out the profile here.

Celia Chandler wins Canadian Online Publishing Award

February 26th, 2020 by Iler Campbell

Celia accepting the award.

Readers of our year in review may recall that Celia’s reflections on medically assisted death in Canada was nominated for a 2019 Canadian Online Publishing Award in the Media, Best Blog Column category. It gives us great pleasure to let you know that she won!

Did you miss the article the first time around? Check it out here.

Supreme Court’s Jarvis decision re-examines privacy in public places

March 5th, 2019 by Brynn Leger

This article was first published on rabble.ca

In R v Jarvis, an Ontario high school teacher was charged with voyeurism after secretly taking videos of his female students’ chests with a camera pen. Intuitively, Jarvis’ actions seem wrong. But the trial court and Court of Appeal acquitted him. The Supreme Court overturned those decisions and convicted Jarvis, updating the analysis of “reasonable expectation of privacy” in the process. Continue reading “Supreme Court’s Jarvis decision re-examines privacy in public places”

Will Ontario let landlords and condominiums ban smoking recreational marijuana?

July 31st, 2017 by Elliot Fonarev

This article was first published on rabble.ca

The federal government’s proposed Cannabis Act, if passed, will legalize and regulate the production, sale and possession of recreational marijuana across Canada by July 2018. However, each of the provinces have decisions to make about how cannabis will be used, sold and regulated in their province. Until July 31, 2017, Ontarians can share feedback through a survey asking how the government should approach legalizing marijuana in Ontario.

The survey asks for input in five areas: (1) the minimum age someone can use, keep and buy cannabis, (2) where cannabis can be used, (3) road safety, (4) regulating sales of cannabis, and (5) planning public education.

One important question is where cannabis can be used: where will individuals be allowed to smoke marijuana and who gets to decide that? As marijuana is legalized by the federal government, it will be up to the Province to regulate how it can be used in some spheres. For instance, the Province could restrict the ability of landlords and condominium boards to prohibit vaping and/or smoking within units. Provincial regulations could also determine whether condo boards will be able to restrict vaping and smoking marijuana recreationally in common spaces like rooftops and courtyards.

Continue reading “Will Ontario let landlords and condominiums ban smoking recreational marijuana?”

Henceforth legalese should not be used — i.e., it should cease, desist and be at an end

January 26th, 2017 by Celia Chandler

This post was first published on rabble.ca

Law is a tool. It’s a tool for everyone to use. And with increasing numbers of people representing themselves in court and using legal how-to books and online resources, everyone is using it. Lawyers and judges have a responsibility to talk and write clearly so that others can effectively use the tool.

Legalese is the term used for language used by lawyers and in legal documents that is difficult for ordinary people to understand. Here are four techniques that exclude others: Continue reading “Henceforth legalese should not be used — i.e., it should cease, desist and be at an end”