👩‍💼 Robin Shaban is an economist that used to work at the Competition Bureau. You can follow her on Twitter @RobinShaban. She and I are collaborating on a paper on the State of Competition Policy in Canada for McGill’s Centre for Media, Technology & Democracy, which will be published in the new year. We’re having a lot of fun working on it.

On Friday November 27th, the Competition Bureau issued a statement. Fridays are not for announcements that you want to get a lot of attention about - typically it’s reserved for celebrity divorce statements.

Robin Shaban @RobinShaban

Hot of the press, the @CompBureau has issued a statement on how it plans to assess non-poaching and wage-fixing agreements. If you care about fair wages and workers rights, then this is VERY important. A thread/1 canada.ca/en/competition… #canlabCompetition Bureau statement on the application of the Competition Act to no-poaching, wage-fixing and other buy-side agreements - Canada.caIn order to provide clarity and transparency for stakeholders, the Competition Bureau sought legal advice from the Department of Justice Canada and the Public Prosecution Service of Canada with respect to the application of the Competition Act to buy-side agreements, including employment-related no-…canada.ca

November 27th 2020

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We wrote about what the statement means for Canadian workers and you can read it in today’s Globe & Mail.

Report on Business @globebusiness

Competition Bureau signals worker welfare is not a priority in Canada Opinion: Competition Bureau signals worker welfare is not a priority in CanadaOne word deleted from the Competition Act means companies that fix wages or prevent employees from joining other firms face much lighter consequencesdlvr.it

December 6th 2020

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Read more:

• Canada’s Competition Act: No Poach, No Problem? A Qualified Yes.

• Competition Bureau confirms that it will not pursue no-poaching and wage-fixing agreements between competitors under the criminal provision of the Competition Act

• The verdict is in: Competition Bureau confirms buy-side agreements are not subject to criminal sanction in Canada

You’ve read about Loblaw in “regs” and today you can listen to an expanded conversation about how the company is shaping the country on Canadaland.

They own Loblaw, which is much more than a grocer. It’s an insurance company, a bank, a medical cannabis company and a media company. When you put it all together, that amounts to the largest private ownership of data in Canada.

Loblaw knows a lot about you. Isn’t it time to learn more about them?

CANADALAND @CANADALAND

Canadians, it’s time to meet your overlords. With @VassB. #350 Loblaws Will Eat Us AllThe Westons might be Canada’s Jeff Bezos, argues Vass Bednar, and not just because they’re very rich.canadaland.com

December 7th 2020

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🙏 Big thanks to Jesse Brown and Kasia Mychajlowycz for the opportunity to think more about the implications of the company’s ability to personalize rewards and incentivize shopping.