Sin categoría
Jobs crisis looms as boomers retire: Canada statistical agency
AFP
A long-warned of labor crunch caused by aging baby boomers is looming, with a record number of Canadians set to retire, according to data from a 2021 census released Wednesday.
“Never before has the number of people nearing retirement been so high,” Statistics Canada said in a statement, with more than one in five workers (21.8 percent) close to the mandatory or proposed retirement age of 65.
The statement cited the boomer cohort’s exit from the labor force as “one of the factors behind the labor shortages facing some industries across the country.”
Baby boomers — born between 1946 and 1965 — began to retire in 2011, but the rate is now accelerating to an “all-time high,” Statistics Canada said.
In late 2021, Statistics Canada said in a separate report that there were nearly one million unfilled positions across Canada, more than double the previous year.
Some of the hardest jobs to fill included restaurant staff, construction laborers, nurses and social workers.
According to the census, seven million Canadians — out of a total population of 37 million — are already 65 years or older, and the number of people aged 85 and up is forecast to triple to 2.7 million in the coming decades.
The demographic shift toward an older population is partly due to low fertility, as currently only 1.4 children are born per woman in the country, and gradual increases in life expectancy, Statistics Canada said.
Older Canadians, the agency said, are “staying healthier, active, and involved for longer.”
Despite this trend, Canada still has one of the youngest populations among G7 countries, after the United States and Britain, the report noted.
Sin categoría
The pope overcomes the hard test of his longest trip
Pope Francis concluded what was supposed to be a tough test in his pontificate: the longest international trip, 12 days in which he has traveled four countries – Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore – and in which despite his 87 years and his mobility problems he overcame without problems in good shape and without showing signs of weakness.
A pope to whom the trip seems to have not made a dent
The trip in which he has traveled 32,000 kilometers, added to those he made by car and mobile among the faithful, the four schedule changes and seven flights, do not seem to have made a dent in the pontiff who said goodbye to Singapore on Friday with a visit to a home for the elderly and a meeting with the young people in which he showed good humor again.
It is true that with respect to other trips, the pace of the events has been slowed down and he has been allowed to rest from one country to another with some free hours on arrival.
But the Argentine pontiff, who due to his knee pain has to move in a wheelchair, has not given up anything, including the strenuous tours in papamóvil of more than 40 minutes among the faithful in the massive masses that he has celebrated and also fighting with the heat and humidity of these countries.
For more than 40 minutes he was touring the huge esplanade ed Taci Tolu in Dili with intense humidity and heat despite the fact that the sunset was waiting to greet the faithful at the end of the mass in which about 600,000 people gathered, practically almost half of the population of East Timor.
Francisco “regenerates” with the affection of people
“The pope regenerates the affection of the people. All these people were not expected in their path as has been seen in countries like East Timor and that gives it strength,” explains one of the people from the Vatican delegation.
And he tells the pope’s great satisfaction for having been able to go to Vánimo, a remote town in Papua New Guinea, after having traveled another two hours by plane, to visit the Argentine missionaries who work there among the poorest of one of the poorest countries in the world.
Francisco has been seen shaking thousands of hands from the long lines that formed after his actions to be able to greet him without losing patience, stop the car on numerous occasions to bless the babies that his parents had taken to the sides of the road to see him just spend a moment and always approach the sick for a caress.
And distribute candies among the children, one by one, who showed off with songs, dances and playing their instruments during their acts, although always in their wheelchairs.
Francisco, with Asia in his heart
Francis, a great lover of Asia, following in the footsteps of the Jesuits to whom he belongs, has also wanted to demonstrate that this Continent is hope for the Catholic Church, which loses faithful in secularized Europe while in Latin America the evangelist churches make their way.
East Timor is considered the most Catholic country in the world – not counting the Vatican, with 95% of the population and so he showed it by taking to the streets the two and a half days that the visit lasted.
Even in Singapore, a multi-religious country, where around 43% of its more than five million inhabitants are Buddhists, about 20% are Christians, 14% Muslims, the Catholic Church currently has 176,000 faithful but it is the only one that grows every year, they say.
Sin categoría
Opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia calls for fair treatment amidst political persecution claims
Edmundo González Urrutia, a rival of Nicolás Maduro in his disputed re-election, called on Wednesday for the Attorney General to avoid a “political persecution” given that the judiciary is accused of serving the Chavismo regime.
The 75-year-old opposition figure has been in hiding for the past month. He claims to have won the election in which Maduro was declared for a third consecutive term, an election that has led to a severe crisis with Colombia and Brazil leading efforts to find a peaceful solution.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Colombian President Gustavo Petro are expected to meet with Maduro “probably” on Wednesday, shortly after expressing their “deep concern” over the arrest warrant against González.
The prosecution is investigating González for alleged “disobedience of laws,” “conspiracy,” “usurpation of functions,” and “sabotage,” focusing on a website managed by the opposition led by María Corina Machado, which published over 80% of the voting records, claiming it serves as proof of a landslide victory for their candidate.
It is unclear whether charges have been formally brought against him. His lawyer, José Vicente Haro, has not been able to access the case file but went to the prosecutor’s office in an attempt to halt the process against his client. Haro submitted a legal document explaining González’s absence from three summonses issued by the office, which led to the arrest request.
“I was told that the correspondence (…) could not be received because they did not have the proper authorization,” Haro explained to reporters after the proceedings.
“This is the kind of situation that prevented Mr. Edmundo González Urrutia from attending the summons he was issued,” Haro continued. “There is a situation of defenselessness, an inability to guarantee his right to defense, to due process.” “What would have happened if Mr. Edmundo González Urrutia had shown up?”
Opposition figures and legal experts agree that the Venezuelan judiciary operates in service of the ruling Chavismo.
Sin categoría
China warns against U.S. trade policies, citing high tariffs and obstruction in WTO disputes
Discriminatory subsidies from the United States, continued obstruction of the appointment of judges to the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body, and the imposition of high tariffs on imported goods have raised global concerns about a new round of trade wars, a spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Monday.
Spokesperson Lin Jian made these remarks at a regular press conference in response to questions about U.S. media criticism regarding China’s investment in the manufacturing industry.
Lin pointed out that China’s manufacturing industry enjoys a global reputation based on continuous investment in research and development and its comparative advantages, rather than on subsidies or protectionist measures.
“We have ensured the stability of global production and supply chains with our comprehensive manufacturing industry, and we have also promoted technological progress and industrial modernization worldwide,” Lin said.
He also noted that China has maintained the leading global market share in goods exports for 15 consecutive years and the second place in imports for the same period, playing a significant role in promoting stable global economic development.
Whenever the United States finds itself in a difficult situation, some individuals and U.S. media use other countries as scapegoats to shift blame, Lin said.
He added that the main factors causing global concern about a new round of trade wars are U.S. measures, including discriminatory subsidies from the Inflation Reduction Act, continued obstruction of the appointment of judges to the WTO Appellate Body, and frequent imposition of high tariffs on goods from other countries.
The spokesperson further noted that data clearly show that last year, among WTO members, only the United States reported 454 technical barriers to trade, more than the total reported by the next five members combined.
“Protectionism cannot bring about the illusion of a ‘win-win’ outcome; instead, it will only result in lost opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation,” said the spokesperson, adding that the Chinese economy has become deeply integrated into global development and will further expand high-level openness and cultivate new driving forces for global economic development.
On the path of open cooperation, China will always be an opportunity for the world, Lin asserted.
-
International2 days ago
Ukraine strikes with its drones one of the biggest blows of the war to the Russian arsenal
-
International2 days ago
Ukraine allocates 10.8 billion euros more to its Army until the end of the year
-
International3 days ago
Democrats pressure Donald Trump with a vote in the Senate on in vitro fertilization
-
International4 days ago
Four injured in russian school hammer attack by 13-year-old student
-
International3 days ago
Petro considers that the ELN attack in Arauca “closes a peace process with blood”
-
International19 hours ago
Rapper Diddy appeals the judge’s decision to keep him in custody until the trial
-
International3 days ago
The US promises “not to spare resources” investigations into the assassination attempt against Trump
-
International2 days ago
The death toll in the Gaza war exceeds 41,270, adding about twenty victims in the last few hours
-
International2 days ago
President of Mexico concludes his government with 12,319 members of organized crime arrested
-
Central America4 days ago
El Salvador bonds surge following president Bukele’s fiscal announcement
-
Central America4 days ago
Murdered Environmentalist Juan López Laid to Rest in Honduras Amid Mourning and Outrage
-
International19 hours ago
The Government of Colombia clarifies that the dialogue with the ELN guerrillas “is suspended” after the attack
-
International19 hours ago
Biden replies to Trump that the United States is strong because it is a nation made up of immigrants
-
International19 hours ago
The Venezuelan Prosecutor’s Office processes the request for an arrest warrant against Javier Milei
-
International3 days ago
Blinken promises González Urrutia and Machado that he will defend “democracy” in Venezuela
-
International3 days ago
The Government of Ecuador decrees a curfew in six provinces during a national blackout
-
International3 days ago
The Venezuelan Parliament presents a draft agreement on the rupture of relations with Spain
-
International4 days ago
El Salvador’s Independence celebrated with flag displays in New York and Qatar
-
International3 days ago
Harris expresses confidence in the Secret Service and criticizes Trump’s anti-migrant rhetoric
-
International3 days ago
Record registration of Latino voters after Harris’ arrival in the presidential race
-
International2 days ago
Manipulated ‘you’ searches’ and a fake message: what is known about the explosions in Lebanon
-
International2 days ago
Hezbulá announces a “specific” reprisal to the “Israeli massacre” against its militiamen in Lebanon