Between 2012 and 2019, Vancouver police made about 8,000 street checks — also known as carding — per year. In 2022, the practice, disproportionately affecting Black and Indigenous people, was down to just eight checks.

Street checks have fallen steadily ever since B.C. began requiring police to do annual audits of street checks and reasons for them. They cannot be based on identity or arbitrary. Officers must also tell the person being stopped why they need the information.

Civil liberty advocates have pushed for street checks to be ended entirely, saying they are not legal. But police say they do have the legal authority to do the stops and they are still necessary for certain situations.

Jen St. Denis is a reporter with The Tyee covering civic issues. Find her on Twitter @JenStDen.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2023/02/24/Police-Street-Checks-Plunge/

When you get caught, and there was a good likelihood you are going to get caught, it’s going to cost you big time.” Former Employment Standards Branch employees say it is now a shadow of its former self. B.C.’s government says it wants to change that.

On Thursday, Labour Minister Harry Bains announced $11.9 million in new money for the branch over the next three years, part of a response to a backlog of cases that have left many employees waiting months or years for help.

Pamela Charron, exec director of the Worker’s Solidarity Network, said her organization routinely hears from workers who’ve been waiting one to two years just to resolve a complaint. The funding is a good first step, she says, but she wants deadlines.

Zak Vescera is The Tyee’s labour reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2023/02/24/BC-Pledges-Big-Budget-Boost-Protect-Workers-Rights/

On the somber first anniversary of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, The Tyee offers this review of our coverage over the course of the year.

Written by David Beers founding editor of The Tyee.

https://thetyee.ca/Culture/2023/02/24/Understanding-Putin-War-Ukraine/

We lose as many people to air pollution in a year as COVID-19 has killed in three years. Do we just not care anymore? It’s less easy to shrug it off, given this recent study. @Crof in The Tyee today:

The study out of @UBC shows those exposed to diesel exhaust had “changes in brain connectivity,” which has been associated with decreased memory and deteriorating productivity at work. Those who breathed filtered air did not lose connectivity.

We also know that traffic-related air pollution causes 1,200 premature deaths — those most at risk of this being those living 250 metres within high-traffic roads like kids, old people and “lower socio-economic groups,” according to Health Canada.

How does Health Canada advise us to reduce this toll? Don’t exercise in heavy traffic. Stay indoors. Drive a new car with a good engine and emission control, and fill it with low-sulphur fuel.

Crawford Kilian is a contributing editor of The Tyee.

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2023/02/24/Deaths-Air-Pollution/

The province will unveil new spending priorities next week. Here are areas that need a big push.

Alex Hemingway is a senior economist and public finance policy analyst at the CCPA’s B.C. office. Marc Lee is a senior economist at the CCPA’s B.C. office.

https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2023/02/23/Time-Bolder-BC-Budget/

Melanie Mark quit as a B.C. MLA Wednesday, sharing her frustrations as the only First Nations woman elected to the legislature to serve in cabinet: Government are resistant to change and “allergic” to doing things differently.

Andrew MacLeod is The Tyee’s Legislative Bureau Chief in Victoria and the author of All Together Healthy (Douglas & McIntyre, 2018).

Published on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2023/02/23/Melanie-Mark-Quits-BC-Politics/

As advocates across B.C. clamoured for a provincial Black history curriculum, three Surrey high school teachers founded a course and welcomed their first class of students earlier this month.

Josh Kozelj is the inaugural Hummingbird fellow with The Tyee.

Published on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2023/02/23/Black-Studies-Arrives-Surrey-High-Schools/

Ray Haynes spent a lifetime at picket lines, masterminding some of the biggest job actions in B.C. history. The former BC Federation of Labour secretary-general, and its oldest living officer, died earlier this week at the age of 94.

Zak Vescera is The Tyee’s labour reporter. This reporting beat is made possible by the Local Journalism Initiative.

Published on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023.

https://thetyee.ca/News/2023/02/23/Leader-Working-People-BC/

No, says Dr. Steve. But that doesn’t mean Kevin Falcon is thrilled about John Rustad’s move.

Steve Burgess writes about politics and culture for The Tyee.

https://thetyee.ca/Opinion/2023/02/22/One-BC-MLA-For-Conservatives/

Upstart & Crow announces its inaugural writers’ residency program, with a $4,000 stipend and studio workspace on offer.

Written by Ian Gill, Zoe Grams and Robyn Smith.

https://thetyee.ca/Presents/2023/02/22/Get-Paid-To-Demonstrate-World-Changing-Stories/