Latest news with #Chartrand
Global News
16 hours ago
- Climate
- Global News
Cooler weather, light rain helping some provinces in fight against wildfires
The Saskatchewan government is boosting support it's giving to wildfire evacuees, while officials say light rain and cooler temperatures this weekend could help keep some of the province's larger fires in check. Bryan Chartrand with the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency told a news conference in Prince Albert, Sask., on Saturday that it's been mostly 'status quo' with the large fires in the past 24 hours. In addition to more favourable weather, Chartrand says there haven't been any new lightning-caused fires, and he says fires have also reached natural barriers such as lakes which have stopped their growth. The province announced Saturday a hike in financial assistance for those registered with the SPSA, raising the amount provided to the head of household to $40 per day, up from $20, and additional household members will get $20 per day, up from $10. Story continues below advertisement Marlo Pritchard with the SPSA told the news conference that the government raised the amounts because it's been a number of years since the supports have been increased. The province says in its latest statement there are 24 active wildfires in Saskatchewan and 33 communities have evacuated. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'While we are hoping to soon have some individuals and families repatriated back to their communities, we know that some will have to continue to be evacuated as we deal with ensuring safe cleanup of these devastating wildfires,' Saskatchewan Public Safety Minister Tim McLeod said in a statement. 'Frontline crews and multiple agencies are working as quickly as possible to do so.' Pritchard said the new support for evacuees, which he said remains between 10,000 and 15,000 people, is in addition to the $15 million the government is already supplying to the Canadian Red Cross for evacuee assistance. He told Saturday's news conference that people should not bring donations to hotels where evacuees are staying, noting the government will announce details, possibly early next week, on how people in Saskatchewan can help people displaced by fires. 0:28 Province of Manitoba providing financial support for wildfire evacuees Environment Canada said Saturday a low pressure system passing through the Prairies, currently in northern Saskatchewan and expected to move into Manitoba and northwestern Ontario by Monday, is expected to bring precipitation for areas hit by out-of-control forest fires. Story continues below advertisement The Manitoba government said despite rain in the forecast and temperatures cooling to seasonal levels, Manitoba continues to be under very high to extreme wildfire danger. Northern Alberta was not expected to see much relief from the low-pressure system, according to Environment Canada, as there was little rain in the forecast.
Winnipeg Free Press
3 days ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Cabinet minister harassed employee during stint at RRC Polytech: 2019 probe
Manitoba's only federal cabinet minister was found to have repeatedly harassed an employee she managed in a role she held at Red River College Polytechnic five years ago. A whistleblower has leaked the findings of a 2019 workplace investigation into newly elected Liberal MP Rebecca Chartrand's conduct when she was employed by the post-secondary institute in Winnipeg. Chartrand was elected to represent the riding of Churchill-Keewatinook Aski in the April 28 election. JUSTIN TANG / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs Rebecca Chartrand Prime Minister Mark Carney appointed the rookie politician to his inner circle just over three weeks ago. Chartrand, minister of northern and arctic affairs, was tasked with overseeing the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. Documents obtained by the Free Press show RRC Polytech hired a local law firm to probe a complaint made about Chartrand, the school's then-executive director of Indigenous strategy, on Sept. 16, 2019. The complainant was informed three months later that the grievance had been substantiated by third-party investigators from Rachlis Neville LLP. 'Specifically, they found that Ms. Chartrand's conduct amounted to personal harassment,' Curtis Craven, director of human resources for RRC Polytech, wrote in a Dec. 19, 2019 letter to the employee. Craven indicated the investigators found 'severe' issues related to Chartrand's approach to engaging with, assigning work to and managing the performance of the complainant between June and September of that year. '(Chartrand's) conduct could reasonably cause an individual to be humiliated or intimidated and was repeated, and had a lasting, harmful effect on you,' he wrote. The employer had no plans to take 'any further corrective actions,' given Chartrand's departure — the circumstances of which were not made clear in the letter — from the campus, the HR director added. Chartrand's LinkedIn page indicates she began her position at the school in August 2017 and left in January 2020. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. She moved on to various other jobs, including for the Seven Oaks School Division and Indspire, over the last five years. The experienced Anishinaabe leader from Pine Creek First Nation in Treaty 4 remains listed as the founding president and chief executive officer of Indigenous Strategy Alliance. Winnipeg South Centre MP Ben Carr worked alongside Chartrand at her consulting firm before he first secured his seat for the Liberals in a 2023 byelection. Neither Chartrand nor the Liberal Party of Canada immediately responded to requests for comment Thursday. Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie. Funding for the Free Press education reporter comes from the Government of Canada through the Local Journalism Initiative. Every piece of reporting Maggie produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Manitoba cabinet minister harassed college employee in past job, external investigation concluded
Recently appointed federal cabinet minister Rebecca Chartrand harassed a former employee at Winnipeg's Red River College Polytechnic over a period of several months in 2019, according to an external investigation commissioned by the college and conducted by a Winnipeg law firm. Chartrand, elected in April as the Liberal member of Parliament for the northern Manitoba riding of Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, was appointed by Prime Minister Mark Carney in May as the minister of northern and Arctic affairs and the minister responsible for the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency. According to documentation provided to CBC News in April — but first reported this week by Canadaland — Chartrand was the subject of a harassment investigation during the final months of her two-year stint as executive director of Indigenous strategy for RRC Polytech, a Winnipeg post-secondary institution with annual enrolment of approximately 21,000 students. In a complaint filed with RRC Polytech under its discrimination and harassment policy in September 2019, a former college employee claimed she was "targeted, undermined, bullied and harassed" by Chartrand over a period of eight months. The harassment took the form of threatening the employee's position, undermining her work and her management of other staff, interfering with her career, negatively impacting her reputation, increasing her workload and imposing unreasonable deadlines, according to the complaint. In a letter dated Dec. 19, 2019, RRC Polytech human resources director Curtis Craven informed the former employee that investigators with the Winnipeg law firm Rachlis Neville LLP substantiated the harassment complaint. The law firm found Chartrand's conduct "amounted to personal harassment in that over a period of time, the manner in which she engaged with you and the approach used to assign work and manage your performance constituted conduct which was severe," Craven said in the letter. "Such conduct could reasonably cause an individual to be humiliated or intimidated and was repeated, and had a lasting, harmful effect on you," he wrote. However, "given that Ms. Chartrand is no longer with the college, the college will not be taking any further corrective actions arising from this investigation," Craven's letter said. Chartrand was employed by RRC Polytech from June 2017 until December 2019, when she resigned, college spokesperson Emily Doer said in a statement. Chartrand was not available to speak about her time at the college, spokesperson Kyle Allen said this week. "Minister Chartrand is committed to fostering a healthy work environment for all persons in the workplace, characterized by collegiality and mutual respect," Allen said in a statement. RRC Polytech also declined to address Chartrand's time at the post-secondary institution. "In keeping with privacy legislation and college policy, we do not discuss personnel matters regarding current or former employees," Doer said in a statement. 'Months of psychological warfare': former employee The former college employee who filed the harassment complaint left RRC Polytech in 2020. In an interview, she said she had no intention of disclosing the investigation until Chartrand was nominated by the Liberal Party as its candidate for Churchill-Keewatinook Aski. The employee, whom CBC News is not identifying out of concerns about the potential impact on her employment, said she first attempted to contact Liberal Party officials about her experience but was unsuccessful. "I really did just want to forget about this and move on," said the former employee, who describes herself as a Liberal supporter. "I was voting for Mark Carney. I did not want what happened to me to happen to anybody in Ottawa. I didn't want Mark Carney to be hurt by any further actions, whether something of this nature ever happened again." Liberal Party spokesperson Jenna Ghassabeh said the party does not comment on the specifics of the candidate vetting process. "Canadians expect all political parties to do their due diligence on all prospective candidates, and the Liberal Party of Canada has a rigorous process to appropriately conduct such reviews," Ghassabeh said in a statement. The former RRC Polytech employee said she ultimately contacted several media outlets about her experience after Chartrand made social media comments relating to her own time at the college. The former employee said she came to know Chartrand in 2015, when the now-MP made an earlier run for office in Churchill-Keewatinook Aski. She came in second in that race to the NDP's Niki Ashton, who Chartrand then defeated in April's federal election. The former employee said she left another job to work under Chartrand at the college and had a good working relationship until 2019, when a nine-page survey was prepared to determine the needs of incoming students in the Indigenous studies program. The former employee said the survey was amended to include questions about drug and alcohol use, against the recommendations of an external consultant. The college did not disclose that the responses to these questions might determine whether respondents would receive financial assistance, the former employee said. The survey was withdrawn following complaints from prospective students and prompted an apology from Chartrand, according to a Global News story in 2019. The former employee said after she advised against including the questions in the survey, what had been a positive working relationship with Chartrand deteriorated into harassment. "It was like months of psychological warfare," the former employee said. "I've just tried to move on from all of my own personal grief and trauma around this because it has impacted me personally and professionally, and I wanted to just forget about it and move on. But it hasn't gone away." In a Facebook post on election night, a former resident of Churchill-Keewatinook Aski named Kyle Ross drew attention to the RRC Polytech survey issued during Chartrand's time at the college. In a since-deleted post of her own, Chartrand accused Ross of engaging in "lateral violence" and sought information about his whereabouts. "If anyone has any information on where this individual works or resides, please reach out publicly," she wrote. Chartrand spokesperson Allen said the minister regrets the post. "Regarding the social media post referenced, Minister Chartrand deeply regrets the language and tone she expressed. She unreservedly offers her apologies for the language of the post," Allen said in a statement. Ross said in an interview he would have preferred a direct apology for trying to discern where he lives and works. "I feel like a direct message would be nice," he said.
Winnipeg Free Press
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg at significant disadvantage without a voice at Carney's cabinet table
Opinion It's an all-too-familiar feeling in Manitoba these days: a sense of being overlooked by Ottawa. Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled his much-anticipated cabinet Tuesday — a leaner, more 'efficient' group, as he put it — meant to project discipline and regional balance. But if this is what balance looks like, someone forgot to include Manitoba. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, arrives for the cabinet swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Tuesday. (Spencer Colby / Canadian Press) Despite sending six Liberal MPs to the House of Commons — including five from Winnipeg — only one made it into cabinet: Rebecca Chartrand, who won the Churchill-Keewatinook Aski riding in the April 28 federal election. And while her appointment is a bright spot, the broader picture is a frustrating one for Manitobans. Chartrand has been named minister of northern and Arctic affairs. She brings valuable experience as an Indigenous advocate and educator and has already shown promise as someone who will champion issues facing northern communities and Indigenous peoples. Her inclusion in cabinet is well-deserved. It's not her appointment that's the problem — it's that she's the only one from Manitoba. Winnipeg, home to about two-thirds of the province's population and a hub of political, economic and social activity, has no direct voice at the cabinet table. Not one minister from the city. Not even a token post. For many, the most glaring omission is Terry Duguid. The longtime MP from Winnipeg South has been a reliable, capable voice for Manitoba in Ottawa. He's been loyal to the Liberal party, stuck through thick and thin, and has played key roles in portfolios ranging from environment to economic development. Duguid's absence isn't just a political slight — it's a strategic mistake. Manitoba faces deep, structural challenges. The housing crisis here isn't theoretical — it's in full swing. Our child-care sector is stretched thin. Mental-health and addictions services are chronically underfunded and in need of federal support. Winnipeg, in particular, is where those challenges are most visible — and where the solutions require serious federal partnership. And let's not forget the long-standing debates around equalization payments, where Manitoba has unique stakes in the national conversation. Without a cabinet minister from the city, who's going to push these issues to the forefront? Who's going to advocate around the cabinet table when decisions are being made about infrastructure, funding formulas, transit or national strategies for housing and health care? Chartrand, a rookie politician, can't do it all alone, nor should she be expected to. Carney's team may argue that representation doesn't have to be strictly geographic — that voices from across Canada will be heard through consultation, not just cabinet titles. But that's cold comfort for Manitoba, which in recent years has often been under-represented in federal cabinet. In 2021, former prime minister Justin Trudeau unveiled a cabinet that included only one Manitoba representative, former Saint Boniface — Saint Vital MP Dan Vandal. Historically, Manitoba would almost always have at least one high-profile regional minister (such as former MPs Lloyd Axworthy or Vic Toews) and one other cabinet minister to represent Manitoba's interests. Not this time. Cabinet appointments are not just symbolic acts. Not much happens in government without the focus and political will of individual cabinet ministers. Political decisions may ultimately be made in the Office of the Prime Minister. However, unless an issue or a regional priority is championed by a member of cabinet, it has little chance of seeing the light of day. To be fair, not every capable MP can be in cabinet. It's a political puzzle with limited pieces. Putting a cabinet together is one of the most challenging tasks for any first minister. They have to consider a multitude of factors, including regional representation, gender, racial and cultural background, competency and even party loyalty. Given those often competing criteria, there will always be some competent and worthy MPs left out of cabinet. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. Still, when a province such as Manitoba sends strong candidates to Ottawa and delivers consistent electoral support, it's reasonable to expect something in return. At least two seats at the table (Manitoba has 14 federal seats) — one from Winnipeg, one from outside the capital city. That's not a big ask, it's just fair representation. Manitoba's under-representation around the cabinet table not only stings politically, it could have practical consequences. Federal funding, including equalization and health-care transfers, don't just flow automatically. Advocacy around where and how tax dollars are spent matters. Lobbying matters. Cabinet ministers, including where they're from, matter. And when decisions are being made on where to invest in infrastructure, where to pilot new social programs, or how to distribute federal health dollars, the voices in the room carry weight. History has shown that time and time again. Manitoba is losing out on that. Tom BrodbeckColumnist Tom Brodbeck is a columnist with the Free Press and has over 30 years experience in print media. He joined the Free Press in 2019. Born and raised in Montreal, Tom graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and commerce. Read more about Tom. Tom provides commentary and analysis on political and related issues at the municipal, provincial and federal level. His columns are built on research and coverage of local events. The Free Press's editing team reviews Tom's columns before they are posted online or published in print – part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
Winnipeg Free Press
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Chartrand replaces Duguid as lone Manitoban in cabinet
Rebecca Chartrand has been named minister of northern and Arctic affairs and is Manitoba's lone member of the federal Liberal government's new cabinet. She was among the members of Parliament sworn in at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Tuesday. Chartrand was elected to public office for the first time on April 29, winning the Churchill-Keewatinook Aski riding. It was the only rural Manitoba riding to change hands in the election. Chartrand replaces Winnipeg South MP Terry Duguid as the only representative in Prime Minister Mark Carney's new cabinet. Chartrand was acclaimed as the Liberal candidate for Churchill-Keewatinook Aski, with no one else seeking the nomination. MIKE DEAL / FREE PRESS FILES Rebecca Chartrand was named to cabinet at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Tuesday. She defeated longtime NDP MP Niki Ashton, who had represented the riding since 2008. Chartrand ran against Ashton in 2015 and lost. The new MP represents the largest riding in Manitoba, which spans more than 433,000 square kilometres. The newly appointed Carney named Duguid as the minister of environment and climate change in March. Duguid had been appointed as the minister of sport and the minister responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada in late December under then-PM Justin Trudeau. fpcity@
