Draft of the new Fees By-law

Earlier this month we reported that the City of Winnipeg's Standing Policy Committee on Planning, Property and Development passed a proposal to increase all building permit related fees dramatically as of May 1, 2008.

Please find a draft of the new Fees By-law HERE.

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WCB Advises Contractors of a Change in "Bid Letters"

Contractors requesting a letter from the WCB confirming their accident history may see a slight change in the near future.

Owners sometimes request that the contractor provide these "bid letters" to confirm accident or incident frequency for the purposes of pre-qualification or due diligence. The WCB advises that bid letters will continue to be provided upon request, HOWEVER, if the contractor making the request has NOT provided the WCB with the number of hours their employees have worked, the column containing "Time Loss Injury Frequency Rate" will be blank.

The WCB requests that employers supply an accurate estimate of payroll as the WCB insurance premium is calculated by applying the employer's assessment rate against each $100 of payroll.

Although it's not a manditory requirement, the WCB documentation also requests that employers report "Total Hours Worked." (Approximately 80 per cent of contractors already supply Total Hours Worked.) In the past, where the hours were not available, the WCB would use an estimate to calculate the Time Loss Injury Frequency Rate - an estimate that might not have been completely accurate.

WCA encourages all contractors to supply "hours" wherever possible. The injury data compiled by the WCB, and provided to the Workplace Safety and Heath Division, forms the basis of a number of important policy decisions and accurate statistics are extremely useful.  

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Apprenticeship Futures Commission Report Released

This week, Competitiveness, Training and Trade Minister Andrew Swan received the consensus report of the Apprenticeship Futures Commission (AFC) on modernizing and expanding Manitoba's apprenticeship system to better meet the needs of the province's growing labour market.

The 12-member committee consulted with the public and stakeholders regarding existing apprenticeship and related training, and certification systems to identify 22 recommendations.

Some of the recommendations include:

• increasing the capacity of the technical training system
• creating a comprehensive public promotion and education campaign about apprenticeship in Manitoba
• exploring incentives to increase employer participation
• enhancing the financial aid to apprentices while in school
• reducing waiting periods for apprentices
• increasing the participation of under-represented groups

For the full list of recommendations, click HERE.

"I would like to thank the members of the committee for their dedicated work on developing a comprehensive list of recommendations for change," Swan said in Thursday's press release. "I will be looking closely at their suggestions for updating and expanding the apprenticeship system in forthcoming weeks in order to attract more workers to the program and increase the availability of skilled labour to meet the growing demand."

According to Ron Hambley, Winnipeg Construction Association Executive Vice-President and member of the committee, now that the recommendations have been released, the industry needs to see government develop an implementation plan quickly.

"In the months leading up to the formation of the AFC, our members had been discussing the difficulties associated with getting their apprentices into school," explains Hambley. "There were questions about relevant curriculum, questions about new trades, and questions about how the existing system could possibly deal with another 4,000 apprentices. Now that the report has been released, our members will be anticipating that changes will be forthcoming and in some cases, be dramatic."

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Provide Adult Students With Two Weeks of On-the-Job Training

Together with Employment Manitoba, WCA is conducting a 24-week Introductory Construction Industry Training Pilot Program (ICITP) delivered by Assiniboine Community College. The program, which began December 7, 2007, provides 15 registered adult students with basic training and skills essential for working in the construction industry. Program content includes money management, teamwork, blueprint reading, safety training, basic carpentry skills and an introduction to skilled trades in construction.

WCA Needs You! WCA needs you to take an ICITP Program student(s) for two weeks of on-the job training with the intent of employing them at program completion. Note: Employers are not obligated to pay wages. These students are committed to starting careers in the construction industry. On-the-job training is scheduled for May 20 - May 30.

REGISTER to take a student for two weeks of training.

For more information on the ICITP Program, contact Kelly Pochuk at 775-8664 x2225 or kpochuk@wpgca.com.

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Vector Wins Family Enterprise of the Year Award

Vector Construction Ltd. was recently honoured by the local chapter of the Canadian Association of Family Enterprises. The family-run construction company managed by Don Whitmore, his son David and son-in-law Bob Spriggs received top honours at the first-ever family enterprise of the year awards.

With approximately 200 employees, Vector is a local business and longtime WCA member that has achieved international growth with its specialty concrete restoration work that now includes patented technologies. Congratulations!

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Support the Skills Manitoba Competition!

Winnipeg Construction Association is once again organizing the Carpentry and Cabinetry Competition at Skills Manitoba on Thursday, April 10. Skills Manitoba is designed to improve the public perception of trade-based careers by bringing students, employers and educators together for a friendly day-long competition.

WCA is in need of a willing individual to judge the Cabinetry Competition. Interested individuals can contact Kelly Pochuk at kpochuk@wpgca.com or 775-8664 ext. 2225.

WCA is also looking for sponsorship and contributions toward the bursary, materials or registrant prizes. To view the Skills Manitoba High School Building Competition support form, click HERE.

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Rotary Career Symposium: Volunteers Needed!

The Winnipeg Construction Association is once again hosting a Trade Up! Careers in Manitoba Construction booth at the Rotary Career Symposium, an event designed to provide valuable information about various education and employment options available to students in Senior 1 through Senior 4.

With Manitoba's construction climate at an all-time high, skilled tradespeople are in high demand. The need to reach students who are considering their career options has never been greater. Help us promote careers in Manitoba construction by volunteering for a two-hour shift at this year's symposium, April 9 & 10, 2008.

To participate, contact Twila Driedger at tdriedger@wpgca.com or 775-8664 ext. 2242.

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Education News

 

Gold Seal

The next Gold Seal exam is scheduled for Friday, April 11, 2008.

 

Construction Blueprint Reading - Introduction

Two-day Course: May 20-21, 2008

Registration Deadline: May 12, 2008

Gold Seal Credit: Two Points (WCA)

Location: Red River College

Unsure where to find information? This course is an overview of commercial construction drawings for buildings, with a focus on architectural and structural content, but including an overview of mechanical and electrical drawings. Also included will be an introduction to the Project Manual (Specifications).

REGISTRATION Construction Blueprint Reading - Intro

WCA Member Fee: $350.00 + GST

 

Project Scheduling with MS Project 2003 (Level 1)

Two-day Course: May 26-27, 2008

Registration Deadline: May 20, 2008

Gold Seal Credit: Two Points (WCA)

Location: Red River College

This course is introductory in nature and is intended for individuals in the design and construction industries. Learn the theory of critical path project scheduling and use Microsoft Project 2003 to schedule projects, assign resources and track project progress.

REGISTRATION Project Scheduling with MS Project 2003

WCA Member Fee: $350.00 + GST

 

Introduction to Quantity Take-Offs

Two-day Course: June 9-10, 2008

Registration Deadline: June 2, 2008

Gold Seal Credit: Two Points (WCA)

Location: Red River College

This course is intended for individuals who are new to the estimating process, but have some knowledge of the organization of a set of construction drawings. You will learn to extract information from a set of commercial construction drawings in order to prepare a quantity take-off for some of the required materials. There will be numerous hands-on exercises using a variety of actual construction drawings. Also covered will be some common methods of organizing the data onto ledger sheets or Excel spreadsheets. Previous computer experience is recommended.

REGISTRATION Introductory to Quantity Take-Offs

WCA Member Fee: $350.00 + GST

 

Construction Law - Gold Seal Online Training

Objectives: This course will provide managers with the tools to help them understand construction contracts, write contracts, identify simple errors in construction contracts,
understand the process claim and learn to solve construction disputes effectively.

This course has been accredited by the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) to five (5) credits towards Gold Seal Certification upon successful completion of this course. A final
mark of 75% is required in order to receive a certificate of completion.

REGISTRATION Construction Law

WCA Member Fee: $90.00 + GST

 

 

Dale Carnegie Courses

 

Leadership Advantage

When: April 15, 16 & 17, 2008

Where: Canad Inn Polo Park

Time: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Duration: 3 Days

Price: $1,495.00 plus GST

 

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E-mail: wca@wpgca.com

 

Visit our full Web site at www.wpgca.com

Winnipeg Construction Association is located at

290 Burnell Street, Winnipeg, MB  R3G 2A7

(204)775-8664

Copyright of Winnipeg Construction Association © 2007. 

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