Ontario teachers are facing down the new school year sans contract

Plus, fighting for a passport issued in error and trapped by Uber's EV program [The Star] First Up [By Manuela Vega] By Manuela Vega Good morning. Here’s the latest on Ontario teachers’ contract negotiations, a man given a Canadian passport by mistake and Uber’s EV program. DON’T MISS Richard Lautens/The Star ontario politics [Ontario teacher talks are dragging with school just weeks away]( Contract negotiations between Ontario’s four teacher unions, government and school boards are in full swing, but the groups say there’s been little progress, Kristin Rushowy reports. Although it’s been nearly a year since educators’ contracts expired, there are no plans for a strike — at least not yet. [Here’s what we know about teachers’ priorities](. - More: Negotiations tend to be slow “until one side starts to say ‘enough is enough. We’re going to start to take steps or to declare an impasse, or we’re going to file for conciliation so that we have a third party coming in, or we are going to take a strike vote’” said labour studies professor Stephanie Ross. - Go deeper: Ross said she believes the public is relatively sympathetic right now to workers pushing back against employers who have long “lowballed them,” pointing to public support after the government used back-to-work legislation and imposed contracts last fall (which it later had to repeal). Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick immigration [He was given a Canadian passport by mistake — then went on a legal battle to keep it]( Nader Abdellatif was born in Ottawa in 1967, while his father was the first secretary of Egypt’s embassy in Canada. His family left the country when he was a toddler, and while Abdellatif said he “can’t claim” that he considered himself Canadian, he was proud to be born here. For 15 years, the executive with multinational corporations travelled with a Canadian passport, Nicholas Keung reports. It was only in 2017, when he applied to renew it, that the Canadian government informed him the passport had been issued by mistake — three times. [Here’s what we know about Abdellatif’s debatable claim to Canada and his legal bid to keep the passport](. - More: “It was always special to me, because I was born there. It’s attached in my birth certificate,” he said. “I always have that connection with Canada.” - Go deeper: Abdellatif’s lawyer says the case raises questions about whether the Canadian government should grant citizenship to children born to foreign diplomats in the country after their diplomatic immunity expires — and about the oversight of passports being granted abroad. Toronto Star File Photo environment [“Once you get an EV with Uber, you’ll be stuck” ]( Longtime Uber driver Kamran Hameed wants to do his part for the environment, but he says the company’s electric vehicle (EV) program — which encourages drivers to lease Teslas — won’t help reduce emissions because it’s too expensive. Six months after Hameed signed up for the program, he returned his Tesla, and says he regrets ever making the switch, Marco Chown Oved reports. “I was driving eight to 10 hours before, and (in the Tesla) I’m driving 10 to 12 hours on a daily basis just to make the same,” he said. [Here’s what Hameed’s detailed records of revenue and income while driving the Tesla reveal](. - More: EVs are key in helping decarbonize the transportation sector, which is responsible for about one-third of the GTHA’s greenhouse gas emissions. - Context: Last month, the Star published an article about an [Uber driver who saved $12,000 yearly in gas and maintenance costs when he switched to an EV](. Hameed says the story isn’t realistic for Uber drivers who can’t afford to buy their own Tesla. WHAT ELSE A doctor’s fee plan in Alberta has been shot down. [What about other services that blur the line with two-tiered health care?]( Olivia Chow will name new appointees to the TTC board this week. [Here’s why we need someone who actually takes public transit](. Legitimate credit counselling services are blocked from advertising on Google. [Is that preventing Canadians from getting the help they need?]( A staggering 6.6 million recalled vehicles are still on Canadian roads. [Here’s how to find out if your car is one of them](. The Toronto Island ferry fiasco reveals a need to expand the use of the Billy Bishop airport tunnel. [Here’s how it could work](. Are we prepared to care for an aging population? [One couple’s hellish health care journey suggests we’re not](. Prince Harry and Meghan have purchased the screen rights to a Canadian author’s book. [Here’s what we know](. Are you struggling to pay for kids’ sports? [These programs offer help](. POV Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick [Edward Keenan: If housing is not the job of Justin Trudeau’s team, then whose job is it?]( CLOSE-UP Rick Madonik/The Star MISSISSAUGA: Malak Aiad warms up before an afternoon match in a soccer league for Muslim women. “Team culture in sports is alcohol-based, and a lot about partying … and for some time I was looking for a team and group of girls where I could be true to myself,” she said. [Here’s how her league and others are creating environments that welcome Muslim women](. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_194281). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. [Unsubscribe From This Newsletter]( [Sign Up for More Newsletters and Email Alerts]( [View in Browser]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. 8 Spadina Avenue, 10th Floor, Toronto, ON M5V 0S8. 416-367-2000 [PRIVACY POLICY](