b'OSWCA EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS MESSAGEBALANCING HEALTHAND SAFETY WITH ECONOMIC INTERESTSPATRICK MCMANUS Y our Association continueshealth and safety concerns without being ACTING EXECUTIVEDIRECTOR to advocate strongly for ourso onerous that they impact a companys members. Our focus is gettingability to work. We are looking at the the industry back to workingviability of enhanced requirements for at pre-COVID capacity, but wepersonal protective equipment; for find ourselves in an unprece- requiring worksites to conduct contact dented situation. Municipalitiestracing in the event of an outbreak on across the province are deferring ora project; and other health and safety cancelling projects, and capital worksmeasures, all while keeping your best inter-budgets are being redirected to maintainests in mind. We want to make sure it is core government services. Debt at all threemanageable for the sewer and watermain levels of government is skyrocketing andsector to do business, while also making the long-term outlook for infrastructuresure we are doing what we need to do to spending is becoming less certain than itkeep the sector open. has been for a decade. OSWCA is working with all levels of Given these circumstances, we have beengovernment, other Associations and all lobbying the federal and provincial govern- our stakeholders so that together, we can ments on the need for infrastructurekeep our sector working.stimulus funding, on allowing holdbackPlease contact the OSWCA office with money to flow, and on keeping the industryany questions or suggestions. We welcome open to help spark economic growth. A healthy construction industry is critical toyour feedback.the economic well-being of our province, so sustainable spending is more critical now than it has ever been before. We are focused and are ensuring that this message is making it to the right decision-makers at all levels of government.WE ARE MAKING SIGNIFICANT We are making significant headway, havingHEADWAY, HAVING RESOLVED THE resolved the holdback issue at the begin-ning of April and getting agreement from the province to reopen earthworks and siteHOLDBACK ISSUE AT THE BEGINNING servicing on private development lands at the beginning of May. The next step, andOF APRIL AND GETTING AGREEMENT perhaps the most important one moving forward, is infrastructure stimulus. We are getting close and expect an announcementFROM THE PROVINCE TO REOPEN from the federal government soon. EARTHWORKS AND SITE SERVICING ENHANCED HEALTH AND SAFETY MEASURES ARE CRITICALLY IMPORTANT ON PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT LANDS Construction worksites have been fully reopened. Yet what we have learned fromAT THE BEGINNING OF MAY. THE the past 10 weeks is just how contagious this virus is; its extremely important that our companies put plans in place so thatNEXT STEP, AND PERHAPS THE MOST they will be able to stay open if there is a second wave. IMPORTANT ONE MOVING FORWARD, We are working with government to try to identify flexible solutions that addressIS INFRASTRUCTURE STIMULUS6 H 2 OSWCASpring 2020'