absentee Worker absenteeism -- not trucker vaccine mandates -- impacting store shelves: Metro Vaccine mandates for truckers have raised transportation costs -- but haven't impacted the shipment of goods to stores, the head of one of Canada's largest grocery chains says. Instead, Metro president and CEO Eric La Fleche said Tuesday the biggest impact on Canada's food industry supply chain has been worker absenteeism due to COVID-19 protocols. The labour shortage caused by quarantined workers has impacted the entire supply chain -- including retail stores, distribution centres and suppliers as well as transportation -- driving sporadic outages of certain products, he said. gardens Province gives green light for community gardens to operate in Toronto Toronto's parks and conservation reserves may still be closed, but the locally-run plots of land that help feed the city will be allowed to re-open, says the province. A new amendment to Ontario's state of emergency order issued Saturday will allow people to operate community gardens and allotment gardens. guelph Open letter to the U of G raises concerns on return to in-person learning An open letter to the University of Guelph to delay the return of in-person learning has received support from numerous groups ahead of the slated return to in-person learning on Jan. 31. The letter addresses the issues with the return to in-person learning, citing the belief the return to campus will accelerate community transmission and compromise the health and safety of the U of G and the Guelph community at large. “The decision to return to campus on January 31st will have catastrophic consequences. As well as the immediate increased risk of illness, hospitalization, and death, COVID-19 has long-term effects which are not yet well understood, including the cluster of symptoms known as Long COVID. The University’s decision to return to campus will disproportionately affect marginalized members of the University community including people with disabilities and chronic health conditions, people with families, international students, Black, Indigenous, People of Colour (BIPOC), and low-income people. As we have learned throughout the pandemic, low-income and BIPOC students are most likely to live in multi-generational homes with family members who are vulnerable to exposure. The stress and anxiety of potential exposure may cause significant mental health issues, and the inevitable absences of ill students and faculty will greatly impact course delivery. The quality of student learning will be significantly reduced under these stressors, and students should not be required to choose between their health and their education,” the letter reads. The letter, which began circulating on social media on Monday morning, received over 100 signatures by mid-afternoon and had been shared across Twitter by U of G faculty and staff. The letter states three key points the authors would like to see, which consist of calling for all students to be provided with the option to fulfill all course and program requirements remotely for the duration of the winter 2022, providing all teaching staff with the option to work remotely and offer increased support to those struggling with student engagement in an online format through the Office of Scholarship and Learning for the duration of the winter 2022 semester and provide and encourage the use of adequate PPE (N95 or equivalent masks) and sanitation procedures for all in-person activity on campus.

teachers Some Ontario teachers refuse work over COVID-19 concerns at schools Mary Fraser-Hamilton spent part of last week sitting in her car instead of teaching in her classroom. The Brampton, Ont., drama teacher was one of 11 education workers in Ontario who initiated work refusals over COVID-19 safety concerns as students and staff members returned to in-person learning with less transparency about the virus in schools. Teachers say they’re concerned about lack of information on cases now that the province has cut back on testing and contact tracing, as well as ventilation standards and student-mask quality. They consider individual labour action one of the last options they have to advocate for stronger safety standards in schools – but remain worried that student safety issues are falling through the cracks. “We aren’t organizing or anything. We’re all just fed up,” Ms. Fraser-Hamilton said in an interview. People have a right to refuse work they believe is unsafe under Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act. Once reported, the Ministry of Labour dispatches an inspector to look into whether a hazard exists and, if so, what can be done to correct it. Investigations vary depending on the workplace and type of issue being raised. tor-hosp