Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of BC

BC leads the nation in expectations for more construction work in 2022, according to this recent Merit Canada survey. But we're also facing the worst impact when it comes to labour shortages and government red tape and taxes.

The oil industry is recovering fast in Alberta -- and so are the businesses and services that rely on it.

What do you think, B.C.? Up to host another Winter Olympics?

WELLNESS WEDNESDAY #50: The People Left Behind Each week, ICBA’s Jordan Bateman reflects on what we’ve learned as we participate in ICBA’s Workplace Wellness Program. This program is free for all ICBA members check out icba.ca/wellness for details. In our online portion this week, we look at what happens to those left behind when someone dies by suicide.... This is something too many of us have to face. When I was 17, I worked with (and looked up to) a mid-20s bartender at a local restaurant, who took his life. He was an amazing guy, cool and kind and hilarious. I was just a naïve kid, but never in a million years would I have thought he dealt with the kind of issues that would lead him to suicide. One Saturday night, he was there, laughing and filling our drink orders. The next Saturday night, we lit a candle to remember him, and tears flowed among the staff. There was no memorial for him, as his family closed ranks because of the stigma of suicide. I’ll never know what led him to that decision. I wish one of us had seen what was happening beforehand, but I’m not sure there was much warning certainly nothing that a bunch of teenagers and early twentysomethings were able to pick up on. It’s been more than 25 years since that awful week, and still I think about it, and him, from time-to-time. Today, there are more resources available. Many workplaces have Employee Assistance Plans, where we can call and get counselling. There are bereavement support groups that do wonderful work with people. There’s even a hotline for help 1-833-456-4566 (or text 45645). We’ve come a long way in dealing with the stigma of suicide and mental health. But there’s further to go. ***Remember: if someone you know is considering suicide or has already created a suicide plan and you sense it's an emergency situation, act immediately and call 911. And if you’re contemplating this yourself, call the Canada Suicide Prevention Service at 833-456-4566.***

TRAINING TUESDAY: Kerry and Jordan talk about ICBA's upcoming, free town hall. ICBA Townhall: Hiring Skilled Foreign Workers - The Processes, Pathways, and Procedures https://icba.simplesignup.ca/en/11334/index.php Wednesday, June 15, 2022 | 9AM to noon... Missed this one? Check out icba.ca/courses The construction sector expects to see hundreds of thousands of new jobs open up in the next 10 years, but factors such as an aging workforce, ongoing effects of COVID and a lack of student awareness of opportunities in the trades mean that the industry may be short as many as 81,000 workers by 2030 (BuildForce Canada). Studies have shown that immigration is one of the key answers to this shortage, but for many employers, the process for recruiting and employing a foreign worker seems complex and overwhelming. Join ICBA for this 3-hour session with representatives from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program and Canada Border Services Agency to learn about a range of immigration pathways through which both temporary foreign workers and permanent residents can gain entry to Canada. This session will cover: What immigration pathways are available What is involved On the employee side On the employer side Application processes and timeframes Arrival processes At the border What to do/not to do In addition to informative presentations from our speakers, attendees will have the opportunity to submit questions prior to the session, and to ask questions in a live Q&A period. ICBA Townhall: Hiring Skilled Foreign Workers - The Processes, Pathways, and Procedures https://icba.simplesignup.ca/en/11334/index.php Wednesday, June 15, 2022 | 9AM to noon Missed this one? Check out icba.ca/courses

Looking for something interesting in your AirPods this weekend while you garden or clean out the garage? Check out this interview with Trevor Haynes, president of ICBA member LodgeLink.

Our Jordan Bateman talks with Jim Goddard about the hope of a COVID vaccine, how BC small businesses can survive until then. the disaster of mobility pricing, and more.

The blockaders are back -- fighting a project that has been fully vetted and approved; is under construction; is putting much-needed dollars into the economy, First Nations, and municipalities; and supported by the majority of British Columbians. Professional protestors gonna protest, I guess. #get2yes #got2yes #Stick2Yes

Jock Finlayson and Ken Peacock of the Business Council of British Columbia lay out a 4-point plan to help John Horgan steer BC out of the recession: 1. Reduce the deficit in a measured, careful way -- working toward balancing the budget 2. Review the competitiveness of major export industries 3. Change tax, regulatory and public procurement policies to encourage investment and the scaling-up of more B.C. companies... 4. Step up efforts to expand the head-office sector Sounds reasonable to us!

Our president, Chris Gardner, can't believe there hasn't been more attention paid to rebuilding the BC economy.

Mark Milke and Lennie Kaplan did the math: government revenue generated from oil and gas eclipsed the federal government’s contribution to family allowance and children’s benefits since 1970. Basically, Canadian energy has helped families for 50 years. https://energynow.ca//commentary-canadian-oil-and-gas-fu/

Vaughn Palmer recaps the debate, and specifically Sonia Furstenau taking John Horgan behind the woodshed: --- I did grapple with the decision to call the election, [Horgan] claimed. I did so because I believe we need to put the politics behind us.... [Furstenau] saw that one coming. It’s astonishing to hear you say that you needed to put politics behind us by putting us into politics front and centre in a campaign when we didn’t need it. We’re here on a stage debating when we should be in the legislature making sure people are getting what they need. Horgan tried his second, no less dubious line of defence: It’s never a bad idea to ask British Columbians who they want to lead them. Furstenau was ready for that as well. It is a bad idea when you break an agreement, she returned. You’re willing to break your word. You’re willing to break agreements. You’re willing to break legislation that you yourself passed in the legislature in order to put the interests of your party (ahead), in order to seek that power and that majority that you so want for obedience in the legislature. Ouch and double ouch. It’s not about us Sonia, said Horgan, groping for a comeback. It’s about British Columbians. The premier has been hammered on this issue since day 1. Yet he and his advisers come up with lines that make him sound like a used-car salesman trying to close a deal on an old beater up on blocks in the front yard.

BC Liberal leader Andrew Wilkinson shredded the Horgan NDP's expensive, unfair sweetheart deal with the building trades unions -- leaving 85% of the industry out of taxpayer-funded projects.

Kerry and Jordan talk about an upcoming webinar on Roller Compacted Concrete construction... (Roller compacted concrete is a modified blend of concrete materials such as fly ash, Portland cement, water, sand, aggregates and additives that contains much less water than conventional Portland cement concrete.) Thursday, Oct. 22 | 11:30 AM to 1 PM https://icba.simplesignup.ca/en/6341/index.php... All ICBA Training courses at icba.ca/training

Vancouver's latest tax grab trial balloon looks to be of the lead variety -- hopefully it crashes on greedy City Hall's front lawn.

30 Things to Think About This Election -- #23 When the BC NDP promised to eliminate portables in Surrey schools, it seemed a lofty goal. Three years later, it's even worse than when they took power. Another broken promise.

Our Jordan Bateman joined The Orca's Maclean Kay to break down the Great Debate.

30 Things to Think About This Election -- #22 At a time where we should be stretching every taxpayer dollar as far as it can possible go, the John Horgan NDP would rather just dump them into the pockets of their friends and insiders at the building trades unions. This time, it's a $164M overrun to build a hospital.

Think ICBC is a dumpster fire? Just wait until the Horgan NDP add strata insurance to that mess!

It's Debate Night in BC -- maybe the last chance for leaders to make a splash with the BC electorate during this campaign marked by a distinct lack of public excitement.

Day 21 of our 30 Things to Think About This Election We've long suffered from the Eby Jeebies, but it went to new heights when anti-LNG protestors shut down government offices while using Dave Eby's handbook on how to protest.

New from ICBA: a 2020 election edition of our Construction Monitor, looking at the impact of the parties' records and promises on BC's 200,000+ open shop construction workers. Spoiler Alert: Premier "Us Vs. Them" is awful for the open shop. https://www.icbaindependent.ca//ConMon-2020-election-WEB.p

Day 20 of our 30 Things to Think About This Election When John Horgan rewarded his building trades union cronies with billions in exclusive construction contracts, he bungled the details -- paying some workers less than minimum wage and paying work camp service staff more than the ironworkers building the actual project.

Think the Horgan NDP are doing a decent job managing the recession? Think again: "Employment in Montréal is 1.4% below its pre-pandemic level. In Vancouver, employment is still 7.9% below its pre-pandemic level, a degree of recovery lower than BC as a whole." Since February, BC has lost 39,000 jobs just in construction -- that's a loss of 16.3% of our workers).