Ontario Commercial Arborists Association

Resources:

• News Releases: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Premier of Ontario Doug Ford

• Ontario.ca: List of Essential Workplaces

• Government of Canada: Resources for Canadian Businesses What is the Canada Emergency Response Benefit

• WSIB: Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) update

• CFIB: COVID-19 Small Business Help Centre

• IHSA: COVID-19 Update

• Ontario Chamber of Commerce: COVID-19 PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS TOOLKIT FOR ONTARIO BUSINESSES

• Canadian Chamber of Commerce: COVID-19: Business Resilience

ESSENTIAL WORKPLACES GUIDANCE

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, OCAA would like to assure our members that we are continuing to monitor the situation and working on keeping you informed and providing you with resources that may help. To better assist you in following the guidelines laid out by the Government, which can be found in the link below. We have extracted the sections and highlighted the key points that pertain to how you will be able to work and to do so effectively within the government guidelines.

It is important that we follow our regular safe work practices as well as the new social distancing practices. OCAA has put together a checklist that will help you maneuver through this pandemic. We encourage you to stay connected and share your concerns and issues so we can work through this together.

Government list of essential workplaces.

https://www.ontario.ca/page/list-essential-workplaces

• Maintenance:

  • 20. Maintenance, repair and property management services strictly necessary to manage and maintain the safety, security, sanitation and essential operation of institutional, commercial, industrial and residential properties and buildings.

• Construction:

  • 27. Construction projects and services associated with the healthcare sector, including new facilities, expansions, renovations and conversion of spaces that could be repurposed for health care space.

  • 28. Construction projects and services required to ensure safe and reliable operations of, or to provide new capacity in, critical provincial infrastructure, including transit, transportation, energy and justice sectors beyond the day-to-day maintenance.

  • 29.1 Construction projects that are due to be completed before October 4, 2020 and that would provide additional capacity in the production, processing, manufacturing or distribution of food, beverages or agricultural products.

  • 30. Residential construction projects where,

    • i. a footing permit has been granted for single family, semi-detached and townhomes

    • ii. an above grade structural permit has been granted for condominiums, mixed use and other buildings, or

    • iii. the project involves renovations to residential properties and construction work was started before April 4, 2020.

• Resources and Energy:

  • 33. Electricity generation, transmission, distribution and storage and natural gas distribution, transmission and storage

  • Community Services:

    • 34. Businesses that deliver or support the delivery of services including:

    • iv. Critical infrastructure repair and maintenance including roads, dams, bridges etc.

What Makes Your Job Essential:

• Services strictly necessary to manage and maintain the safety, security, sanitation and essential operation

• Associated with the healthcare, food, beverages or agricultural products.

• Infrastructure, including transit, transportation, energy and justice sectors beyond

• Due to be completed before October 4, 2020

• An above grade structural permit has been granted

• Work was started before April 4, 2020.

• Electricity generation, transmission, distribution and storage and natural gas distribution

• Critical infrastructure repair and maintenance

On-Site Sanitation Employers focus on:

• Access to soap and water (ways to properly clean hands) or alcohol-based hand sanitizer

• washroom facilities

• sanitizing commonly touched surfaces or areas (hoists, site trailers, door handles, equipment, residential units)

• avoiding the sharing of hand tools and power tools. If sharing is necessary, enable sanitization of shared equipment.

• posting signage on hygiene in English and the majority workplace language so everyone can understand how to do their part

Schedules should consider:

• limiting number of workers to critical number by staggering work schedules

• sanitation of sites and workspaces

• site planning to facilitate appropriate physical distancing (two metres) between workers during any particular shift

• work-site mobility and transportation, including hoist operations