C-19 BULLETIN - March 22, 2021
|
|
Front-line Workers Prioritized
as COVID-19 Vaccine Rollout Accelerates
More than 300,000 front-line workers, including first responders, grocery store employees, and teachers and child care workers, will be eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations over the coming weeks as the Province’s COVID-19 Immunization Plan moves forward ahead of schedule.
Beginning in April, people in priority groups identified by public health and the COVID-19 Workplace Task Group will start to receive their first dose of the AstraZeneca/SII COVISHIELD (AZ/SII) vaccine.
These groups include:
- first responders (police, firefighters, emergency transport);
- K-12 educational staff;
- child care staff;
- grocery store workers;
- postal workers;
- bylaw and quarantine officers;
- manufacturing workers;
- wholesale/warehousing employees;
- staff living in congregate housing at places such as ski hills;
- correctional facilities staff; and
- cross-border transport staff.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Excerpt from Dr. Henry’s News Conference on March 19th
Related to Gatherings & Travel
TIABC speaking with Province to seek clarification on international travel
Reporter: Are you able to sort of elaborate on where we might be at in terms of easing restrictions? You also mentioned that by the end of the summer or the fall is when we could get back to local-type gatherings.
Dr. Henry: I wish I could tell you. Unfortunately, I can just give you a sense of what could happen. What I would like to see, of course, is that our transmission drops off, that we have no more clusters and outbreaks, and three weeks after all of the younger people that we have in our lives are immunized, we're able to go back to lots of things.
I will tell you the principles that we're thinking through. One is that the more people that get together indoors, the greater the risk, regardless. We've learned that if you're indoors with lots of people and it depends on what you're doing indoors. If you're sitting with a small group of people and there's barriers and it's done in a small group of people and you're not mixing -- think of a restaurant -- then the risk is less.
If you're a larger group of people who are interacting with each other and moving between groups, the risk goes up. It's not only the numbers. If you have 25 people, the probability that one person has this virus and might spread it to others is less than if you have 50 people.
We're now at a point where we're getting back into a balance. We can follow up on every case. We can find people. We've been having small groups only. That needs to continue so that we can keep that balance and keep our schools open, and keep our hospitals from being overwhelmed, and keep our surgical renewal going, and keep as many workplaces as we can going. That's the place we're in now.
As we get more people protected and as we try, hopefully, to get transmission rates down, which means the probability that any one person will have the virus goes down, we'll be able to have larger groups again. It'll be in a slow and phased approach so that we're safe in how we're doing it.
How can we do safe graduation? How can we have small safe gatherings over the summer period? I hope and expect we'll be able to get back to similar to what we had in the fall with the groups of 50, and then looking at expanding from there.
What we’re not going to see this year is large international travel. Groups that bring people from many other countries to BC for an event, whether it's a conference or a meeting or a wedding or a family gathering, those things will be dangerous because we know that a vaccine is not available equally to countries around the world. Things like cruise ships coming to BC are not going to happen this year either.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Air Canada Adds Kelowna - Montreal Flights
With the anticipation of recovery and opening up of domestic travel sometime this summer, Air Canada has loaded the long-awaited and highly anticipated Montreal-Kelowna non-stop into its system. This is great news for operators in the Central Okanagan and the TOTA region, as well as for resorts like Big White and Silverstar, golf courses, and multiple other tourism and hospitality businesses.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
|
|
Reviewing/Updating Your COVID-19 Safety Plan
A Guide for Employers
This guide will help employers review their COVID-19 Safety Plan to ensure it continues to be effective and functioning properly. As an employer, you’re required to have a safety plan that outlines the policies, guidelines, and procedures you’ve put in place to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission. You must also review and update your plans if conditions change or in response to Provincial Health Officer orders.
|
|
_________________________________________________________________ |
|
TIABC Congratulates Vince Accardi on his Appointment as New President of the Ontario Motor Coach Association & Motor Coach Canada
After leading the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC) advocacy efforts since November, including the launch of the 2021 Tourism Recovery Plan, we congratulate Vince Accardi, Vice-President, Stakeholder Relations and Business Development, on being chosen as the new President for the Ontario Motor Coach Association (OMCA) and Motor Coach Canada (MCC).
"While I am sad to see Vince leave, I am very happy for him as he takes this next step in his career. He will still be part of the tourism family and I look forward to working with him at the national table," said TIAC's President and CEO, Beth Potter.
Vince served as TIAC's Acting CEO since November 2020. Vince's last day with TIAC will be April 8th.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
BC Hospitality Foundation Update
The BC Hospitality Foundation (BCHF) is focused on the launch of this year’s #HospitalityHustle presented by Odlum Brown Limited, a FREE province-wide virtual event intended to promote mental and physical health by motivating participants to get physically active. Join in by registering online and then posting training videos on social media! It’s a great way to boost your sense of wellbeing while you connect with others in our industry. There is an amazing roster of prizes this year, including
- Restaurant and tasting room GCs
- Cookware
- Sporting goods
- Okanagan wine experiences
- Winery, brewery, and cidery gift packs
- And many more
The BCHF’s scholarship program is also in full swing. If you, or someone you know, is enrolled in a hospitality-related educational program, please visit the BCHF website to learn about the scholarships available. Most applications close March 31st 2021. To learn more:
|
|
_________________________________________________________________ |
|
The Revenge of Tourism
Article by Robin Esrock:
One of the wilder news items I've come across is a financial report: “Based on the expert analysis and our database of 480+ CA industries, IBISWorld presents a list of the Fastest Growing Industries in Canada by revenue growth (%) in 2021.”
After COVID-19 mugged tourism, kicked us the ground, stole our wallets, and insulted our mothers, these analysts are predicting a remarkable return.
Call it: The Revenge of Tourism: This time, it’s personal.
The Top Five Industries:
- Scheduled Air Transportation in Canada: 161% Growth
- Travel Agencies in Canada: 93.2%
- Foreign Currency Exchange Services in Canada 62.0%
- Taxi & Limousine Services in Canada45.4%
- Hotels & Motels in Canada 32.3%
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
|
|
Moments of Levity
As an industry that continues to face enormous challenges during COVID-19, every once in a while it's important to share a laugh, a good story, a beautiful image, or an interesting anecdote to provide moments of levity during this most difficult time. Feel free to share your photos, etc. with TIABC to be published in our C-19 Bulletin each week.
|
|
_________________________________________________________________ |
|
FREE Culinary Tourism Webinars!
The Tourism Industry Association of Canada in partnership with TIABC is happy to offer free online Culinary Tourism webinars to tourism operators and organizations
Themed webinars will assist small and medium tourism operators and partners develop culinary tourism strategies to maintain their businesses and attract both domestic international visitors once Canada is ready to welcome them again.
|
|
Growing Agritourism Webinar
Thursday, March 25th at 8:00am PT (9:00am MT)
Exceeding Expectations Webinar
Wednesday, March 31st at 8:00am PT (9:00am MT)
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
COVID-19 Crisis Communications
for BC's Hospitality Industry
COVID-19 outbreaks are a fact of life for the hospitality industry. What you do and how you communicate with the public and staff in the immediate aftermath has a significant impact on your business. There is a right way and a wrong way to communicate.
Join ABLE BC for a webinar on Wednesday, March 24 at 10:00 am: COVID-19 Crisis Communications for BC's Hospitality Industry. Leave with a checklist of the 7 steps to crisis communications and communications templates to support you in case of an outbreak. The Webinar will also offer tips on how to speak with the media during a crisis and how ABLE BC can help you.
Register here. The webinar is free for ABLE BC members and $25 for non-members.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Boating BC AGM
March 24th at 11:30am
The meeting will be held on the Zoom Conference platform. Please register to attend in advance by clicking here. All registered Members will receive the Zoom link, agenda, financial statements from 2020, and other required documents in advance of the meeting.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
CITAP Spring Thaw Regional Education Sessions
The BC and Alberta event takes place March 31st at 9am to 11:30am (PT)
As the snow starts to melt, the cherry blossoms bloom, and vaccination campaigns move to the next stages, our thoughts turn to travel recovery. CITAP continues to be innovative and is offering members a complimentary education and networking function this March and April, to help reconnect after 2020’s long “Tourism Freeze”.
Paid RTO Members will be invited to attend complimentary organized Zoom presentations provided by “Pods” of Seller Members in the form of regional educational sessions. Q&A networking opportunity will be at the end of each of the 30-minute sessions.
Registration deadline is March 25th. Register here
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Impact Conference 2021
Please join us for an incredibly impactful 1.5 hours as we take a deeper look at the tourism recovery opportunities ahead:
- Marsha Walden, President and CEO, Destination Canada
- Keith Henry, President and CEO, Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada and IMPACT Co-Chair
- Katie Briscoe, President, MMGY Global
Moderated by Paul Nursey, President and CEO, Destination Greater Victoria and IMPACT co-founder.
Wednesday March 31st
8:30am - 10:00am PT
Registration is free but all participants must register.
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Conflict De-Escalation for Frontline Staff
and Customer Service Professionals
Retail workers, receptionists, hospital unit clerks, customer service professionals, and others that interact with the public on a frequent basis often experience conflict in various forms from verbal attacks to violent, physical altercations. Their safety and security are a top priority, yet few are equipped with the proper tools and techniques to safely de-fuse these incidents. Mandatory mask requirements due to the COVID-19 pandemic have heightened the importance of this topic, unfortunately, as some customers refuse to comply with these policies.
Course ID: MSCD 002
April 8th 10:30am to noon (online via Zoom)
$150 plus GST
To learn more and to register:
_________________________________________________________________
|
|
Feel free to send us your ideas on what information would be valuable for TIABC to share through our COVID-19 Bulletin going forward. Drop us a line at info@tiabc.ca. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
