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Humanitarian Aid on Trial in Greece

  File photo: Migrants from Afghanistan is towed by rescuers of the Refugee Rescue NGO, on the island of Lesbos, Greece. Twenty-four humanitarian aid workers have gone on trial in Greece, facing felony charges of migrant smuggling, money laundering, and membership in a criminal organization . The case, unfolding on the island of Lesbos, targets former volunteers of the now-defunct NGO Emergency Response Centre International (ERCI) , which operated search-and-rescue missions between 2016 and 2018. Among the defendants are Sarah Mardini , a Syrian refugee and professional swimmer whose story inspired the Netflix film The Swimmers , and Seán Binder , a German-Irish rescue diver. Both were arrested in 2018 for their involvement in helping migrants and refugees arriving by sea from Turkey. If convicted, the defendants face up to 20 years in prison . Greek prosecutors allege that the group facilitated illegal entry into the country by monitoring coastguard communications and relaying ...

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Population growth outpaces job creation in Canada

 


Canada’s labour market is facing a challenge as the number of people looking for work is growing faster than the number of jobs available. According to Statistics Canada, employment increased by 25,000 in November, but the unemployment rate rose to 5.8 per cent from 5.7 per cent in October. This is because the population aged 15 and over grew by 870,000, or 2.7 per cent, since the beginning of the year, while the net job gain was only 430,000.

The Bank of Canada has been raising interest rates to curb inflation, but this has also slowed down the economy and the demand for labour. Some economists expect the central bank to start cutting rates in the second quarter of next year to stimulate growth and stabilize the labour market.

The job gains in November were concentrated in the private sector, full-time work, manufacturing and construction. However, some industries, such as wholesale and retail trade, finance, insurance and real estate, saw job losses. Younger workers (15 to 24) also faced higher unemployment than other age groups.

Average hourly wages rose 4.8 per cent year over year in November, matching the increase in October. The Bank of Canada is monitoring wage growth for signs of inflationary pressure. Total hours worked across the economy fell 0.7 per cent in November, indicating a weak performance of gross domestic product that month.


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