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Ontario businesses call on Premier Ford to scrap incoming scheduling rules

Small-business owners in Ontario are calling on Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government to scrap a pending employment law change that will limit the ability to cancel or call in workers on short notice. The scheduling changes are part of the Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act, or Bill 148, which was passed by the previous Ontario Liberal government, and are set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2019. Story

Ontario proposes capping number of stores for cannabis growers, open market for recreational sales

The Ontario government is setting a framework for recreational cannabis retailing that emphasizes widespread competition and deals a blow to licensed marijuana producers by limiting their share of the market. Finance Minister Vic Fedeli and Attorney-General Caroline Mulroney said on Wednesday during a joint news conference that there will be an unlimited number of stores that can sell recreational cannabis in Ontario, but that they will drastically limit licensed growers to just one store each at an Ontario production site. The proposed legislation, which will be introduced on Thursday, also leaves the door open for the province to restrict how many licences a single entity could hold, but no number has been set. Story

Black-market cannabis growers hitting roadblocks on the path to legalization

As cannabis legalization fast approaches, the federal micro-licensing system set up to allow small growers to lawfully produce marijuana is proving difficult to navigate, several black-market growers say. In some cases, discouraged growers are deciding not to go through the process of applying for a micro-cultivation licence, which will be opened up to applicants on Oct. 17. Story

Media-shy chef Leemo Han quietly expands his Toronto restaurant empire

In a time when chefs have become rock stars, Leemo Han prefers to stay hidden in the background. Mr. Han’s Toronto restaurants – Hanmoto, Pinky’s Ca Phe, Juanmoto at Cold Tea, the recently opened Seoul Shakers and the soon-to-come Shakers Club – match his personality. They have no phone numbers and no websites. They’re located off the main drags — hidden away around a corner in a nondescript garage-like building (Hanmoto) or in what looks like a house (Pinky’s) with no signage, for example. They have Instagram accounts, but really only to announce when they’re closed. And Mr. Han himself almost never speaks with the media. Story

Sobeys parent looks to beef up with $800-million acquisition of Ontario grocery chain Farm Boy

The parent company of Sobeys Inc. has agreed to acquire Ontario grocery chain Farm Boy in an $800-million deal that aims to beef up its business in fast-growing cities and suburbs. It marks the first sizable acquisition by Empire Co. Ltd., based in Stellarton, N.S., since its $5.8-billion takeover of Safeway Canada in 2013. Sobeys struggled to merge its business with that of Safeway, resulting in red ink and large writedowns that erased half the value of the Safeway transaction. Story

Canada Post strike averted for now as union says it will remain at bargaining table

The union representing thousands of Canada Post workers says it will stay at the bargaining table, averting a potential strike by mid-week. Story

MaRS Discovery District to open second location on Toronto’s waterfront

Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District and the University of Toronto have struck a deal with real estate developer Menkes Development Ltd. for space at a new building on the waterfront, as MaRS makes a first step beyond its original base near the university. MaRS and U of T are leasing 24,000 square feet – with an option to lease an additional 24,000 square feet – at Menkes’s Waterfront Innovation Centre, a building under construction across from Sugar Beach, on the inner harbour. It is set to open in 2021 and Menkes wants the building to be home to creative and technology businesses. Story

The startup CEO dragging Canadian health care into the future

Technology and Canadian health care don’t always mix well. That’s what Huda Idrees found when she launched her startup. Ms. Idrees is the founder and chief executive officer of Toronto-based Dot Health, a platform on which Canadians can access their own health records. “We create a way for you to look at all of your own hospital information or your own clinic information on your phone or on a computer,” she says. Story

I’ll Go First podcast: Huda Idrees on skydiving, Saudi Arabia and digital healthcare

She’s been building companies since she was 12-years-old in Saudi Arabia. Now, Huda Idrees is tackling Canada’s arcane health-care system with her latest company, Dot Health. The founder and CEO talks about immigrating to Canada, jumping out of planes and her journey as a woman in the tech industry. Story

WHAT WE’RE READING ELSEWHERE

Cannabis sellers seek clarity on strict rules on advertising

Canadians shouldn’t expect to see billboards, TV and radio commercials, or newspaper advertisements for cannabis when legalization begins Oct. 17. In fact, the federal government’s strict rules on cannabis promotion effectively mean Canadians shouldn’t see any traditional advertising for marijuana companies in public, where minors could be exposed to it. But beyond that sweeping prohibition, even cannabis industry professionals and the lawyers who advise them remain unsure exactly what kinds of promotional campaigns will be permitted by federal cannabis regulator Health Canada. The Leaf

B.C.’s understaffed businesses aren’t looking far from home for workers, survey shows

B.C. businesses hurting for workers aren’t responding by recruiting people from outside the province, even though other parts of the country are struggling with job losses or high unemployment rates. British Columbia’s unemployment rate was 5.3 per cent in August, the 19th straight month the number was lower than 6 per cent. StarMetro

East York woman opening parent-friendly office space with childcare

Through her own experience, Amanda Munday realized that people who work from home - particularly parents with children - needed a space of their own. That’s why the east-end Toronto resident is about to launch her new venture, The Workaround, a start-up that offers parent-friendly working space. As part of the renovation work, she had to personally paint the office’s walls and vault. The site “used to be a bank.” Toronto.com

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