After a two-year hiatus, the MCAC Annual National Conference starts back up Sept. 28 to Oct. 1, 2022.

For years, Pier 21 in Halifax, N.S., brought people together from all over the world as an entry point to Canada. In September 2022, this iconic Canadian landmark will once again serve as a welcoming point as MCA Canada prepares to hold its first Annual National Conference since Nashville in 2019.

"Stating it bluntly, it has been far too long since we have all been together," said Tania Johnston, MCA Canada''s Chief Executive Officer. "As a national association representing 1,000 members across the country, this annual event is one of the best ways for us to connect with members, network and discuss important industry issues. We are so excited to have this event on the calendar once again, and we can't wait to see everyone in Halifax."

Conference registration is expected to open on April 1, 2022, and will be available at  https://conference.mcac.ca. 

By MCA Canada Chief Executive Officer Tania Johnston

Each year, International Women’s Day marks an amazing opportunity to celebrate women, challenge gender biases and create more equality in our workplaces. Across the country and around the world, there are tremendous stories being shared in the news and online. It is incredible to see so many industries and sectors taking part in this annual celebration.

At the same time, this week also marks Women in Construction Week, showcasing the opportunities available for women in the industry and highlighting the importance of women in construction. Since we know that women only make up 13 per cent of the 1.4 million Canadians employed in construction, events such as these demonstrate there is still progress to be made.

As CEO of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada (MCAC), and the first woman in that position, it should go without saying that we are very supportive of these initiatives. But we also need to use these as a catalyst for a broader conversation about our industry and how we can continue to improve.

At MCAC, we are extremely proud of the incredible strides being made by our sector to engage with not only women, but all underrepresented groups in our industry. MCAC members across Canada are celebrating their diversity and inclusiveness, including in the lead-up to International Women’s Day.

As we reflect on the many stories we will read about today and this week, we should look forward to the day when these success stories are just a normal part of our industry’s diverse and inclusive fabric.

This Friday we are pleased to bring our female membership together for a discussion on mental health and coping with stress in the workplace. We ask that you please forward the opportunity on to your employees.

Now, more than ever, we must create an inclusive culture that is welcoming not only to different genders, but other cultures and religions, and backgrounds. If we can appreciate the challenges everyone faces, recognize our unconscious biases, and create a culture for open dialogue and conversation, we can create an industry where anyone can thrive.

LAST CALL TO REGISTER!

Join MCA Canada & WIMC this Friday, March 11, with sponsors Aecon, Bradford White Canada and Black & McDonald for a FREE online workshop designed specifically for women in the construction industry with the intent to teach participants practical skills and tools they can apply to deal with stress and anxiety in their workplace.

Speakers:

• Jennie West-Correia, CPF, CEC, Senior Consultant, Stratford Managers
• Breanna Pizzuto is the Founder & Lead Trainer of Talk Tools

MCA Canada has recently partnered with American Express to help support our business members to improve cash flow when making payments to suppliers, we have partnered with AMEX because of their strong relationship in the region and their ability to turn a cost centre into a new source of revenue as a closed loop network.

We will be hosting a Lunch & Learn Session, presented by Bhauna Patel and Vincent Hubert of American Express. Bhauna is the local Ottawa AMEX Business Development Manager and can provide insights on how Mechanical companies in Ottawa have used the AMEX program to push out payments to suppliers while also earning an incentive from their spend.

This free session is scheduled for March 29 at noon ET.

Each year, March 11 marks World Plumbing Day; an opportunity to celebrate the importance of plumbing and plumbers in protecting public health and providing access to clean water and sanitation facilities.

Wayne Davidson, President and Chair of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada, provided the following statement to recognize World Plumbing Day:

"World Plumbing Day is a unique opportunity to celebrate the essential role the plumbing sector plays in Canada and around the world, as well as the skilled men and women in this industry.

I would encourage MCAC members across Canada to take this chance to reflect on how important plumbing is in our day-to-day lives. Plumbing remains integral to the healthy indoor environments where we live, work and play, and World Plumbing Day is a fantastic annual tradition to recognize this."

The World Plumbing Council has more informtion about World Plumbing Day.

MCA Canada members are invited to participate in a review of the draft of the new Red Seal Occupational Standard (RSOS) for the Plumber trade for Canada.

The draft standard was developed at a recent national virtual workshop, and includes input from trade experts and apprenticeship instructors from across the country.

Before it is reviewed and evaluated by provincial and territorial industry and apprenticeship committees, industry stakeholders are being given an opportunity to comment on the standard via an online survey.

The survey is completely voluntary and anonymous, although if you possess a Red Seal, the first digits of your Red Seal number will be requested (these do not identify any individual).

All comments will be forwarded to your province/territory''s apprenticeship authority to review with their committees for consideration.

The deadline to complete the Plumber RSOS Validation Survey is March 30.

Source: BuildForce Canada

This year, the theme for International Women’s Day on March 8 is "#BreakTheBias.” International Women’s Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, and calls for action for gender parity. The key to "breaking the bias” is eliminating bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.

Many organizations around the world are working to address bias, stereotypes, and discrimination toward women, yet progress is slow. In its 2021 Global Gender Gap Report, the World Economic Forum found that only 58% of the gender gap in Economic Participation and Opportunity has been closed. It remains the second-largest of the four key gender gap metrics and the Forum estimates that it will take another 267.6 years to close the gap at the current rate of progress.

Continue reading on the BuildForce Canada Respectful Workplace Blog.

Source: HistoryNet.com

1618: Johannes Kepler discovers the third Law of Planetary Motion.
1765: Fire levels one-quarter of the town of Montréal.
1790: George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address.
1855: The first train crosses Niagara Falls on a suspension bridge.
1910: Baroness de Laroche becomes the first woman to obtain a pilot's license in France.
1945: International Women's Day first celebrated on this day in Canada and around the world.
1948: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that religious instruction in public schools is unconstitutional.
1965: More than 4,000 Marines land at Da Nang in South Vietnam and become the first U.S. combat troops in Vietnam.
1973: Two bombs explode near Trafalgar Square in Great Britain injuring 234 people.
1982: British House of Commons passes the Canada Act, allowing Canada to patriate its constitution.
1982: The United States accuses the Soviets of killing 3,000 Afghans with poison gas.