Earlier this week, ICBA and 45 other employer associations – representing industries from restaurants to construction – pulled out of the NDP’s sham review of WorkSafeBC. See our comments HERE.

The media has picked up on this important story:

• The Vancouver Sun: “The business community has resigned en masse from a review of B.C.’s workers’ compensation system, saying the government-appointed reviewer is regurgitating recommendations made a decade ago for the B.C. Federation of Labour… ‘When you undertake a review in this area, it has got to be done ensuring it’s a fair independent review that is going to strike an appropriate balance,’ said Chris Gardner, president of [ICBA], one of the 46 groups that quit the process. ‘The concern is Janet Patterson is biased in how she approaches this review and the focus will be on fairly significant and dramatic wholesale changes in WorkSafeBC.'”
• The Orca: “Patterson then took 23 of her 24 recommendations from her 2009 report and added them into the current review. Any semblance of fairness or an unbiased review vanished, and thus the 46 industry associations pulled out… Essentially, the NDP tabbed a player to referee a game they’re playing in – who then changed the rules at halftime.”
• Black Press: “‘We were willing to participate in a balanced an impartial process to review the system,’ Richard Truscott, B.C. and Alberta vice president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said in a statement Wednesday. ‘However, the writing has been on the wall from the very beginning that the review lacked objectivity.’
• Business In Vancouver: “Signatories to the letter published Thursday – which include the BC Chamber of Commerce, Greater Vancouver Board of Trade and Mining Association of BC – say they were ‘quite taken aback and dismayed’ by what they see as an expansion of the review’s original scope.”
• Journal of Commerce: “‘We just want a fair and independent process,’ said Doug Alley, managing director of the Employers’ Forum.

Looking to learn how to improve the management and business systems of your construction business? Our upcoming Construction Business Management workshop is here to help!

At the end of the course participants will be able to:

• Understand the strategic planning process and how to implement it within their context
• Understand the importance of a business plan and how to prepare one
• Understand the participants within the construction industry – their roles, responsibilities and limitations
• Understand the benefits of a participatory management culture
• Formulate a marketing plan and understand the marketing mix
• Develop a human resource management plan
• Understand the employment cycle/process
• Develop an employee performance evaluation system
• Increase staff morale and engagement
• Understand operational planning for construction companies
• Formulate a financial plan, budgets, ratios and break-even analysis
• Understand the importance of financial internal controls
• Develop benchmarks and key performance indicators
• Understand bonding and insurance for construction companies
• Use risk management tools to identify risk and how to mitigate risk

You’ll also earn 5 Gold Seal Credits and 30 CPD Points from BC Housing!

Our next two-day session takes place in Burnaby on September 12-13, and in Kelowna November 14-15. You can register for this or any of our other upcoming sessions at www.icba.ca/courses.

And while you’re there, subscribe to our training newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter.

Earlier today, ICBA and 45 other business and industry associations pulled out of the review of WorkSafeBC being led by labour lawyer Janet Patterson. Here’s why:

• Three reviews of WSBC have been conducted by the NDP Government since early 2018 – the Petrie Report, the Bogyo Report, and, now the Patterson Review.
• Janet Patterson, appointed by NDP Labour Minister Harry Bains, was previously an advisor to the BC Federation of Labour and co-authored a report commissioned by the BC Fed in 2009, entitled “Insult to Injury – Changes to the BC Workers’ Compensation System.”
• Minister Bains indicated that the Patterson Review would be “focused” in nature.  Patterson herself stated it would be “limited”.
• However, it is now apparent that Patterson is undertaking an extensive system-wide review of WSBC based on the work she did for the BC Fed in 2009. It is apparent that Janet Patterson is now reviewing all aspects of WSBC and, in our opinion, is as broad and far-reaching as that previously conducted by the Royal Commission on Workers’ Compensation in British Columbia the late 1990s and which issued its Final Report on January 20, 1999.
• Employers have lost confidence that the review can be done in a fair and impartial manner.
• In 2009, Patterson and her co-authors drafted 24 recommendations for the BC Fed for radical changes to WSBC – in Patterson’s memo to the employer community earlier this month outlining the focus of her review, all but one of those recommendations were included!
• As a result, the Employer Community has lost confidence that the Patterson Review can be conducted in an “independent, impartial and balanced manner” and is withdrawing from the process.

This statement is being released by 46 business organizations and associations representing all parts of the provincial economy – including ICBA.

Employers completely fund the workers’ compensation system. Employers also have a long history of cooperating and working with WorkSafeBC to promote safety and ensure safer and healthier workplaces for their workers. Three reviews of the claims adjudication and payment functions of the workers compensation system have been conducted since early 2018. Yet, despite being the sole funding source, employer engagement in these reviews has been limited. In the most recent review, engagement has been especially minimal and the scope of the review has expanded well beyond what we believe was originally intended. We have lost confidence that the review can be done in a manner considered fair to all parties.

In early 2018, under direction from the provincial government, the Board of Directors of WorkSafeBC (WSBC) appointed former appeal adjudicator Paul Petrie to review WSBC’s claim adjudication and payment policies. Selected members of the employer community were consulted by Mr. Petrie. That Report was delivered to the WSBC Board at the end of March 2019 and released promptly.

In October 2018, again under direction from the provincial government, the Board of Directors of WSBC appointed former senior WSBC staff member Terry Bogyo to review options on how to manage the unappropriated balance in the Accident Fund. No Terms of Reference for this review were made available to stakeholders. The employer community had extremely limited involvement in this process. The Bogyo report was completed in December 2018, but not released by government until July 18, 2019.

In March 2019, the provincial government directly appointed Ms. Janet Patterson, a retired labour lawyer and worker advocate, to complete a “focused review” (as described by Minister of Labour Harry Bains) of the workers’ compensation system. The employer community met with Ms. Patterson once on April 26. The Terms of Reference for her review were released shortly after the meeting with employer representatives. Stakeholders were asked to respond to items in her Terms of Reference by July 19, which we did.

In their submission to the Patterson Review, the BC Federation of Labour referenced a report it commissioned in 2009. The report was written by a group of worker advocates, one of whom was Ms. Patterson, the current Reviewer appointed by the provincial government.

On August 6, the employer community received an additional list of “selected issues” for which the Reviewer, Ms. Patterson, is seeking further consultation from key stakeholders. In the 2009 report referenced by the BC Federation of Labour, the authors provided 24 recommendations and proposed amendments to WSBC. Of those 24 recommendations, all but one are on Ms. Patterson’s 2019 “selected issues for further stakeholder consultation” list, developed latterly under her ongoing review, which is scheduled to report out on September 30, 2019.

In the view of the Employer Community, the list of “selected issues” completely alters the scope of the “focused review” to a comprehensive examination of all aspects of the workers’ compensation system. It is important to recognize that recent comprehensive system reviews have taken much longer. Because of the need for extensive consultation one took almost a year to complete and the other two years. The employer community was given less than a month to prepare constructive input into what has become a system-wide review.

As a result, the Employer Community has lost confidence that the current Review can be conducted in an “independent, impartial and balanced manner” as was provided for in Ms. Patterson’s original Review’s Terms of Reference. The Employer Community has decided not to participate further in this review.

Chris and Jordan chat about the performance of Horgan cabinet members Dave Eby, Claire Trevena, Lana Popham, Harry Bains, Doug Donaldson and Jinny Sims. Plus an update from NE BC, federal election thoughts and Troy Aikman talk.

Are you an effective manager? Could you be better? Check out our Effective Management Skills workshop!

How much untapped potential, energy, commitment and creativity currently exists within your organization, team or department?  What would it mean to your culture and bottom line if you could learn to unleash just 10% more of the latent human potential?

This course is for all managers, supervisors, team leaders or anyone who is responsible for achieving results through people and who want to bring the best out in people.

Here’s some of what’s covered:

• Understanding group dynamics and how to develop team synergy
• Developing clear performance expectations for the team
• The four core elements of a high-performance team
• The principles of effective delegation
• The vital importance of developing clear “outcome-based” performance expectations whenever possible
• How to listen so that people feel understood
• How disagree someone without being disagreeable
• The essential difference between influence and persuasion
• How to deliver reinforcing or positive feedback in a manner that makes it meaningful

And much more! Plus you’ll earn 1 Gold Seal Credit and 7.5 CPD Points from BC Housing.

The next session is in Burnaby on August 13, followed by August 20 in Victoria, September 16 in Prince George, and October 10 in Fort St John. Visit www.icba.ca/courses for more information and to register for this or any of our other upcoming courses.

ICBA’s Chris Gardner and Jordan Bateman make the announcement you’ve been waiting for – Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famer (and FOX Sports commentator) Troy Aikman will be our guest at the 44th ICBA AGM Gala Dinner in Vancouver on Nov. 5. Aikman won three Super Bowls with the 1990s Cowboys, cementing his place as an icon with “America’s Team.” Tickets go on sale Sept. 5 at icba.ca/agm.

As a method of procurement, tendering can be fraught with risks. Errors in accepting or evaluating bids can result in legal liability on the part of the tendering authority, or errors in the bid submitted in response to an Invitation to Tender can result in legal liability on the part of the bidder.  The law of tenders is complicated and constantly evolving as the courts and the construction industry adapt to new technology and evolving project delivery methods. Let us help you with our Overview of Tendering Law breakfast session on August 9 in Burnaby!

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

Plus, you’ll earn 2.5 CPD Points from BC Housing. Register for this or any of our other upcoming courses at www.icba.ca/courses.

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