Drugmaker readies possible coronavirus vaccine for testing

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: My mother is coming to visit and our little kids want her to sleep in their bedroom, where there’s a double bed and a single. My husband thinks this idea is ridiculous and says grandma needs her sleep, but I disagree.

I remember sleeping with my grandma — who’s now with the angels — and she told us grandkids (two girls) some wonderful bedtime stories she made up herself. She even put our names into them, making us the stars of the stories.

The best part was getting into our pyjamas with our grandmother, who showed us the magic cord from the little thing that ran from her near-deaf ear down to the secret battery pocket hidden in the bra of her slip. It made her hear us better in the daytime. We thought, “Wow!”

Not surprisingly my own mother has inherited her mom’s fantastic storytelling talent and who knows what else she has to teach the kids when she’s alone with them? I want them to be close.

Canada has a labour shortage and a labour surplus at the same time. Canada’s labour force shortages are no longer a temporary challenge. Across the country, “help wanted” signs are everywhere.

A report this spring by RBC Economics said the situation will be exacerbated by retirements and changes in immigration policy.

Employers across the country say they can’t find enough workers. There is a solution, however, that continues to be overlooked. Roughly three-quarters of working-age Canadians with an intellectual disability or autism remain unemployed or underemployed despite being ready, willing and able to work. These two realities should not exist side by side.

For decades, many employers have overlooked this talented and motivated group of workers, often due to misconceptions about workplace accommodations or assumptions about productivity. The result is a labour market that is leaving approximately 500,000 capable individuals on the sidelines while businesses simultaneously report difficulty finding reliable employees.