Bold Ideas


of the Supreme Court of Canada. Why? Because the Americans do their


Two judges, a circus sideshow and a healing lodge I


would wager lunch at the establishment of your choice on the proposition that more Canadians can name a US Supreme Court justice than a member


justice ugly. Really ugly. And by ugly, I mean their process is crassly political and partisan. For a nation that prides itself as the bastion of liberty and equal justice for all, it reduces the process of appointing judges to a side show sham. It is painful to watch and more reflective of an unsophisticated dictatorship than the self-professed great- est nation in history. After the latest fiasco, Brett Kavanagh was sworn in as the latest appointee to the US Supreme Court. In comparison to the American airing of


its cringe-worthy ugliness, Canada quietly appointed a new Supreme Court justice in 2017. Without any controversy, Alberta’s Sheilah Martin became Canada’s latest Supreme Court justice in December 2017. Tere was no fanfare, no high drama on television, no mocking monologues on late night TV, no protests and no grandstanding by political foes. Te American process is a full contact blood sport.


Just as war is an extension of diplomacy, appointing American supreme court justices is an extension of the political process. Politicians come in two stripes; Re- publican and Democrat. As do judges and sheriffs and school trustees and county officials and state officials and city officials and so on. Politics permeates every- thing. Americans are Democrats or Republicans more than they are human. On many issues, US Supreme Court justices are expected to, and often do follow “party lines”. Judges also see themselves as extensions of the political process. In Canada, we don’t mix politics and the courts as


much. In fact, a political creature like Kavanagh would never have come close to being nominated for any court in Canada. We like our judges to be boring, free of controversy and untainted by politics. In recent times, Stephen Harper’s nomination of Marc Nadon was the closest thing to a controversy Canada has experienced. And that had to do with eligibility on constitutional grounds than the personal attributes of Justice Nadon. And when Harper picked a fight with Chief Justice


Beverly McLachlin over the eligibility of Nadon, there was a collective gasp in many circles. Canadians were offended by the impropriety of the Prime Minister’s conduct as was the Geneva based International Com- mission of Jurists which demanded that Harper apolo- gise for hurting Justice McLachlin’s “moral authority, integrity and confidence in the judiciary”. Harper never apologized but arguably, this incident was, at least in


Building Trades Sudhir Sandhu


Te challenges and opportunities of living in a 1.5 degree C world


part, a factor in his 2016 electoral defeat. Tere is a certain dignity in how Canada makes it ju-


dicial appointments. Tere is seldom great controversy. In the US, lower court judges are elected or appointed based on their political bent and how they will interpret the law. At higher levels, political affiliation is a key factor in judicial appointments. In Canada, we make the laws and allow


judges the latitude to apply it as they deem appropriate. Judges do not heed political constraints and there are no party lines to dictate their decisions. Our system is not perfect. Te right side


of the political spectrum bemoans activist judges and is more inclined to limit judi- cial discretion as evidenced by Stephen Harper’s mandatory minimum sentencing. And the left is often accused of giving too much deference to the courts and not mak- ing them submit to the will of an elected Parliament. Although dated, a 2002 Envi-


ronics poll found that two-thirds of Canadians want elected judges. Canadians should be careful of what they wish for. We


already don’t hold our elected officials in high regards. Over the past decade, polls suggest that a majority of Canadians distrust their elected officials. Why then do we want to turn our judiciary into politicians? Does adding judges to the mix of people we already distrust make any logical sense? Periodically, there are cases that create outrage and


backlash against the legal system and by extension against the judiciary. Moving Terry-Lynne McClintic to an Indigenous healing lodge is a current example. It does not help that the federal Conservatives have demanded that the Minister of Justice intervene. An- drew Scheer knows the Minister cannot and should not. Doing so would appropriately prompt calls for her resignation and he is simply playing to populist senti- ment for political gain. After the spectacle that was the Kavanagh appoint-


ment, Canadians should be thankful that we maintain a reasonable separation of politics and our courts. On occasion, if the law does not satisfy our sense of jus- tice and fairness, our elected officials should consider changing the law, not the judiciary that applies and interprets it. Tat is how mature democracies function and that is how they manage questions raised by the McClinic case. Populism is another name for mob rule. Mobs can


administer flawed “justice” quickly and satisfy our lust for revenge. But mobs and sophisticated democracies don’t go together. Neither do circus sideshows and ju- dicial appointments. I am grateful Canada has neither.


Data analytics in HR M


etric tracking is valuable in all areas of business, helping to identify opportunities, weaknesses and create overall strategy that will impact an


organization’s bottom line. Key performance indica- tors in Human Resources are essential to evaluating the effectiveness of activities and determining where improvements can be made. Effective recruitment practices can lead to


significant cost savings for an organization. It is important for a company to track the cost of vacancies as well as monitor time-to- fill ratios. Tis can help an internal recruiter to prioritize their searches in terms of cost. Some positions can be covered by team members while there is a vacancy, but even then, there may be overtime costs associated with this coverage. Tracking turnover is also essential, and not just overall turnover but turnover rates for each position and for each manager’s department. For positions that experience a high turnover, it is a great idea to continuously keep a pipeline of suitable applicants to help reduce fill times when the vacancies open. Turnover is also an important metric to consider when


Human Resources Graeme Burke


The recent events of extreme weather have brought increased awareness of the potential dangers of climate change.


R


ecently, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a special report on how a 1.5 degrees C increase in global temperature will affect


the planet. Te report provided some really sobering news on the state of the world. According to the report, if govern- ments and businesses and stakeholders do not get their act together by 2030 to reduce carbon emissions to 1.5 degrees C or less in reducing anthropogenic climate change, the damage will be irreversible. Te IPCC suggests without now reducing greenhouse gas


emissions on its current path global temperatures will reach 3 degrees C above pre-industrial levels by 2100. Tis is above the 2 degrees C which was agreed to by 195 countries at the Paris Accord in 2015. A reduction of carbon emissions by 45 per cent by 2030 will be required to mitigate the worst effects of climate change, according to the IPCC. If we do not adhere to the


Clean Tech Adam Johnston


IPCC's dire warnings, we could see the worst side effects includ- ing more extreme weather events, rising sea levels, declining eco- nomic growth, biodiversity loss, and crop failures. While the severity of these is


noted at the scientific level, im- pacts of a warming world were


missing from this report, according to Vox. Te costs of a warming world also paint a piece of the climate change picture which adds more validity and credibility than just the science itself as economics project hard costs. In 2006, Te Stern Report, a ground breaking economic


report on the costs of climate change from Nicholas Stern providing damaging analysis. Sterns report said the global economy could shrink between 5-10 per cent in gross do- mestic product (GDP) while 10 per cent in poorer nations. Stern admitted ten years later to The Guardian that he underestimated the concerns and should have been more frank with the language of the report. Stern’s comments echo what has amplified since his re-


identify problems that lead to creating a plan of attack. Tracking retention rates per manager can also be an indi- cator of management concerns. In many cases turnover is directly related to the job, but sometimes a change in management or some direct management coaching can help to reduce turnover in a department. Metric tracking can also help to improve


the onboarding process. One newer metric that companies are using is called Training Efficiency, and it is determined by divid- ing the training expenses per employee by the training effectiveness (time taken to be brought up to full speed). This is a great metric that shows which methods of training are most effective. Tere is always a variable of how coachable that new hire is, but if this level of coachability remains constant, you can dig down into specific activities that were proved to be effective. Many offices have found onboarding to be much more efficient in an open office con- cept environment, as this helps to improve


communication with the team members. Analytical HR professionals are changing the game.


evaluating employee retention. Tese numbers can iden- tify serious concerns in an organization. High levels of turnover can be an indicator that there are issues with employee engagement, company culture, or even some- times an indicator that there is an issue with manage- ment. Turnover indicates the issue, and activities such as employee engagement surveys and exit interviews can


November 2018


Tey can clearly prove their department’s value to an organization with a factual look at activities. Looking at HR activities through data analytics helps to reaffirm strategy and show the benefits of HR, especially in larger organizations. Graeme Burke is Recruitment Consultant at Te Head-


hunters. You can contact him at gburke@theheadhunters. ca


www.manitobapost.com


port, economic costs of extreme weather have increased. In Canada three of the costliest extreme weather events (Fort McMurray wildfires at $9 billion US in 2016; Alberta Floods of 2013 reaching $6 billion and the Toronto 2013 rainstorm of $1 billion million in insurance claims) occurred in a span of just three years (between 2013-2016). More burdensome costs of extreme weather events are something we will need to address if we are going to keep warming to 1.5 degrees C. We will also need to realize we will need to face some hard


challenges along the way, which will not be easy and in- volves cooperation from all ends. Recently, Brian Pallister's Progressive Conservative government to not implement carbon pricing. Tis issue will not go away anytime soon. Real discussions on reforming our tax system need to take place to implement a proper and fair carbon tax is applied that reduces the use of fossil fuels while ensuring that it will benefits low to middle-income taxpayers. Examples include rebates or tax cuts for low to middle-income people and small businesses to offset any costs. Without tax reform, there will be no climate action. However, if we do this right, the opportunities are im-


mense, for Manitoba in different emerging sectors, electric vehicles (EV’s), as falling prices for batteries have helped boost its potential. Bloomberg notes by 2030 EV sales will reach 30 million. Manitoba with its abundant hydroelec- tricity can provide a world-class system, by utilizing the demand for hydropower. Keeping temperatures to 1.5 degrees C will not be easy


and will require significant heavy lifting. However, the rewards of accelerating emerging industries like EV’s are enormous. Adam Johnston is a freelance writer and owns a part-time


social media and cleantech writing business. You can go to his website at www.salayconsulting.com or email him at salayconsulting@gmail.com.


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