The latest edition of the OEL Newsletter is now available for viewing. Click here to read.

We are now accepting nominations for the Doug Chalmers Award for Safety.

The award will be presented at the Leadership Day Conference, March 1, 2019, at Verdi Banquet Hall.

If you, or someone you know, should be getting this prestigious award, please click here for the nomination form.

If you, as a member of the OGCA, have an important event coming up this year, please be sure to let us know. We will be happy to post something in the newsletter to let everyone know. Simply email us at info@ogca.ca 

The use of recreational cannabis is now legalized and this raises new challenges for those in the construction industry, where safety is paramount and multiple employers and contractors may be operating on the same project or work site.

Please join Singleton Reynolds’ workplace law Partner Melanie Samuels as she discusses the unique challenges faced by employers in the construction industry, and how they can be practically managed.

Tuesday, January 29, 2019
8:00 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.  - PLEASE NOTE THE TIME CHANGE
Singleton Urquhart Reynolds Vogel LLP
150 King Street West, Suite 2500, Toronto

Breakfast will be served. Seating is limited.

Please click here for the registration form, and send it to Elizabeth@ogca.ca 

ecompliance is offering a webinar designed to help you achieve your COR certification. Please click here to access the information.

Please click here to read Dan Lawrie Insurance Brokers latest newsletter. 

Keeping Up With Canada’s Fast-Changing Employment and Labour Laws
2018 was a year of change for employers across Canada. The legalization of recreational cannabis coupled with seismic shifts in employment standards and labour relations legislation required many employers to change the way they do business. In Ontario, for example, Bill 148 (enacted by the former Liberal Government) ushered in a wide-range of “employee/union-friendly” amendments, only to be reversed (in part) by Bill 47 (enacted by the current Conservative Government). This back and forth has left many Ontario employers wondering whether they should roll back their own workplace policies and practices and, if so, how to accomplish this. The short answer is – rolling back policies and practices can be done, but there are important practical and legal considerations. To learn more, please click here.

When Resignation IS Resignation
Can an employee provide notice of resignation (or retirement) and then take it back? In a recent Ontario decision - English v. Manulife Financial Corporation, 2018 ONSC 5135 - the court answered that question “no”, so long as the employer has accepted the resignation and it was not given in the heat of the moment. To learn more, please click here.

On December 6, 2018, Bill 66 - the Restoring Ontario's Competitiveness Act, 2018 - passed First Reading by Ontario’s Conservative Government. 

Second Reading will likely occur after the legislature resumes on February 19, 2019. 

If enacted in its current form, Bill 66 will amend 18 pieces of legislation, including the Employment Standards Act, Labour Relations Act, Agricultural Employees Protection Act, and Pension Benefits Act. The intent of these changes is to reduce red tape and the regulatory burden currently placed on employers. 

Click here to read the Briefing Note, provided by Sherrard Kuzz, which is a summary of the key amendments.

The December 22 issue of Frank Zechner's Ontario Legislative Reports is available here.

Earlier issues not shown on the website, can be requested by contacting the OGCA (info@ogca.ca)

Don't forget that the registrations are still open for the 11th Construction Symposium, April 11 - 13, 2019 at the Blue Mountain Resort in Collingwood.

The initial brochure was distributed during the Construct Canada show, and if you missed it, please click here to review it. We've added more sessions and are confirming speakers now.

The Early Bird price runs out on January 31, 2019, so be sure to register today. Click here for the registration form, and visit our website at www.ogca.ca to pay.

If you wish to be a sponsor of this extremely popular event, which brings in over 700 superintendents, project managers, estimators, architects, lawyers, suppliers, owners and health and safety personnel, this is your last opportunity to do so. We are filling up on the 54 booths we have been allotted, and if you want to be able to display your products or services, now is the time! Please click here for the sponsorship package.

Here are the upcoming dates for some of the OGCA's events:

11th Construction Symposium - April 11 - 13, 2019 - Blue Mountain Resort, Collingwood

Safety Week - May 6 - 10, 2019

OGCA Annual Golf Tournament - Monday, July 8, 2019 - Glencairn Golf Course, Milton

Annual General Meeting and Conference - October 3 - 6, 2019 - J.W. Marriott Hotel, Lake Rosseau