COVID-19: Important Business Resources
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Greetings!
It's been over a month since the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. A lot has changed since then but now it seems as if we are settling into a 'new normal'. As we adapt to our new reality we understand that it's going to be a tough adjustment. But while we can't control the circumstances, we can control how we respond. Doing everything we can to flatten the curve is something we
can
control and it will protect those that need it the most. Remember to choose
kindness, compassion
and
resilience
because we are stronger together.
We love our community and we are dedicated to support our businesses, their employees, members and non-members. Even though it feels like everything has changed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, our commitment as an organization to our community remains constant.
We are here for you and we will emerge stronger than ever.
Your Airdrie Chamber of Commerce
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Your Chamber Membership is Making a Difference
During the COVID-19 Crisis
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Our
Canadian Business Resilience Network
campaign recently launched
[
watch the Prime Minister’s announcement
] in partnership with the Government of Canada and Canada's leading business and industry associations, including the Business Council of Canada, the Canadian Council for Aboriginal Business, the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses and Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters.
A key element of the campaign is a
microsite
dedicated to help Canadian businesses navigate the COVID-19 reality and prepare for recovery. See the full announcement from Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau
here
and the message from President & CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, Perrin Beatty
here
.
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COVID-19 and Low Oil Prices
Business Impact Survey Now live!
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How can government help your business stay viable while COVID-19 health measures are in place?
We want to hear directly from Alberta job creators. Please take our short survey (less than ten minutes). We will share your feedback directly with government!
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The Alberta Chambers of Commerce network, Community Futures Alberta and Economic Developers Alberta are collaborating to gather business insights to inform responses to COVID-19 and low oil prices. This survey will close on April 26, 2020.
Our shared priority is to ensure government is receiving high-quality, current business insights from across the province. We will follow this survey with a pulse survey every two weeks while physical distancing health measures remain in place. This research initiative is being conducted with the assistance of Vision Critical software and Strategic Counsel, a national public opinion firm.
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Latest Emergency Support for Businesses
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Expanded Access to CERB and Support for Essential Workers
- Allow people to earn up to $1,000 per month while collecting the CERB.
- Extend the CERB to seasonal workers who have exhausted their EI regular benefits and are unable to undertake their usual seasonal work as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.
- Extend the CERB to workers who recently exhausted their EI regular benefits and are unable to find a job or return to work because of COVID-19.
The government also
announced
it will work with provinces and territories through a new transfer to cost-share a temporary top-up to the salaries of workers deemed essential in the fight against COVID-19 who make less than $2,500 a month.
Changes to Employment Standards
The Government of Alberta is allowing greater flexibility for employers to appropriately respond to public health measures and at the same time allow employees to remain attached to jobs and have the ability to access federal assistance programs. The changes will:
- Provide employees access to unpaid job-protected leave if they are caring for children affected by school and daycare closures or ill or self-isolated family members due to COVID-19.
- Increase the maximum time for a temporary layoff from 60 days to 120 days.
- Remove the 24-hour written notice requirement for shift changes and the two weeks’ notice for changes to work schedules for those under an averaging agreement.
- Remove the requirement to provide the group termination notice to employees and unions when 50 or more employees are being terminated.
- Streamline the process for approvals related to modifying employment standards.
- The changes above take effect immediately and will be in place as long as government determines it is needed and the public health emergency order remains. Click here more information
Important Changes to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy
- The Government announced some welcome changes to the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) today including:
- flexibility to compare revenue of March, April and May 2020 to that of the same month of 2019, or to an average of the revenue earned in January and February 2020.
- demonstration of a 15 percent reduction in gross revenues for March with the 30 percent reduction required in April and/or May.
- the ability to measure revenues either on the basis of accrual accounting (as they are earned) or cash accounting (as they are received). Special rules would also be provided to address issues for corporate groups, non-arm’s length entities and joint ventures.
- eligibility to receive a 100-per-cent refund for certain employer-paid contributions to Employment Insurance, the Canada Pension Plan .
- eligibility for registered charities and not-for-profit organizations including the choice of whether or not to include government funding in their revenues for the purposes of comparison. Click here more information
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Latest Emergency Supports for Individuals
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Changes to Canada Summer Jobs Program
Temporary changes to the Canada Summer Jobs program were announced last week. The temporary changes to the program for this year include:
- an increase to the wage subsidy, so that private and public sector employers can also receive up to 100 percent of the provincial or territorial minimum hourly wage for each employee
- an extension to the end date for employment to February 28, 2021
- allowing employers to adapt their projects and job activities to support essential services
- allowing employers to hire staff on a part-time basis
The temporary changes are only available for companies that have already submitted an application for the Canada Summer Jobs Grant. The application has not re-opened. We are lobbying government to re-open the application window
Emergency Isolation Support Closure
The Government of Alberta's Emergency Isolation Support program is now closed. The purpose of the program was to bridge the short period until the Government of Canada announced its own support program. The Government of Canada’s new
Canada Emergency Response Benefit
is available and accepting applications. Payments for eligible applicants are retroactive to
March 15
.
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Latest Emergency Supports for Community
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Province Releases COVID 19 Modelling Data
Modelling projections
from the provincial government for COVID-19 highlights the importance of continuing aggressive countermeasures to protect the lives and livelihoods of Albertans in order to stop the pandemic and restart the economy. Alberta Health’s modelling projections indicate total cases range from 800,000 to one million infections, from mild and undiagnosed to detected, confirmed and treated, under two provincial scenarios. The Government of Alberta is advising that existing public health orders could be in place until the end of May to protect the health and safety of Albertans.
Both scenarios estimate that after the virus reaches its peak, the number of cases will decline over the summer months. Without any provincial interventions to manage the pandemic response, projections show that about 13,000 Albertans could have been hospitalized with 3,900 requiring intensive care.
The modelling helps the province anticipate and prepare for the demands on Alberta’s health-care system. Alberta Health has been scaling up the capacity of the province’s health care system by expanding the capacity of hospitals, opening up more acute care beds, intensive care unit spaces, and ventilators. These measures will ensure that under both provincial scenarios, our health-care system is prepared to support patients at the peak of the pandemic.
New Visitor Restrictions in All Continuing Care Facilities
The Chief Medical Officer of Health is ordering a province wide ban on visitors to long-term care centres, licensed group homes and other facilities as part of the ongoing work to limit the spread of COVID-19 and protect Albertans. Under an amended public health order, no visitors will be allowed unless a resident is dying or the visitor is essential for delivering care that cannot be delivered by staff.
Read more
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If your benefits are through Chamber Plan Employee Benefits, Chambers Plan has created a “
Business Resource Centre
” to help clients as they navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic. The page consolidates resources for financial help, HR, Mental Health and more! You can also subscribe to stay up to date, as new information is continually added.
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Airdrie Chamber of Commerce
102, 150 Edwards Way NW
Airdrie, AB T4B 4B9
403. 948.4412
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