Category: ARTICLES & OPINIONS

BURNABY, B.C. – The message in the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA) submission to the B.C. Utilities Commission’s (BCUC) Site C review panel is very simple: Finish the job building Site C.

“The Site C dam has been the subject of a robust, nearly three-year, independent review and its business case is solid – we cannot produce this kind of high-quality, reasonably-priced, clean energy anywhere,” said ICBA President Chris Gardner. “For the next century, Site C will act as the foundation for the solar, wind and other clean sources of energy that comes on stream, ensuring B.C. can meet its climate goals and power its economy with renewable energy.”

In response to the BCUC’s terms of reference, the ICBA submission made five key points:

• Site C is on time and on budget
• Ratepayers cannot be expected to spend billions of dollars and get nothing in return – the result of cancelling or postponing the project
• Site C provides the best value and an all-important backbone for other renewable energy sources as we transition from fossil fuels to the clean renewable energy provided by Site C
• Energy demand will continue to grow in B.C., as more people move here and the economy expands
• Site C, the subject of more than 150 legally binding environmental and technical conditions, will be one of the most sustainable energy projects ever built in any country

“Claims by Site C opponents that electricity demand is flat are false. They forget that the once-in-a-generation recession of 2008/09 artificially held down the demand for energy for two years,” said ICBA Communications Director Jordan Bateman. “That recession crippled our economy, but unless we’re going to have a major recession every single decade, energy demand will grow substantially over the next 50 years as it has for the past 50 years.  We need Site C to meet the demand of a growing population, more electric vehicles, an expanding economy and to help meet our commitments under the 2015 Paris Climate Accord.”

ICBA, the voice of B.C.’s construction industry, has been fighting hard to keep Site C workers on the job. Today, more than 2,400 men and women are working on Site C.

“The stakes of the outcome of the BCUC review are significant,” said Gardner. “It affects real people and real families who are counting on the jobs at Site C to pay the bills. To shut it down now would hurt BC Hydro’s finances, cost B.C. taxpayers dearly, cripple the Peace River economy, and send a chilling message to investors looking to build a business and create opportunities – B.C. is not open for business.”

In recent weeks, ICBA has fought for Site C through its pink slip campaign and a poster campaign in Fort St. John, that generated nearly 4,000 emails supporting Site C through www.get2yes.icba.ca.

Click HERE for the full ICBA submission to the BCUC and here for a list of cities in B.C. where Site C workers live.

In life and in business, few people get what they deserve. Instead, they get what they negotiate. Could you be a better negotiator? Register now for our Negotiation Skills Workshop and you’ll learn some fantastic new tips and tricks to make sure you walk away from the table with what you want.

Here’s what the course covers:

• The most common negotiating mistakes people make and how to avoid them
• Understanding the difference between Collaborative “win-win” and Competitive “hardball” negotiations and how to know what game you are playing
• The characteristics of highly effective negotiators
• Understanding the different sources of negotiating power
• How to strengthen your bargaining position
• How to create an open communication flow that allows you to deeply understand the other party
• The 5-step process to quickly and effectively plan and prepare for your negotiations
• How to determine your “walk-away point”
• How to defend yourself against “hardball’ negotiators
• How to counter the 5 common manipulative strategies being used against you
• How to create win – win outcomes that ensure the other party lives up to their end of the bargain

Our next workshop takes place in Prince George on September 15; register HERE.

You don’t have to be a member of ICBA to take our courses; we look forward to seeing you there!

In a Journal of Commerce piece today, ICBA president Chris Gardner made the case for the North American Free Trade Agreement:

U.S. President Donald Trump has recently indicated he may “blow up” NAFTA, though Canadian and Mexican leaders are playing down his threat.

At the industry level, construction leaders see room for improvement and cause for concern.

“The issue goes to whether Canada has benefited from NAFTA and the reviews are compelling; Canada has long benefited from secure access to our largest market,” said Independent Contractors and Businesses Association president Chris Gardner.

“Renegotiating the agreement is of tremendous importance to Canada and to our economy. If we went back to the old regime, the U.S. picking and choosing would have a significant negative impact on the economy. Protectionism is not the way to go.”

Kids aren’t the only ones heading back to school this fall; you can head back to class too at one of our upcoming training sessions and fulfill any professional development requirements you might have.

Our training team is gearing up for a busy fall, with courses taking place nearly every day throughout September and October. Name a course you’re interested in; we probably have it. If not – email us at training@icba.ca with your suggestions.

Looking for safety courses? We have Occupational First Aid Level 1 and Fall Protection coming up, or check out our online Construction Safety Training System (CSTS-09), Confined Spaces Awareness, or National Construction Safety Awareness Training.

Going for your Gold Seal Certification in 2017/2018? Make sure to take the online and classroom Construction Industry Ethics courses; they’re mandatory as of January 1 this year.

Need management training? We have courses in Effective Management Skills, and Leading and Managing Organizational Change on our calendar, as well as Negotiation Skills, Time Management, and Incident Investigations.

We’ve brought our Arc Flash Safety Workshop back; we’ve also added Introduction to Electrical Quality Management Systems (QA/QC) to our course list.

Our full course list can be found at www.icba.ca/training, or feel free to email our training department at training@icba.ca for more information on any of our courses. We also offer courses online; visit www.icba.ca/training/online-courses for more.

You don’t have to be a member to take our courses, but it will save you money on your registration fees! If you’re interested in becoming a member of ICBA, visit www.icba.ca/become-a-member for more information.

Does your job involve presenting to coworkers/clients or facilitating meetings? Check out our new Effective Presentations course!

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• How to structure your presentations to tell a compelling and memorable story;
• How to overcome feeling nervous;
• How to anticipate and address questions and objections from your audience;
• How to work with the crowd through effective facilitation techniques;
• How to use effective presentation aids and materials.

The course includes group discussions and hands-on workshops; by the end of the seminar you’ll be comfortable speaking under pressure, organizing your thoughts quickly into an effective and compelling presentation, managing difficult questions, and ensuring your audience understands, and remembers, your key messages.

Interested in taking this course? The first session is in Kelowna in October; check out our upcoming course calendar for more information and to register at www.icba.ca/training. And while you’re there, make sure you subscribe to our bi-weekly training newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter!

Looking to offer this course at your office? We can do that too! Contact the training department at training@icba.ca to discuss how ICBA can bring the trainer directly to you for this or any other course we offer.

Are your proposals successful? Are your reports as effective as they could be? In our competitive world, your proposals need to be compelling, concise and articulate, and your reports need to be focused on exactly what your client needs.

Our new Writing Winning Proposals and Effective Reports course will teach you these skills. The two-part course will help you to develop the confidence and writing skills necessary to write effective proposals and reports.

In the Writing Winning Proposals workshop, you will:

• Learn about different types of proposals, from formal Request for Proposals (RFP) and related requests from vendors, to less formal proposals, estimates, and quotes
• Understand how to differentiate your proposal from others by articulating your competitive advantages
• Apply specific techniques across the planning, drafting, and revising stages for your proposal
• Understand what clients are looking for when they are evaluating your proposal

In the Writing Effective Reports workshop, you will:

• Learn about different types of reports, from formal technical reports to informal short reports
• Understand how to tailor your reports for senior management and other audience groups
• Avoid common mistakes
• Learn to craft a report work plan and structure your key sections and content

Both sessions take place on November 23 in Burnaby; you are able to register for just one of the seminars, or take both in one day. Visit www.icba.ca/training for more information on this or any of our other upcoming courses!

Looking to hear more from our training team? Sign up for our bi-weekly training newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter.

BURNABY, B.C.: The British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) released its Preliminary Report regarding its Site C Inquiry and the initial findings confirm that construction on the Site C Clean Energy Project should continue.

“There is absolutely nothing in the BCUC Report that would lead anyone to conclude that construction on Site C should not continue,” said Chris Gardner, President of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA).

The findings in the Preliminary Report confirm that Site C is not only on time but is one year ahead of schedule and the project is coming in under budget.

“The BCUC’s review supports the previous work by third-party consultants reviewing the project and the independent Joint Review Panel that studied Site C for 29 months, the project makes sense and is the best way for B.C. to lock-in a source of clean power for the next 100 years,” said Gardner.

Key findings from the BCUC Preliminary Report include:

• The Site C Project is, as of June 30, 2017, on time to start operating in November 2024.
• BC Hydro is managing the project to a more aggressive schedule to put the dam in service in 2023, one year earlier than the 2024 date.
• The BCUC confirmed that BC Hydro has identified cost savings in the Project that increase the amount of available contingency from the $794 million in the budget to a figure of $1.194 billion now.
• The BCUC found that it is not yet in a position to assess the cost impact to ratepayers of continuing, suspending or terminating construction.

According to Gardner, it is not surprising that the BCUC faced challenges getting sufficient information in some areas since they were only given six weeks to prepare their Preliminary Report.

“The compressed calendar and the fact that Site C is 20% complete does raise a question regarding the real value of the government requesting the BCUC to undertake this review,” Gardner said.

ICBA launched its #Get2Yes on Site C campaign with a media event at BC Hydro’s Vancouver headquarters on June 8, using 2,252 Site C pink slips to illustrate how many people work on the Peace River dam site and who are risk of being fired.

Site C was more than a decade in the planning, has undergone extensive environmental assessments and regulatory reviews, and was signed off by both the federal and provincial governments. Both the process and project have been upheld in fourteen different judicial reviews in the BC Supreme Court, the BC Court of Appeal and the Federal Court of Canada.

“The one thing that is clear from the BCUC’s Preliminary Report is that the focus should be on completing Site C on-budget and on-time so that B.C. will benefit from this strategic investment in our long-term clean energy future,” Gardner said.

The BCUC Report can be found here: http://www.carpediemprojects.ca/sitecinquiry-test/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/DOC_90185_A-13_Preliminary-Report.pdf

How’s your knowledge of tendering law? Let ICBA buy you breakfast while you get an overview!

Tendering as a method of procurement can be fraught with risks as the law changes and adapts, and we want to help you. ICBA’s training department invites you to register now for our October 20 breakfast session in Burnaby, presented by a leading construction lawyer.

Here’s the course outline:

• Introduction to the law of tendering including an overview of:
• The difference between tenders and RFPs and other procurement methods
• The bidder’s obligations to the tendering authority
• The tendering authority’s obligations to the bidder
• Tendering case law update and discussion of recent decisions
• Practical tips and advice on key aspects of tendering

Interested? Register for this or any of our other training courses at www.icba.ca/training. You don’t have to be a member to take any of our courses!

Looking to hear more from our training team? Sign up for our bi-weekly training newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter.

The Independent Contractors and Businesses Association and WorkSafeBC are pleased to invite all ICBA member companies and employees involved in the construction industry sector to participate in the 2017 Award for Construction Workplace Health and Safety Innovation.

Download Application Form HERE

This annual award recognizes all types of health and safety innovations, including, planning for safety at the design stage of projects, engineering controls that replace personal protective equipment, as well as innovative tools and other programs such or techniques that help prevent workplace incidents, injuries and illness.

For the purpose of these awards, innovation is defined as “a new, forward-thinking or new-to-B.C. idea implemented to create a safer, healthier work environment, which is unique in nature and stands apart from what is routine in the industry.”

Innovation Award

Workplace Health and Safety Innovation Award: Recognition of an innovative program, policy, tool or project that demonstrates a proven accomplishment in the area of health and safety for the construction industry sector. There is a $5,000 prize for the best submission.

Please refer to the criteria listed on the attached application form to see how your project will be judged. Judges may contact applicants for more information regarding the project.

Eligibility

All employees of ICBA member companies are eligible for the Annual Awards for Innovation in Workplace Health and Safety for Construction. The innovations must be in compliance with the British Columbia Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, Workers Compensation Act, Standards, and Building Code. Safety supply companies are excluded.

Application Process

Any person may nominate an individual who has contributed to a workplace health and safety innovation.

Applications must be made in writing to ICBA and include:

• A completed application form (information must be provided for all criteria listed on the application form)
• Each criterion must be addressed individually and in the same order as listed on the application form
• Download Application Form HERE

Application Deadline

Applications must be submitted before the close of business on November 1, 2017. Applications received after this date will not be eligible.

Submissions

• Submissions become the property of ICBA and will not be returned
• The decisions of the judges are final and binding
• ICBA reserves the right to publish submission details, in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIPP) Act, and may request finalists to appear for publicity reasons, including attendance at an awards ceremony
• ICBA’s staff and panel of judges must be allowed to visit the workplace to verify the entry
• Finalists are to appear for publicity reasons, including attendance at an awards ceremony

If you require more information about joining the association, for help with your entry preparation, or if you are unable to enter online, please contact Sabine at 604-298-7795 or email sabine@icba.ca.

Download Application Form HERE