Vermont border town employees asking to be paid in $Cdn

http://www.cbc.ca/money/story/2007/11/07/stanstead-dollar.html

"Utility workers in a pair of Quebec-Vermont border towns have asked to be paid in Canadian dollars instead of American dollars, thanks to the soaring value of the loonie.

The neighbouring towns of Stanstead, Que., and Derby Line, Vt., share water and sewage systems which are run by a team of 15 American and Canadian employees who had been paid in U.S. dollars because they were worth more.

But starting this week, the workers will get paid in Canadian currency.

"Nobody wants to lose money," Stanstead Coun. Serge Tougas said Wednesday. "It seemed to be a concern from everybody around the table, American or Canadian, that the greatest of the exchange would be granted to the employees."


A note: an economist at work today told me that having the Canadian dollar this high (it briefly jumped up past $1.10 US) is unprecedented. She said that we've already passed the 1950 value, and that the situation before then is not really comparable to now, in terms of economic policy. The Bank of Canada has said that the last time there was this kind of discrepancy between the Canadian and US dollars was back during the US Civil War.

Weird, weird times.

they complained and moaned all the way to the bank to get those US$ paychecks, now you're stuck with them. Same thing for the poor NHL players stuck up in Canada being forcefed that worthless greenback because they forced them to be written into their contracts.

I used to live in Derby Line. Neat little town. Now I live in the south- about 25 miles away.