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Written by John Mazerolle Senior Writer, Digital News
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Good morning.
CBCNews.ca experienced a technical disruption overnight that led to some stories not appearing on the website and app — and delayed this newsletter. We're working to resolve these issues.
With that out of the way, here is today's news, which includes "meteor shower Christmas," a stone-cold killer of a plant and a drop in the unemployment rate.
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FEATURED STORIES
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(Evan Mitsui/CBC)
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Canada's unemployment rate hits 2-year low
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Canada added 75,000 jobs in July, up 0.4 per cent, as the unemployment rate fell to 6.4 per cent, its lowest level in two years.
A closer look: Statistics Canada's labour force survey released today said most of those gains were split between full- and part-time work. The agency says employment rose for people aged 25 to 54, mostly for women in that age group. Ontario added the most jobs of any province in July, with 52,000, or an increase of 0.6 per cent, mostly in the professional, scientific and technical services sector.
The wider view: Statistics Canada said the country is up 181,000 jobs since April, and 196,000 from a year ago. Economists have previously said the labour market appeared to be stabilizing after the first quarter of the year brought a mild contraction and employers shed jobs. However, U.S. President Donald Trump's latest threats of 50 per cent tariffs on a wide range of Canadian imports are casting fresh uncertainty over employers.
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EV sales are ramping up. Who's going to fix them?
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Electric school buses have gained traction in some parts of the country, but a new report suggests a challenge to keeping them running in the future — and it's one that could affect other EVs, too.
What's happening: The report from the environmental think-tank Pollution Probe finds "key gaps" in training and certification of technicians to maintain and repair electric school buses. Marc Saleh, Pollution Probe's director of transportation, said EVs require skills related to high-voltage safety, battery diagnostics, power electronics and charging infrastructure management that still aren't being taught in standard automotive service programs.
What's being done?: Both independent auto shops and community colleges are trying to fill the gap. Andrew Ackers, who owns a NAPA AutoPro shop in Hamilton, has been training technicians who are already familiar with traditional, internal combustion engine vehicles through an EV training program called Next Drive started by NAPA, an automotive co-operative that distributes replacement auto parts. Ackers says it’s about a $20,000 investment per technician but is worth the price.
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Amid a scorching, smoky summer, more Canadians concerned about climate change, polls suggest
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The percentage of Canadians who see addressing climate change as a top priority spiked this summer after years of it taking a back seat to other issues, recent polling suggests.
What's happening: Recent polls from the Angus Reid Institute and Abacus Data show more Canadians choosing climate change as one of their top concerns. In the Angus Reid survey, where respondents were asked to choose up to three issues they care about most, 21 per cent chose the environment and climate change in July, a 50 per cent increase from March.
What it means: Abacus Data CEO David Coletto said the increase is a "notable move up" for the climate change issue. "This is competing with issues like [U.S. President Donald] Trump and cost of living and health care," Coletto said. "It's signalling that the salience of this issue, the attention people are paying to it, is rising." Still, Angus Reid president Shachi Kurl said it is yet to be seen whether this is a "more permanent uptick" when wildfires are less top of mind for Canadians.
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