PSAC and government reach tentative agreement

Good morning!

That rain was no joke yesterday. I drove in from the south of the city back home and it was really coming down. Hope everyone has been able to stay safe and dry. Environment Canada issued a rainfall warning in effect until this morning, warning of up to 50 mm of rain. It’s expected to stop at about noon.

If you’ve got a few moments, we’re running a reader survey right now. We want to hear a bit about you, but also what you think about the Lookout. What you like, what you think we could do better, and what sort of stories you’d like to see in the newsletter. Fill out the survey here.

Let’s get to the newsletter.

— Robert Hiltz, managing editor

Consider forwarding this to your friends so they can discover the Lookout. New to the Lookout? Sign-up for free.

Weather Report

Monday: 13 🌡️ 5 | 🌧

Tuesday: 13 🌡️ 6 | 🌧

Wednesday: 12 🌡️ 3 | 🌧

WEEKLY LOOKOUT

🪩 Night mayor: On Tuesday, the city’s finance committee will discuss the Nightlife Economy Action Plan, which could include appointing a “night mayor” to oversee the plan to boost the overnight economy in the city.

PUBLIC SERVICE STRIKE

It’s over

What happened: The Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) and the federal government reached a tentative deal late last night, according to the union. Workers are expected back to work at 9 am today, or their next scheduled shift.

The deal: The deal includes a compounded wage increase of 12.6 percent over four years, from 2021 to 2024. The deal also includes language on remote work, that would mean managers would have to deal with remote work requests individually, not by group, the union said. There is also language that protects workers from layoffs if they can do the job of an outside contractor already working for the government.

• The full text of the deal has not yet been released, and still has to be ratified by union members. PSAC said it recommended its members accept the agreement.

Tax workers: The 35,000 CRA workers are still on strike. Their contract is being negotiated separately, and the two sides have not come to a deal. Picketing is set to continue outside CRA offices.

The Treasury Board, the government department in charge of the negotiations did not comment, the Ottawa Citizen reported. The Citizen first reported the story early Monday morning.

PSAC had planned large rally today for May Day with workers from around the region if a deal was not reached, CTV reported. Picketers would have marched from Gatineau across the river to Parliament Hill, and about 20 buses of striking workers will come in from Montreal for the rally, CTV said.

Last offer? The government had said Friday its latest offer would be final. “Specific details are being kept to the negotiating table, however, this offer builds on the third-party Public Interest Commission recommendation with an enhanced wage offer,” the government said on Friday. But the two sides stayed at the table through the weekend.

Strike affects: Immigration applications, citizenship oaths, passport and visa applications have all been affected by the strike, CTV reported. Newcomers are having their status and possible trips abroad put in jeopardy.

SPONSORED BY THE SNOWSUIT FUND

May 1-7 share Tim’s Smile Cookies with your team, clients, family, and friends — and share your warmth with disadvantaged Ottawa kids. Delivery is free and 100% of the purchase price is donated to The Snowsuit Fund.

ORDER NOW for FREE delivery.

Say thanks or pay it forward with Smile Cookies. They’re perfect treats for:

• Staff, clients and guests: Sales calls, lunchrooms, job sites, staff lounges, boardrooms, remote workers.

• Your tenants: tell them “We love having you here!”

• Gifts for disadvantaged communities — distributed in the community by Ottawa Police Officers.

• Your branch operations — It’s a great way to foster goodwill.

• Hungry construction site teams — they’ll jump on these much-loved snacks!

• Golf tournament swag bags — you’ll hit a hole-in-one!

• Give them to community kitchens and charities — an unexpected sweet treat!

• Bring them to corporate and social events — guests savour your sweetness.

• Serve them at kids’ birthday parties — there will be smiling all around the room!

OTTAWA BY THE NUMBERS

📈 $15.25: The minimum wage in Quebec is rising to this level from $14.25. Workers who earn tips will have their wage rise to $12.20 from $11.40. [CityNews]

🚒 5: The number of fires this weekend around the city that were put out by the fire service. No one was injured. [CTV]

💻 100,000: This many patients at the Queensway Carleton Hospital may have had their medical information taken in a data breach. [CTV]

SENATORS

Ryan Reynolds group leads bidding for Sens

What happened: The group headed by Ryan Reynolds looking to buy the Senators is putting together a $1-billion US bid for the team and the Canadian Tire Centre, the Ottawa Sun reported. The Remington Group, which is headed by Reynolds and real estate investor Christopher Bratty, are looking to seal the deal for the team with the large bid.

• When the team's sale was first announced last year, the team was valued at about $655 million by Sportico, a sports business publication.

Local involvement: Remington is based in Markham, and Reynolds, despite his roots, is based in Vancouver. They are looking to gain the support of Farm Boy CEO Jeff York and bring him on as an investor. The Sun reported York has raised about $100 million from local bidders. The local investors want to get the community back involved with the team.

Bidding on the second round is expected to end on May 15. Seven groups made bids in the initial round, but it is not clear how many will make a second.

Global attention: The size of the bid has caught the eye of the international press, the Ottawa Citizen reported. In part, that’s because of the recent success of Reynolds’ purchase of Wrexham Football Club in Wales. The team was promoted to the EFL last week. Since Reynolds and the actor Rob McElhenney bought the team they’ve moved up a league for the first time in 15 years.

NEW LOCAL JOBS

Check out the new open positions in Ottawa.

1. Training consultant at Canadian Blood Services

2. Director of administration at Hospice Care Ottawa

3. Auditor at the City of Ottawa

4. Cloud architect at HubSpoke Inc.

5. Bilingual program analyst at Sport Canada

THE AGENDA

🌊 The heavy rain yesterday that is continuing into today is increasing the flood risk across the region. As much as 40 mm of rain was forecast, and the Ottawa River could rise from 25 cm to 45 cm from Friday’s levels between Arnprior and Hawkesbury. [CTV]

🚔 The likely new chair of the Police Services Board, interim psychiatrist-in-chief at the Royal Ottawa, wants to bring a new lens to policing in the city. [CTV]

⛑️ A sister and brother are credited with saving the life of a paraglider in Gatineau who was trapped on a cliff. [CBC]

🚧 Since the opening of Wellington Street to traffic, talks with the federal government have sped ahead about it being taken over from the city. [CTV]

🚨 Some residents of Akwesasne want an independent investigation into the police response to the deaths of eight people crossing the St. Lawrence River to the U.S. [CBC]

🚇 The downtown section of the LRT that was closed over the weekend will close again at the end of the week as crews continue to inspect water damage. [CTV]

🏥 Carleton Place hopes a new health centre will attract more doctors and healthcare workers to the region. [CBC]

📼 Kingston’s Classic Video, the last rental store in town, will close its doors in a month. Movies will be sold over that time, and a GoFundMe was started to help cover the costs of pandemic loans. [CTV]

🚑 A pedestrian was in critical condition after being hit by a driver in Sandy Hill on Saturday. [CTV]

🛣️ Quebec will rename Autoroute 50, which connects Montreal to Gatineau, in honour of Canadiens great Guy Lafleur. [CBC]

🇺🇸 Hillary Clinton will be in town Friday to speak at the Liberal National Convention being held in Ottawa. [CTV]

EVENTS

Your weekly guide

Music

🎼 Cranium Conference & Showcase, May 4-6: A networking event with numerous panels for music industry professionals for artists, producers, and more. Plus showcases of up-and-coming talent. NAC, 1 Elgin St. Most events free.

Kids/Family

🎨 Family Paint Party, Thursday 7 pm: Paint your own Star Wars-themed scene for a special night of guided painting. Ticket comes with all the supplies you’ll need. At Moose McGuires, 3320 McCarthy Rd. Tickets $42.

General

🏁 Mario Kart Battle Royale, Thursday 1 pm: A series of four-player Mario Kart matches to find the champion. You can bring your own Nintendo Switch controller. At CFS Leitrim, 3545 Leitrim Rd. Free admission.

🔪 Knife Sharpening Workshop, Thursday 6 pm: A two-hour class to teach you how to sharpen your kitchen knives on whetstones properly. Bring your own knives, everything else will be provided for you. Tickets are limited. At the Ottawa Tool Library, 877a Boyd Ave. Tickets start at $45.

🚶‍♀️ Flora's Walk for Perinatal Mental Health, Wednesday 8:30 am: A walk to raise money in honour of Flora Babakhani, who lost her life to untreated postpartum psychosis. The opening ceremony featuring Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Carolyn Bennett requires registration, anyone can show up for the walk. Valour Building, 151 Sparks St. Register for the opening ceremony.

COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

• The senior Canadian men, the rink of Ottawa’s Howard Rajala, and women both won gold at the world curling championships. [The Canadian Press]

• For the first time since 2008, Renfrew has a bookstore again. [CTV]

• Some very good dogs got service training from the Ottawa Paramedics. [Reddit]

• The city is keeping ball diamonds and sports fields closed because of the wet weather. [CityNews]

• Want to have your announcement featured? Contact our partnership team for more info.

TOP PHOTO

Reader Mark Ferguson sent in this lovely picture of some local wildlife.

Do you have a photo you’d like to share with the Lookout community? Send it in!

OTTAWA GAMES

The answer to last week’s Ottawa Wordle was BOOKS, in celebration of Indie Bookstore Day.

For this week’s Quiz, we want to know how many potential bidders are there for the Ottawa Senators? The first five people to write in with the correct answer will get their names mentioned in the next issue.

LATEST COVID STATS

Subscribe to Insider to read the rest.