The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

th ei fp .c a Th e IF P -H al to n H ill s | T hu rs da y, N ov em be r 1, 20 18 | 12 was never an issue about minimum wage, we believe in a fair wage for all workers in Ontario," she said. "For us Bill 148 is still impacting us because the "Scheduling pro- vision" has not been re- pealed." She explained that the provision requires employ- ers pay workers at least three hours pay for a re- scheduled or canceled shift, which makes it difficult for them to offer 24 hour emer- gency service. Workers ro- tate shifts being on call, and are paid an honorarium and overtime for the services. "With this ruling we will have to force our staff to do scheduled work on week- ends or cease to offer 24 hour emergency service," she said. Poverty advocates in the region are fuming over the changes. The Halton Poverty Round table, an organization that championed advocacy for the living wage pilot pro- ject that was recently scrapped, send letters to the Province in opposition of the recent announcements. "It's criminal," said Steven Rodri- gues, the Acton representa- tive for the Halton Poverty Roundtable. He says that Ford's changes are a hand out to big business, and ultimately hurt the poorest in the prov- ince. "Food bank lines are get- ting longer," he said, noting that the living wage in Hal- ton is around $21 an hour. He says that when people are paid a living wage, they are less of a burden on the health-care system and oth- er social services, which he argues would save much more in taxpayer dollars. Sarah Sabihuddin of the Halton Poverty Roundtable says that Ford's new act "slams the door on the people who earn the least in our community." She says that there is no statistical evidence that wage increases cause wide- spread job loss and economic uncertainty. "In fact, this July, six months after the last mini- mum wage increase and when labour reforms took ef- fect, Ontario's jobless rate dropped to 5.4 per cent, the lowest it has been since the year 2000." She says that in Halton Region, over 44,500 people live below the poverty line. "These changes were made to put money in work- ers' pockets and less in em- ployers' pockets, and for good reason," she said. By reducing paid sick days and making labour pol- icy changes that she says will make it harder for workers to unionize, the government is hurting minimum wage workers that include wom- en, people of colour, young families and newcomers. NEWS Premier Doug Ford and Minsiter of Energy, Northern Development and Mines Greg Rickford announce that the government is cancelling carbon tax at Troy's Diner. Here he meets long time Troy's Diner breakfast Margaret Kennedy. Nikki Wesley/Metroland STORY BEHIND THE STORY Premier Doug Ford unveiled his PC government's new Making Ontario Open for Business Act, which will keep minimum wage at $14, among other changes to provincial labour policy. Continued from page 5 POVERTY ADVOCATES IN THE REGION ARE FUMING OVER FORD GOVERNMENT'S CHANGES What does an estate Freeze accomplish? 104 - 83 Mill St., Georgetown 905.877.0121 estates & trustslegal matters M. Jasmine Sweatman B.A., J.D., LL.M., TEP., C.S., EPC, CPCA Certified Specialist in Estates & Trusts Wills, Powers of Attorney, Trusts, Estate Litigation and Administration, Corporate, Real Estate Q: An estate freeze refers to an estate planning method used to minimize taxes. When an estate freeze occurs, the value (and tax liability) of the estate assets are "frozen" at a specific point in time, and all future growth is typically taxed in the hands of other family members, usually your spouse and next of kin. One way of performing an estate freeze is to gift assets to your adult children prior to your death. You should first calculate how much money you need to survive during retirement, and then ascertain if you have assets in excess of that amount. Excess assets are then gifted and the future income and growth is then taxed in your children's hands. Thinking of implementing an estate plan….call us to discuss! * www.sweatmanlaw.com *Sweatman Law Professional Corporation A : Buy 1, Get 1 Hearing Testing, Hearing Aids • Accessories ARE YOUR EARS 60 YEARS? It's TIME to get them TESTED! Ph: 289-891-8833 120 Mill Street, Georgetown Hearing Testing, Hearing Aids Accessories Where will YOU bewhen the lights go out? If you don't have a emergency generator, you'll be in theDARK! DEKER 905-702-0515 www.dekerelectric.ca SALES SERVICE INSTALLATIONS eLeCTRIC ltd. ESA #7003060