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The comprehensive Forecast Quarterly report combines ConstructConnect’s proprietary data with macroeconomic factors and Oxford Economic econometric expertise and analysis by Chief Economist Alex Carrick.

Construction Starts Forecast

Six Things an Employer Should Know – and a Checklist

The information provided in the link below is courtesy of Sherrard Kuzz LLP.

Sherrard Kuzz LLP is one of Canada’s leading employment and labour law firms exclusively representing the interests of management. Recognized nationally and internationally, our team is consistently named among Canada’s Top 10 Employment and Labour Boutiques (Canadian Lawyer®), Canada’s Leading Employment & Labour Law Firms (Chambers Global® and Legal 500®) and as Repeatedly Recommended (Lexpert®).

https://barrieca.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Briefing-Note-Recreational-Cannabis-is-Legal-Now-What-Sherrard-Kuz….pdf

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Collingwood, Ontario: September 24, 2018

 Head:  Huronia Alarm & Fire Security Inc. acquires Ontario Security Systems

Huronia has acquired the monitored accounts of Ontario Security Systems in Orillia, Ontario.  Ontario Security Systems has been providing alarm monitoring and video surveillance services to residential and commercial customers in Southern Georgian Bay, Muskoka and Central Ontario since 1992.

“I’ve known Henry for over twenty years,” says Kevin Leonard, Chief Operating Officer of Huronia Alarm & Fire Security Inc.  “We have worked alongside Henry and the team at Ontario Security Systems by providing their customers with 24/7 security system and video surveillance monitoring from our ULC listed, Five Diamond certified monitoring station in Midland, Ontario.”

Leonard goes on to say, “the Huronia team has also provided security system service and support for Ontario Security Systems customers, so in addition to already monitoring their accounts, we have also had an opportunity to personally meet a number of their Customers already.”

From a commercial and industrial customer standpoint, Ontario Security Systems has always had a strong foothold in the region.  “We continue to see growth in our own commercial client base and we are proactively bringing on new products and services for those customers across all four of our business divisions (security monitoring, fire safety, audio video and locks, keys and safes),” said Rob Thorburn Jr., President & CEO of Huronia Alarm & Fire Security Inc.  “This type of targeted commercial-customer portfolio acquisition is part of our Strategic Plan for continued growth in this region.”

Huronia Alarm & Fire Security Inc. has been in business for over 45 years and is Central Ontario’s leading provider of home and business security and monitoring services, IP Cameras, fire and safety, lock, key and safe products and services, home theatre, audio and video consultation and entertainment room design, as well as cabling and smart home wiring for today’s home automation requirements.

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For more information contact:

Media Inquiries – Jaclyn Jones, Account Manager at Whiting & Holmes Limited, 289-337-3662, jaclyn@whitingandholmes.com.

Specific Inquiries relating to Huronia – Kevin Leonard, Chief Operating Office at Huronia Alarm & Fire Security Inc. 705-792-9311, kleonard@huroniaalarms.com

Ministry of Labour

 Office of the Assistant Deputy Minister Operations Division

400 University Ave. 14th Floor Toronto, Ontario M7A 1T7

Telephone:         (416) 326-7667 Fax:                      (416) 212-4455

August 29, 2018

Dear Stakeholder:

We invite you to participate in the Ministry of Labour’s Workplace Health and Safety consultations taking place in October 2018.

This year, the ministry’s Operations Division and the Prevention Office are hosting back-to-back consultations. We are looking for your feedback to help keep Ontario workers safe and healthy while at work.

These discussions will be an opportunity to help shape the future direction of the ministry’s Safe at Work Ontario strategy for 2019/20. Your feedback will help improve the effectiveness of our Safe at Work Ontario campaigns and enhance the compliance support we offer.

We will also provide you with an update on some of our activities (ongoing and planned) in response to the feedback we received from you in the January/February 2018 Safe at Work Ontario consultation sessions.

In addition, the Ministry’s Chief Prevention Officer is developing Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Strategy for the next 5 years, and would like your input to identify and address emerging priorities.

There will be in-person sessions taking place in the Greater Toronto Area. We are also hosting web-based consultations if you are unable to attend an in-person session. As space is limited, please visit  https://sawo.eventbrite.com to register for the session(s) of your choosing and secure your spot.

If you have questions or comments, please email the ministry at SAWOConsultations@ontario.ca.

Ensuring continued engagement with our stakeholders is vital to the success and improvement of workplace health and safety culture in Ontario. I hope you will accept this invitation to participate in the dialogue.

Sincerely,

(Original signed by)

Leon Genesove

Acting Director

Occupational Health and Safety Branch Ministry of Labour

Ron Kelusky

Chief Prevention Officer Prevention Office Ministry of Labour

READ IT ON THE WEB

https://www.barrie.ca/Doing%20Business/Pages/Bids-Tenders.aspx

Bids & Tenders

The City is committed to securing the best products and services at the most competitive prices. We strive to provide significant value to all of our stakeholders and set standards of excellence within the municipal sector, while supporting Council’s Responsible Spending objective.

City of Barrie Tender Process is going paperless!

As part of our commitment to embrace innovation and improve how we do business, the City is excited to announce that on October 15, 2018, our open tender process is going paperless.

After the successful launch on May 1 of our new e-tendering platform, we are now expanding to a fully electronic submission process. Effective October 15, 2018, ALL open procurements will be submitted electronically (including all Request for Procurements (RFP), High Score Request for Quotations, and Low-bid Request for Quotations).

Benefits of Going Paperless

• 100% environmentally friendly, on-line submissions
• Reduced carbon footprint – no more courier and printing requirements
• No requirement to travel to public tender openings
• Automatic notifications of new bid opportunities, addenda and site meeting reminders
• Online access to bid results
• Customized vendor dashboard for quick access to active opportunities and bid history
• Self-serve profile management

E – Bonding

Along with the move to full electronic tender submissions, the City is also moving towards the acceptance of electronic bonds. Stay tuned for more information on this initiative. Learn about electronic bonds.

Subscription Information

Documents are free to view, however; you will need to register and subscribe to bids&tenders™ to download bid documents, receive notifications about new City of Barrie bid opportunities, and submit bids to the City of Barrie. Subscription to bids&tenders™ unlimited is just $165/year.  Pay once and access all agencies using bids&tenders™ in Canada . A one-time, pay-per-bid option is also available at $45/bid.

Frequently Asked Questions

Dear colleagues,

On July 1, Canada implemented tariffs on a list of steel and aluminum products in response to a unilateral decision by the U.S. to impose its own tariffs under section 232 of the Trade Act of 1962. As we said in our press release, trade wars have negative effects on both sides of the border, and we understood that the Canadian government had to take prompt and decisive action to defend our industry and its workers.

The Canadian Construction Association (CCA) has long advocated for reciprocity and the establishment and maintenance of a free-flowing international system of trade, both in terms of goods as well as services. CCA supports international free trade agreements, including provisions respecting government procurement.

This situation has created a lot of uncertainty for our members – in terms of accurately pricing their projects and estimating timelines with concerns around shortages of material.

On August 13, the Government of Canada, in response to concerns from Canadian steel producers, initiated a short 15-day consultation period to get the industry’s reaction to potential new tariffs, quotas or combination of both on the import of steel into Canada.

This new development further creates uncertainty and risk for the industry across the country and would fundamentally alter supply chains if implemented. CCA will prepare a submission to the government. In the meantime, please share with your members how they can mitigate some of these risks.
Recommendations

For signed contracts:

• Review your contract to determine if there are provisions that provide for price adjustment due to changes in taxes and customs duties, e.g. Conditions 10.1 of CCDC 2 ‘Stipulated Price Contract’ and CCA 1 ‘Stipulated Price Subcontract’ (“Duty Provisions”).
• If your contract does not include such duty provisions, you may be liable for covering the increased cost. CCA urges all owners to be fair to contractors caught in this situation and give sympathetic consideration to requests for price adjustment where the contractor has been hit with cost increases that could not be reasonably foreseen.

For new contracts:

• If the contract of a potential project does not have duty provisions, particularly if you are aware of proposed new or increased taxes and customs duties that are to be implemented, you should formally raise this to the owner and encourage the owner to include such duty provisions or address that in the bid documents.

Other considerations

• You may want to use the general argument that you cannot anticipate new or increased taxes and customs duties and therefore the increase in cost is recoverable. This may be difficult without duty provisions as the general rule is that the contractor bears the risk of loss in a situation like this.
• If a change, delay, or suspension in the work of an ongoing project causes delays in the purchase of materials that have escalated in price, then, in some circumstances, the contractor may be entitled to recover the increased cost.

CCA is proud to be supported by its 20,000 members and will continue to defend the industry’s best interests. In the meantime, if you have any questions about the steel and aluminum tariffs, please contact our vice-president of public affairs Rodrigue Gilbert at 613-808-7435 or rgilbert@cca-acc.com.

Regards,

Changes Coming to Minimum Pay for On Call Work

Unpredictable workflow can make scheduling a challenge. One common tool employers use to address this challenge is on-call staff: an employee remains available to be called in to work and must work if called.

The concept of on-call work is not itself problematic. Many jobs lend themselves to an on-call arrangement. Electricians, plumbers, IT professionals, doctors, and nurses are just a few examples. However, while holding oneself on standby may not be particularly onerous it is, as the Supreme Court of Canada recently noted “a period of time during which the employer exercises a degree of control over the movements and activities of [an employee].
This exercise of control benefits the employer, who might otherwise have to employ [other employees] to work [after hours] to ensure a timely response to urgent [matters]”. To address this, Bill 148 will amend the Ontario Employment Standards Act, 2000 (“ESA”) to require compensation for an on-call employee even if the employee is not called in to work.

Read the full article

On April 17th the BCA hosted an informal meeting to discuss member’s experiences in dealing with the city’s building department.
We were seeking feedback – good or bad, with the objective of improving project timelines and alleviating red tape.

On May 2nd, the BCA Board of Directors met with Mayor Lehman to have an open discussion of the many issues brought to light in our meeting with members.

The Mayor was aware that there was a problem in the departments, and he assured the Board that it is a priority at the City to rectify the issues.

The BCA board will be coordinating with the Chief Administrative Office and the Director of Planning and Building Services to work on solutions together.