Canadian HR Reporter

Canadian HR RepoRteR december 1, 2014 18 iNsiGht BE AFRAID OR IT'S NOT ROBBERY toRonto — When is a bank robbery just a theft? apparently, a teller's actions can play a role in that determination, or so said a judge in a recent criminal trial who found the bank teller was too sym- pathetic, according to the National Post. Jorge Luis oliveiros ortega gave the teller a note saying, " is is a robbery, give me the money, my mother is sick." He then took $600 from the teller and left. in her testimony, the teller said she felt no fear at all, for herself nor any- one else, and she handed over the money "because he asked for it and also because she felt sorry for him, given that he looked so young and his mother was sick," according to the judge. But a bank robbery is only a robbery if the teller is scared — with violence or threats of vio- lence — and in this case the teller felt something closer to sympa- thy or pity, said the judge. "When someone walks into a bank and hands a teller a note demanding money, it is usually considered to be a robbery," the judge wrote. "But in the unique circumstances of this case, it was just a theft." e teller had a thick skin, said the judge. "While others might have reason- ably been frightened, she did not experience any fear at all… ere was no robbery." instead, ortega committed the less-serious crime of theft under $5,000, to which he pleaded guilty. NOT-SO SIX FEET UNDER GUand on G pRoV in C e , CHina — Meeting quotas can be tough, no matter what job you have. But two offi cials in China took their job requirements a bit too far recently — they were ar- rested after buying corpses from local grave-robbers and having them cremated as a way to fulfi ll state-mandated quotas for funeral practices. e duo allegedly paid a grave-robber $489 each for 10 ex- humed corpses, according to the Washington Post. Many locals in China secretly entomb their kin to avoid state laws regarding burial and many families prefer to bury their deceased loved ones intact, rather than having them cremated. But China has limited arable land and the government discourages communities from taking up more space for cemeteries — so body- snatching is a lucrative business, said the Post. TIME TO LIBERATE THE PASTA neW taipei City, taiWan — an italian restaurant in new tai- pei City came under fi re recently when it named one of its pasta dishes "Long Live the nazis." e name was meant to help custom- ers make the German connection to the pasta dish, in which Ger- man sausage is the primary ingre- dient, said Chao ya-hsin, manager of the Rockmill restaurant. ere was also a pizza that went by the same name, according to China Real Time. "When we were de- ciding on a name for this pasta dish, it never occurred to us that the word nazi would stir up such controversy," said ya-hsin, adding that the restaurant did not have any complaints since it intro- duced the dish a year ago. "in fact, it is considered one of our most popular dishes." But, after a local tV station did a story about the dish, the restaurant faced many complaints and both israeli and German representatives were unhappy with the name of the dish, saying it showed a lack of understanding about history and the nazis' slaughter of Jews, ac- cording to the european press- photo agency. the restaurant has since changed the name of its dishes to "Long Live purity." "We hope, from now on, customers who eat this dish will enjoy it in sheer joy," said ya-hsin. HICKERY DICKERY DOCK oSLo — airline pilots have to go through all kinds of control and safety checks before their fl ight leaves the runway, but one airline faced an unexpected delay recent- ly. a norwegian air Shuttle was forced to delay a fl ight from oslo to new york by fi ve hours because of a hunt for a mouse in the cockpit, according to Reuters. "We had to make sure that no cables or wires had been chewed," said spokesper- son Charlotte Holmbergh. " is does not happen very often but it does happen from time to time." e only european budget car- rier to fl y long-haul routes, nor- wegian has faced several technical troubles with its new Boeing 787 dreamliners, leaving passengers stranded at airports from Bang- kok to Florida. and since it runs so many fl ights, even small delays can cause signifi cant schedule dis- ruptions. "at least the mouse was caught," said Holmbergh. W EIRD ORKPLACE THE Vol. 27 No. 21 – December 1, 2014 PuBLished BY Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd. Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 ©Copyright 2014 by Thomson Reuters Canada Ltd. All rights reserved. Canadian hr rePorter is published 22 times a year. Publications Mail – Agreement # 40065782 Registration # 9496 – ISSn 0838-228X director, carswell media: Karen Lorimer - (416) 649-9411 karen.lorimer@thomsonreuters.com publisher and editor: John Hobel (on leave) editoriaL managing editor/Acting publisher: Todd Humber - (416) 298-5196 todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com senior editor: Sarah Dobson - (416) 649-7896 sarah.dobson@thomsonreuters.com News editor: Liz Bernier - (416) 649-7837 liz.bernier@thomsonreuters.com employment law editor: Jeffrey R. 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Address changes and returns: Send changes and undeliverable Canadian addresses to: suBsCriBer serViCes Canadian HR Reporter One Corporate Plaza 2075 Kennedy Rd. Toronto, ON M1T 3V4 ❑ From time to time, we make our subscriber list available to companies and organizations whose products and services we believe may be of interest to you. If you do not want your name to be made available, please check here and return with your mailing label. Customer serViCe call: (416) 609-3800 (Toronto) (800) 387-5164 (outside Toronto) Fax: (416) 298-5082 (Toronto) (877) 750-9041 (outside Toronto) email: carswell.customerrelations@ thomsonreuters.com Letters to the editor todd.humber@thomsonreuters.com CHRR reserves the right to edit for length and clarity. todd humber eDitor's notes Sadly, it's still a courageous act w hen i was a teenager, i didn't think i knew any gay people. Fast- forward a quarter century and i know in hindsight just how naive i was: i had, of course, met plenty. But coming out in high school in the early 1990s was a rare thing indeed. It's still rare, unfortunately. I'd like to say the public announcement by Apple CEO Tim Cook that he's gay wasn't courageous and it wasn't worthy of being on the cover of Canadian HR Reporter. I wish Michael Bach, founder and CEO of the Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion (CIDI), didn't have to call it a "trailblazing action." But what else can you say when Cook is the fi rst openly gay CEO of a Fortune 500 company? How did it take until nearly 2015 for that to happen? e answer is unfortunate: Be- ing gay still has a mighty strong stigma attached to it, even in North America. In other parts of the world, it's far worse. e day after Cook revealed he was gay, a memorial to Apple founder Steve Jobs was dismantled in the Rus- sian city of St. Petersburg. e two-metre tall monument, in the shape of an iPhone, was taken down by ZEFS, a group of Russian companies that built it. "In Russia, gay propaganda and other sexual perversions among minors are prohibited by law," read a statement provided to Re- uters. ZEFS also pointed out that the memorial had been "in an area of direct access for young students and scholars." at's a corporate memo to a news agency, by the way. Under Vladimir Putin, Russia has enacted strong anti-gay legis- lation — and some lawmakers are even calling for Cook to be barred from ever entering the nation. Hop over to Africa and the LGBT community is cowering in fear in Ebola-torn Liberia. Leroy Ponpon, a gay activist, said people have been harassed, physically at- tacked and had their property vandalized after religious leaders said Ebola is a punishment from God for homosexuality. "They're even asking for the death penalty," he told the om- son Reuters Foundation. "We're living in fear." In Nigeria, a bill signed earlier this year criminalized same-sex relationships — being caught in one can lead to up to 14 years in jail. It also bans gay marriage and outlaws membership in gay rights groups. So, yes, in a world where this happens, we can't really call Cook's decision anything but courageous and trailblazing. ankfully, we can add him to a growing list of high-profile people who have decided to come out. Even male athletes in professional sports are starting to, warily, step out. Michael Sam, who played col- lege football at Missouri, came out and was drafted in the sev- enth round of this year's NFL draft by the St. Louis Rams. He didn't make the team but most experts say it was his talent — not his sexuality — that led to him be- ing cut. He was later signed to the Dallas Cowboys practice squad for a short period of time. NBA player Jason Collins be- came the fi rst player in one of North America's four professional sports leagues to come out, some- thing he did after the 2012-13 season. After the announcement — which he made by writing the cover story for Sports Illustrated — he continued to play, signing with the Brooklyn Nets. Despite the headlines from Li- beria and Nigeria, there is a ray of hope for progress in Africa. In Botswana, a judge overturned a government ban on a gay rights lobbying group on Nov. 14. On Russia's border, Latvia's for- eign minister tweeted "I proudly announce I am gay… Good luck all of you." Edgars Rinkevics also said he would campaign for legal status for same-sex relationships in his largely conservative Baltic nation, according to Reuters. And neighbouring Estonia adopted a Cohabitation Act that recognizes civil unions, regardless of gender. On the homefront, Ontario just elected its fi rst openly gay premier, Kathleen Wynne. ere were a lot of contentious points during the campaign, but none of them centred on her sexuality. So, there is hope. Perhaps one day, we won't have to applaud the Tim Cooks of the world for their courage. at day isn't here yet — but it's coming. And those in opposition are going to be on the wrong side of history. FINE FEATHERED FRIENDS LONDON, U.K. — Health-care workers at retirement homes are pros when it comes to bedside care and companionship. But work- ers at some retirement villas in the United Kingdom are making friends with a diff erent bird altogether — literally. Chickens, ap- parently, make wonderful companions to the elderly, according to an article in the Telegraph. Owen Turnbull, 84, lives with his 82-year-old wife along with 70 other residents, 13 hens and 15 chicks. Along with practical poultry-keeping, there are hen-based activities such as art, dance and singing. HenPower is aimed at men (although it is also open to women) who are vulnerable to depres- sion in care homes and the chickens are meant to help them tackle loneliness and isolation. A study by the University of Northumbria found the male participants all reported improved well-being and reduced de- pression and loneliness. In one dementia care home, violent incidents by resi- dents were down 50 per cent since the hens had arrived, and the use of anti- psychotic drugs was also reduced. loneliness and isolation. A study by the University of Northumbria found the male participants all reported improved well-being and reduced de- pression and loneliness. In one dementia care home, violent incidents by resi- dents were down 50 per cent since the hens had arrived, and the use of anti- psychotic drugs was Credit: Panbazil/Shutterstock

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