The Government of Canada has released additional details about the Canada Emergency Commercial Rent Assistance (CECRA) program, which will lower rent by 75 per cent for small businesses affected by COVID-19. The program will provide qualifying commercial property owners with forgivable loans to cover 50 per cent of monthly rents payable by small business [...]
Companies and not-for-profit organizations that have been affected by COVID-19 can now apply for the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy. Applications opened on April 27, with the first payments expected to be issued by May 7. Employers can apply to receive a wage subsidy of 75 per cent of employee wages for up to 12 [...]
Scott Construction Group has partnered with ITC Construction Group to launch the #LunchBoxChallenge to support local restaurants while also protecting the health of its employees during COVID-19. The idea of the #LunchBoxChallenge is simple: construction companies buy lunches locally for their sites and nominate another company to do the same. “Our mental health committee [...]
The Government of Canada has released additional details about the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy, which is intended to help businesses keep workers on payroll or rehire workers previously laid off as a result of COVID-19. The federal wage subsidy will cover 75 per cent of an individual’s salary, up to a maximum benefit of [...]
The BC Construction Safety Alliance (BCCSA) has launched a daily video conference to answer COVID-19 related questions from the province’s construction industry. Each morning at 9 a.m., BCCSA’s regional safety advisors will be joined on the line by Dr. Melanie Gorman-Ng, BCCSA’s senior research scientist. Dr. Gorman-Ng is a hygienist with a sub-specialty in [...]
The governments of Canada and British Columbia have both announced financial measures to help businesses and individuals weather the economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic. The measures, which are described as first steps, range from wage subsidies to business loans and deferred payments of taxes and import tariffs. Since various program details are still [...]
With coverage of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak continuing to dominate the news, VRCA has launched a new resource page to help member companies and their employees be informed about the illness and current advice from health professionals. The Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) resource page includes: • Up-to-date information provided by HealthLinkBC; • Advice on [...]
Employment in British Columbia’s construction industry is expected to grow by nearly 8 per cent – approximately 16,600 jobs – over the coming decade. At the same time, B.C.’s construction workforce is getting older. By 2029, some 44,200 men and women – approximately 22 per cent of construction workers – are expected to retire. [...]
Contractors wanting to understand how B.C.’s Community Benefit Agreement (CBA) will be applied may find the answers they need in an updated Contractor & Subcontractor Q and A document produced by B.C. Infrastructure Benefits Inc. (BCIB). The updated Q&A, which was posted recently to a redesigned BCIB website, provides answers to several questions VRCA [...]
The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) is aware of concerns related to rising insurance costs for certain lines of business, such as commercial condominium, commercial trucking and school boards. Consumers in other sectors may also experience similar challenges. To address the concerns, IBC has created a National Commercial Insurance Task Force to examine the [...]
VRCA members surveyed tell us the No. 1 issue keeping them up at night is the skilled labour shortage. And with good reason: The Lower Mainland will be short 7,300 skilled tradesmen and women by late 2021, and short 17,400 by 2029. Province wide, the construction industry will be short 11,700 skilled trades professionals [...]
The VRCA school outreach program recently visited Kwantlen Park Secondary School in Surrey and explored a fresh new way to engage with the students there. The school had planned a Career Speed Chat event, where volunteers from various industries could meet with smaller groups of students and have more in-depth chats, a different scenario [...]
VRCA members surveyed tell us the No. 1 issue keeping them up at night is the skilled labour shortage. And with good reason – the Lower Mainland’s construction industry is busy and unemployment in the construction industry is below 4 per cent, placing it near historic lows. On Feb. 6, BuildForce Canada released its [...]
Are you looking for an in-person opportunity to explore whether your company may be eligible for Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) investment tax credits? Ben Pritchard, a consultant from London-based Invennt Business Inc., will be in Vancouver from March 4-6 and available to meet with VRCA members. To encourage and boost innovation in [...]
Construction is evolving into a tech-savvy industry with an ever-increasing appetite for innovation. To support this, the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) launched the CONtact innovator mentorship program, creating a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs and innovators to connect with industry leaders to help hone their solution for industry adoption. First piloted in Spring 2019, the [...]
Are you a VRCA member working in Alberta? If so, you will want to learn about the new Vendor Performance Management (VPM) program implemented by Alberta Infrastructure to track, analyze, and manage the performance of individual vendors in an effort to control costs, mitigate risks, and drive continuous improvement throughout the contract life cycle. [...]
Owners of older forklifts, excavators, and other non-road diesel engines have until the end of January 2020 to register their equipment with Metro Vancouver in order to continue using them across the region. Metro Vancouver requires all Tier 0 and Tier 1 non-road diesel engines, which have little-to-no emission controls, to be registered and [...]
An updated version of CCDC 11 – Contractor’s Qualification Statement is now available for purchase through the VRCA store. The 2019 edition of CCDC 11 has been streamlined for a better user experience and includes the following changes from the previous version: The TRIF question has been removed from the table for worker’s compensation [...]
Did you know that most Canadian construction businesses are eligible for Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) investment tax credits? SR&ED tax credits are offered by the federal government to offset the cost of innovation and problem-solving in the construction industry. As presented at last week’s Division meetings, the Canadian Construction Association (CCA), Canadian [...]
The Vancouver Regional Construction Association joins the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) and construction associations across the country to mark the first annual National Construction Day on Tuesday, Nov. 26. The objective of the day is to recognize and celebrate the dedicated, hard-working men and women who are instrumental in building and connecting our communities [...]