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The Friday news briefing: An at-a-glance survey of some top stories

Jan 5, 2018 | 2:15 PM

Highlights from the news file for Friday, Jan. 5

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JOBLESS RATE FALLS TO 40-YEAR-LOW: The unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in more than 40 years as Canada closed out a calendar year that saw it produce jobs at a pace not seen since 2002. Statistics Canada reported Friday that the unemployment rate dropped to 5.7 per cent in December, down from 5.9 per cent the month before, to reach its lowest mark since comparable data became available in 1976. Over the past 12 months, the economy added 422,500 jobs with the gains driven by 394,200 new full-time positions, the agency’s labour force survey said.

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TIM HORTONS CALLS FRANCHISEES ‘RECKLESS’: Tim Hortons franchisees who planned to offset the Ontario government’s minimum wage hike by cutting paid breaks and forcing workers to cover some of the costs for dental and health benefits faced a roasting Friday. After days of public and government outrage stemming from policies introduced by Ron Joyce Jr. and Jeri Horton-Joyce, the coffee chain’s Canadian headquarters called such franchisees’ actions “reckless” and “completely unacceptable.” A statement from Tim Hortons on Friday said the cuts “do not reflect the values of our brand.”

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SOULPEPPER SCANDAL SEEN AS INDUSTRY WAKE-UP CALL: Theatre companies say the scandal surrounding Soulpepper founding artistic director Albert Schultz is serving as a wake-up call for the industry. Companies say efforts to address issues around sexual harassment in the workplace were underway months before four actresses filed suits accusing Schultz of several forms of sexual misconduct, prompting his resignation. Diana Bentley, Hannah Miller, Patricia Fagan and Kristin Booth alleged in their statements of claim that Schultz groped them, exposed himself, pressed against them or otherwise behaved inappropriately. The allegations have not been proven in court.

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ANOTHER ACTRESS ALLEGES ‘HARASSMENT’ AT SOULPEPPER: Another actress is claiming bullying and harassment when she worked for the Toronto Soulpepper Theatre Company, whose director resigned late Thursday. Playwright and author Ann-Marie MacDonald claims she experienced exploitation while working as an actress with the company in 2009. Her comments follow those of four other women who allege director Albert Schultz sexually harassed them, and that Soulpepper did nothing about it. Schultz denies the accusations.

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TRUDEAU PUSHED TO MARK JAN. 29 MOSQUE SHOOTING: One of Canada’s most prominent Muslim groups is asking Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to designate the anniversary of the 2017 Quebec City mosque shooting as an official day of remembrance. The National Council of Canadian Muslims wants Trudeau to endorse Jan. 29 as a national day of remembrance and action on Islamophobia. In a letter to the prime minister released Friday, executive director Ihsaan Gardee says such a designation would help enhance public education about hate, bigotry and Islamophobia.

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EAST COAST CLEANING UP AFTER STORM: Tens of thousands of people woke up in the dark Friday morning after a ferocious storm blasted through Atlantic Canada. But power is coming back as the day has gone on. By mid-afternoon, Nova Scotia Power was reporting just over 2,000 outages affecting almost 37,000 customers. Aside from widespread power outages, there’s general flooding of coastal roads, battering of sailboats and downing of trees. 

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NEW RULES TO PROHIBIT ASBESTOS PUBLISHED: The federal government has laid out a tough set of proposed new regulations to prohibit the use, sale, import and export of asbestos and products that contain it, as well as the manufacture of products containing the cancer-causing mineral. The rules fulfil a Liberal promise made more than a year ago and complement proposals the government issued last spring. Asbestos is a carcinogen that has been condemned by the World Health Organization and is banned in about 50 countries around the world.

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ANGUS URGES PM TO GET BEYAK OUT OF SENATE: Sen. Lynn Beyak — newly turfed from the Conservative caucus — is fundamentally unfit to represent the Canadian people, NDP MP Charlie Angus said Friday. He urged Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to use his influence to get her removed from the upper chamber once and for all. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer kicked Beyak out of caucus after reports surfaced about letters of support she has posted on her personal Senate website — some of which he described as containing “offensive” and “unacceptable” expressions of racism against Indigenous Peoples.

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VANCOUVER MAN FACES DRUG CHARGE IN JAPAN: A Vancouver-area resident is in custody in Japan, accused of smuggling nearly 10 kilograms of drugs into the country. A statement from Tokyo Customs says Daniel Whitmore was arrested at Narita Airport on Dec. 11 after arriving on a flight from Vancouver. The email statement says that 9,801 grams of methamphetamine was seized after being found in a guitar case and canisters of tea that allegedly belonged to Whitmore.

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DOCTOR SUSPENDED AFTER BABY DEATHS: A Labrador obstetrician has been found guilty of professional misconduct and ordered to apologize and serve a three-month suspension after two babies died in 2014. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Newfoundland and Labrador says Dr. Ikechukwu Madu failed to maintain professional standards. An adjudication panel found he failed to plan in July 2014 to induce birth at 38 to 39 weeks for a diabetic patient. She was admitted to hospital at 41 weeks, where an ultrasound revealed the baby had died in the womb. A month earlier, the college says a baby was stillborn after Madu failed to detect an abnormal fetal heart rate and speed up delivery.

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The Canadian Press