First, I want to wish all of our members and supporters a very Merry Christmas and hopes for a great New Year.

As many of you know, this will be my final Year End Report as I will be retiring at the end of June. I'm pleased to report that the search for my replacement is going well and there are candidates that we are looking into. We hope to have an announcement by the first week of March and I'm sure that many of you will be anxious to see who has been the successful candidate.

Click here to read the full President's Year End Report.

The OGCA is frustrated to learn that the Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed an appeal brought forward by contractor J.Cote & Son Excavating. This decision by the Supreme Court protects a municipality’s ability to use reprisal clauses. This clause, which was used by the City of Burnaby against J.Cote & Son Excavating, is prevalent across the entire country.

Reprisal clauses restrict competitive bids and drive up the cost of construction because they force contractors, who may have a dispute with the city, to choose between pursuing their legal rights and bidding on future city contracts.

This ruling has serious implications for contractors because it condones blacklisting contractors from bidding on city projects simply because they exercised their constitutional right to access the courts.

We anticipate that the recent introduction of prompt payment legislation will increase the number of adjudications, triggering a jump in reprisal policies being applied.

Under the new Construction Act, the requirement to trigger an adjudication is not an option, and in fact, is mandatory under certain circumstances. Therefore, a subtrade or a general contractor, following the law as they must do, can then be disqualified from any future bidding with that owner through the application of the reprisal clause.

OGCA staff would like to invite you to enjoy a little holiday cheer with our own rendition of Grandma got run over by a reindeer!

We hope you all have a very safe and happy holiday season.

In continuing to build a future-ready organization, Brampton has adopted the Certificate of Recognition (COR^TM) program as part of its construction contract management and construction tendering process. This is a reaffirmation of the City’s ongoing commitment to health and safety for contractors, employees and residents. 

The requirement to be COR^TM certified has been implemented since January 2019 for construction projects over $25M.

Starting January 2020, the requirement for COR^TM will be implemented for construction projects over $10M. The following chart outlines the proposed schedule for implementing COR in future years:

For more information on COR^TM visit http://www.ihsa.ca/Certificate-of-Recognition

Seven Ontario local construction associations (LCAs) have recently launched the Link2Build.ca website, a news and information portal exclusively for Ontario’s construction industry.

Contractors and purchasers can use Link2Build.ca to access a number of distinct services, including:- news and information content that is published daily, and which speaks to developments and trends affecting builders, contractors, designers, owners and purchasers across Ontario,- thousands of tender opportunities from across the province’s public- and private sectors, and- the opportunity to purchase and publish Certificates of Substantial Performance, and other notices as required under Ontario law, with the option to provide simultaneous notification to those project partners whose lien rights may be affected by such notices.

For more information, please click here.

The Niagara Construction Association (NCA) is thrilled to announce that as a result of their 14th Annual NCA Christmas Lunch & Food Drive which took place on Friday, December 6 at the St. Catharines Holiday Inn & Suites Hotel & Conference Centre, NCA members generously donated $5,642 in food and monetary donations, bringing their cumulative 14-year total to $18,642.

Falcon Crane & Concrete Pumping brought in a whopping $3000 bank draft, making them the top donor this year. Other notable donors included Four Aces Traffic Control ($2111), Cotton Inc. ($687), Wiens Underground Electric ($500) and many others. Said Chris DeValkenaere of Falcon Crane, “Betty-Lou is a great person, and Community Care is a great cause. If anyone out there can do anything at all to help, please do.”

Please click here to read more.

To all LOC Members, we have an exciting event in January to start off the New Year. It will focus on inspiring and empowering young leaders at George Brown College – Centre for Construction and Engineering Technologies (CCET) to take action to improve workplace safety through awareness and education.

With over 400 students, faculty, staff and volunteers participating from the CCET department, we invite you to participate and help raise awareness of workers’ rights and responsibilities. We hope you can join us to share your knowledge and experience with the best and the brightest young leaders from George Brown College.

For more information or to reserve your spot, please email Marjorie Javier at Marjorie@theLOC.ca or RSVP by clicking here.

Visit the League of Champions website to read more about the LOC at the George Brown College Association Fair and at the Halton District School Board (HDSB) “Take Our Kids to Work Day” and “Pathways Fair - Future That Fits.”

The League of Champions participated at The Building Show, Construct Canada event on December 4 – 6 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. There was great interest from the attendees and exhibitors about the LOC, membership, how the League helps schools and colleges, and other inquiries.

Canadian Construction Association (CCA) Chair, John Bockstael, dropped by at the booth to say hi and signed the LOC Jersey.

The LOC Members, Stubbes Precast, Harris Rebar, IHSA, NORCAT, Colliers Project Leaders, George Brown College, and Toronto Construction Association also participated as event exhibitors.

Is your company or association a Safety Leader? Are you a Safety Champion and want to make a difference in Ontario construction industry? Do you want to join an organization that inspires leaders to be health and safety champions?

League of Champions Members and Patrons are committed to inspire leaders to be health and safety champions. Please visit LOC website, Facebook and Twitter page for more information about the League of Champions. To apply to become a Safety Champion, please contact Marjorie Javier by email at Marjorie@theLOC.ca or phone 905-671-3969.

And finally, as this year comes to an end, please take a moment to look at our Seasons' Greetings by clicking here.

OGCA is pleased to support of the Canadian Concrete Expo 2020, January 22nd, 23rd @ the International Centre Toronto.  

Members can pre-register to attend the show by clicking here for your OGCA complimentary VIP pass ($50.00 p.p. value).

The Canadian Concrete Expo continues to grow each year and we are proud to report we have added an additional 100,000 sq.ft. of exhibit space to our show floor. 350 Exhibitors dedicated to the Concrete Construction industry and more than 6000 attendees.

Please view website for additional information.

The Casting Producer at Scott Brothers Entertainment - the company behind Property Brothers and many other home renovation HGTV television shows - is currently on the hunt for a licensed contractor interested in an on-camera position in a future television show they are producing for HGTV - and they have asked us if we would help to spread the word to any contractor that might be interested in a fun opportunity such as this.

Who better than OGCA - the ultimate hub for contractors in Ontario! - would be able to communicate a casting notice?

If you are interested, please click here to read the casting call, or contact https://canadiancontractors.castingcrane.com directly.

I am happy to inform you on Friday November 22, 2019, the Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development announced the Supporting Ontario’s Safe Employers (SOSE) program which will be led by the Office of the Chief Prevention Officer.

This program is the first-of-its-kind in Canada and will reward Ontario’s safest employers. It is a voluntary program that will formally recognize employers who successfully implement an occupational health and safety management system in their workplace. It is open to any employer in Ontario, regardless of size or sector.

Industry has long asked for rewards for employers who successfully promote health and safety in their workplace. This is a big step for Ontario’s health and safety community as we continue to move forward in protecting workers.

For additional information on the minister’s announcement as well as information on the program and how you may be eligible for rewards and can apply, please go to https://news.ontario.ca/mol/en/2019/11/ontario-to-reward-safe-employers.html

If you have any questions about the program you can contact the Prevention Office at SOSE@Ontario.ca

The Program Advisory Committee of Lambton College in Toronto is seeking active volunteers for their Occupational Health and Safety Program.  Only three meetings per year. Be part of an advisory committee that helps to keep Ontario safe!  

If you are interested, please email:  Jane Snyder, Chair,  jane@snyderconstruction.ca

The countdown to the holiday season is on and businesses are rushing to accomplish their goals before the end of the year. It’s important to remember safety and employee wellbeing during this busy time, so I thought I’d send some prevention system news and helpful information your way.

If you have questions or would like to hear more, please reach out to Simona.Mazat@wsps.ca.

Take care and stay safe.

Lynn Brownell
President & CEO
Workplace Safety & Prevention Services

To read more, please click here.

In this issue:   

• New rate-setting model starts January
• Our Health and Safety Excellence program has launched
• Celebrating our commitment to mental health and wellness
• The WSIB receives international award
• An easier way to access your WSIB data is here
• Have you checked out our new online services?
• Clearances have a new look
• Our document upload service is mobile-friendly

Click here to access the WSIB@work newsletter.

Congratulations to Snyder Construction as they are now COR^TM certified, and excited to go further with their health and safety program.

"We are striving to keep our team Healthy and Safe!  We wish to thank OGCA and all the staff for the inspiration they give to all Generals in the way of safety!  Thank you for your Leadership!  The Snyder Team."

The Canadian Construction Association (CCA) needs your help to highlight 5-10 real life stories in video and print of diversity, inclusion and innovation in the construction industry for our Talent Fits Here initiative.

Set to be launched early next year, Talent Fits Here is a national campaign designed to show Canadians that our industry is diverse in age, gender and ethnicity, as well as diverse in the career opportunities it can provide.

Please click here for more information.

Judges selected the $62 million Guildwood Station infrastructure project for Metrolinx as the 2019 Ontario Concrete Awards Project of the Year. The project, among 10 winners honoured last Wednesday at a Buildings Show dinner in Toronto, will be Concrete Ontario’s entry in the 2020 American Concrete Institute (ACI)’s awards competition.

Kenaidan Contracting Ltd. was the general contractor, designed by RHDA. WSP, which submitted the nomination, was the engineer of record. Click on Project of the Year above to read the article in the Ontario Construction News.

The 2020 Membership Directory has now been added to the OGCA website. Click here to access it.

Ontario Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk’s 2019 annual report was released on December 4, 2019. Lysyk's value-for-money audit of the ministry’s health and safety programs contains 13 recommendations, with 26 action items.

The Auditor General’s report found that the Ministry of Labour system contains only 28% of all businesses in Ontario and that it proactively inspects about 1% of Ontario businesses each year and investigates an additional 1% of businesses for incidents that have occurred.

In the construction sector, 65% of companies had repeatedly been issued orders relating to fall protection hazards. Furthermore, although under the Act the employer bears the most responsibility for ensuring the health and safety of its workers, almost all fines were issued to individuals such as workers and supervisors, rather than employers.

The Ontario's Government is investing $20 million in training partnerships that prioritize in-demand skill sets. The funding is part of an existing program, which was launched in January 2018.

In order to qualify for funding, companies will need to form partnerships and demonstrate innovative approaches to training and workforce development.

So far, this program has funded an introduction to masonry for 274 middle and high school students in Windsor, Ottawa, Kingston, and the GTA. As well, apprentice boot camps launched by the Communitech Academy in Kitchener has introduced 170 participants to the basics of digital marketing, tech sales, data science, UX, and Artificial Intelligence.

Ontario will launch the call for proposals for the next round of the Skills Catalyst Fund in the coming weeks.

The latest issue of the Ontario Legislative Reports is now available on the OGCA website. Click here to access the December 11, 2019 issue, and earlier issues.

For reports prior to February 2019, please contact Mary Wademan at the OGCA offices.

The OWWA Construction committee is a committee made up of a group of contractors, consultants and owners that are actively involved in the construction of water and wastewater infrastructure in Ontario.
 
Our goal is to improve the level of cooperation, communication and atmosphere in the delivery of Water/Wastewater infrastructure projects through the meetings, seminars and conferences that we have each year.

On behalf of Lyndon Grovum of Maple Reinders Constructors, we are pleased to promote the upcoming seminar on February 6, 2020. Please click here for more information.

Please find attached a media release (English and French versions) from the Surety Association of Canada (SAC) announcing the association’s 2019-20 Board of Directors.

Steven D. Ness, President of SAC, stated: “Our industry will experience several changes and new opportunities for the association to explore in the upcoming year. I’m very much looking forward to working with this dynamic group of leaders on key priorities to continue with our mission and lobbying efforts for the betterment of the Canadian surety industry.”

Don't forget that OGCA will be holding our Leadership Day on Friday, March 6, 2020 at Verdi Banquet Hall on Derry Road in Mississauga. Presentations from the Ministry of Labour, the Chief Prevention Office and IHSA will all be held during the morning session. League of Champions jerseys will also be presented to the newest members of the League.

Mark your calendars today!

OGCA's next Golf Tournament, which is a sell-out every year, will be held on Monday, July 6, 2020 at Glencairn Golf Course in Milton. Watch this space for notice when registration opens!