In the debate over energy infrastruc-ture and other major projects, one common question recently has been whether proposals are being rigorously enough reviewed. This issue of the Monitor takes a close look at what major project review processes actually consist of.
Even with more renewables and energy efficiency, rising global demand means we’ll need to rely on conventional energy sources for a long time yet. Fossil fuels provided 84% of the world’s energy in 2012, and are projected to provide 78% in 2040.
Change is constant in business, no matter the industry, and when it comes to changes in an organization, it can be stressful for employees and supervisors alike.
Our Leading and Managing Organizational Change course on July 10 in Burnaby can help! It will prepare you to manage organizational change and will teach you how to lead and mentor others through these changes. You’ll understand the impacts change has on employees, and what you need to do manage and address any resistance. You’ll also learn practical tips and techniques on how to get your organization or client ready for upcoming changes and impacts. Through a series of hands-on workshops, you’ll develop a deeper understanding on what is involved in successfully adapting to and implementing change, both from a personal and professional perspective.
In this seminar, you’ll:
We’ve gotten some fantastic feedback on this course as well, including that the instructor “is very personable and easy to listen to,” and that he’s “engaging and very knowledgeable.”
You’ll earn 1 Gold Seal Credit and 7 Group B CPD Points from BC Housing; for more information and to register for this or any of our other upcoming courses, please visit icba.ca/training.
Our training team is also always here to help if you have any questions about this or any other course; email them at training@icba.ca and they will be happy to assist you.
ICBA believes strongly that the current, First Past The Post, method of electing MLAs is far superior to the three proportional representations systems being suggested by NDP Attorney General David Eby. For the sake of political and economic stability, we suggest BC voters vote to stop prop rep in this fall’s referendum.
More details, and a deeper analysis of the issues, will come shortly from ICBA, but, in the meantime:
Read this piece, by ICBA’s Jordan Bateman and Kwantlen Polytechnic University poli sci professor Shinder Purewal opposing the prop rep referendum process, which has been skewed by David Eby to try and sneak this radical change through.
Or this one, by Vaughn Palmer, looking at how Eby is “stacking the deck”.
Or this analysis by Keith Baldrey, which looks at how the power in this new system will be given to party bosses.
Introduction to Blueprint Reading
Reading blueprints is an integral part of many construction careers, whether you work in residential or commercial construction. Unfamiliar with how to read blueprints and specifications? We’re here to help!
Our Introduction to Blueprint Reading course is perfect for those who have little or no background in blueprint reading. Here’s what’s covered in this one-day course:
Our next session is June 26 in Victoria, and then July 27 in Burnaby. You’ll also earn 1 Gold Seal Credit and 8 Group A CPD Points from BC Housing.
We always get great feedback on this course so don’t miss your chance to register! You can sign up for this or any of our other workshops at www.icba.ca/training.
And while you’re there, don’t forget to sign up for our bi-weekly training newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter.
It is with heavy hearts that we report that construction icon and ICBA life member Ed Rempel passed away today, June 11. Ed and his wife of 60 years, Myrtle-Anne, are beloved members of the ICBA family and with Ed’s late brother, Ewald, founded Rempel Bros. Concrete. We grieve with Myrtle-Anne and the Rempel family today.
Rempel Bros., at one point, was the largest open shop concrete company in the province, thanks to the Rempels’ persistence in bidding, advocacy for open shop, and belief in treating their employees fairly.
The Rempels were key to open shop construction growing in B.C., as they supplied open shop builders with cement. Several times, unions tried to organize Rempel Bros., but the family had built a loyal and well-cared-for employee group, and every effort failed. If the unions had been able to certify Rempel Bros., they could have choked off the concrete supply and put non-union builders out of business. “They were far and above, in my opinion, the key to this whole thing,” says Ken Funk, another early-era ICBA member.
Myrtle-Anne recently told ICBA about the scare tactics used against Ed and her family: “At night, they would come up and down our driveway, flashing their lights. We would see the cars out there. Sometimes they’d get out of the cars and there’d be six big guys in our driveway, at our home,” she recalled. On one occasion, her 16-year-old daughter was followed in her car from school, and had to detour from the empty residence to a nearby Rempel Bros. plant before the trailing vehicle sped off. Such incidents led Myrtle-Anne’s mother to become too fearful to babysit her grandchildren, and led some of her friends to fear for their own safety if they continued to socialize with her. “The tension was so electric in the air,” she said of the mid 1970s, when Ed, Myrtle-Anne and Ewald first helped form ICBA.
During the pivotal negotiations over who would build the Expo 86 projects – open shop or building trades unions – Ed was a key contributor. It was so controversial at the time that when Ed met with Expo boss Jimmy Pattison, he was asked to get off the elevator two floors below and then take the stairs. ICBA, prompted by people like Ed Rempel, told Pattison “We’ll build Expo.” And the Rempels (with a lot of other ICBA members) did.
Our generation at ICBA stands on the shoulders of persistent, principled leaders like Ed Rempel.
A celebration of Ed’s life will be held July 9, 1:30 PM at Sevenoaks Alliance Church in Abbotsford.
Ed was father to Dr. Cheryl Holmes, Kirk W.D. Rempel, and predeceased by son Bruce Rempel; grandfather to Derek Holmes (Victoria Holmes), Meredith Holmes, Shae Rempel (Evyn Bartlett), Alyssa Rempel, Samantha Rempel; and great grandfather to Chase McCrum, Spence McCrum, Oliver Holmes, Vanessa Domina and Ricardina Rico Valen, Sydney and Elyse Bartlett.
Are emails the bane of your existence some days? Do you want to learn some valuable time-saving shortcuts for dealing with your Microsoft Outlook?
Of course you do. And our Microsoft Outlook – Strategic Management course will help you do just that! This one-day course will teach you powerful organizational strategies that will save you hours of time every week.
Here’s what you’ll learn:
Plus, you’ll earn 1 Gold Seal Credit and 7 Group A CPD Points from BC Housing.
Our next session is on June 22 in Burnaby, and then we’re heading to Prince George on June 27! Register for this or any of our other upcoming training at www.icba.ca/training. We add new courses nearly every week!
What are you doing for breakfast on June 26? We have a suggestion for you!
Our training department would like to welcome you at our Construction, Excavation and Demolition Involving Hazardous Building Materials breakfast session in Burnaby.
This new breakfast session will provide you with an opportunity to learn about the new changes to the OHS Regulation Section 20.112, which requires additional information during hazardous materials surveys. You’ll also learn how these changes can impact your scope of work under renovation and demolition projects involving these materials.
In addition, this session will also provide a refresher on regulatory sampling requirements for submitting suspect bulk materials to a laboratory for determination of asbestos content, and a limited discussion of lead and silica bulk sampling protocols.
Plus, you’ll earn 2 Group A CPD Points from BC Housing! You can learn more about this breakfast session at www.icba.ca/training.
Did you know that you get a discount for registering three or more people in the majority of our training courses? Members also save even more on their course fees; learn more about ICBA membership at www.icba.ca/become-a-member.