Additional Highlights Include:

To understand more about Step 3 of BC's Restart Plan, click here.

WorkSafe BC has put together the following information to help employers better understand communicable disease prevention and how to keep workplaces healthy and safe as the province moves to Step 3 of BC’s Restart plan.

No, beginning with Step 3 of BC’s Restart, employers will no longer be required to maintain a COVID-19 Safety Plan and will instead transition to communicable disease prevention. This involves focusing on basic risk reduction principles to reduce the risk of workplace transmission of COVID-19 and other communicable diseases.

Employers are expected to take reasonable steps to manage health and safety in their workplace, including preventing communicable disease transmission. Other than in specific instances where Exposure Control Plans are required to control the transmission of communicable disease, such as health care, your plan does not need to be written, posted, or approved by WorkSafeBC. Employers may refer to Communicable disease prevention: A guide for employers for steps they can take to effectively manage communicable disease.

Employers are required to monitor and review communicable disease-related information issued by their regional medical health officer or the provincial health officer related to their industry, region, or workplace.

During a period of elevated risk, the medical health officer or provincial health officer will provide information and guidance about the risk and how employers can reduce it. The measures that employers will need to implement will depend on the type of disease and the methods of transmission.

As B.C. moves through the Restart plan, Public Health will provide guidance on the use of masks for both workplaces and public spaces. Employers are advised to follow the direction of Public Health with respect to the use of masks. This may include guidance, requirements, or recommendations for both workers and members of the public.

Employers may choose to implement mask policies for workers and/or members of the public that exceed the requirements of Public Health.

It is anticipated that, beginning in Step 3, barriers are no longer required in workplaces as part of ongoing communicable disease prevention measures. However, the provincial health officer has issued a statement recommending that employers maintain some existing COVID-19 protocols that do not negatively impact business operations, so if employers have existing barriers in place that are not interfering with operations, they are advised to keep these in place for the time being.

No, but employers should support workers to be vaccinated for vaccine-preventable conditions if they are able to do so. Under provincial law, workers are entitled up to three hours of paid leave to be vaccinated for COVID-19.

We encourage you to visit WorkSafeBC’s website here for more information and resources on communicable disease prevention and how to prepare for Step 3 of BC’s Restart.

Premier Horgan: Today is an exciting day, not just because we have representatives from the media in person, but it's also a little over a month ago that the four of us gathered to announce that we were moving gradually to a return to normal here in British Columbia. Our project was based on science. It was grounded in data. It was focused on making sure that we were laying out a roadmap for recovery, so that all British Columbians we can see a path forward, for themselves, for their businesses, for their communities.

Today, I'm happy to announce that on July 1st we will begin Step 3 of our Restart Plan.

After the longest public emergency in Canadian history, I believe it is safe to take the next step forward. That means we can go and cheer for our kids at the soccer game in the arena, in the gymnasium. We can go to a friend's place for dinner. We can plan that wedding. We can go to the theatre. We can go to a concert. We can engage again in what makes life so important. That's the interaction of people together, to get a full flavour of the benefits and bounty of British Columbia, and to share with each other the blessings of being British Columbians. Whether we be athletes, whether we be actors, whether we be performers, getting back to a live environment.

I spoke to Doctor Henry before we came out. Of course, we want people to plan their trips. As they come to British Columbia, we welcome Canadians back to BC, provided you've had those two vaccinations, provided that you check before you arrive to make sure that there aren't local restrictions in place, to ensure that Indigenous communities have a clear understanding of how many people are coming to their territory and what the consequences will be.

Let's take a moment today to reflect on where we've been and celebrate the opportunities that we have ahead of us, as individuals, as families and as communities, to put COVID-19 behind us from a pandemic to a communicable disease, which means keep washing or cleaning those hands. I'm going to be wearing a mask if I'm with a group of people that I do not know, if I'm on a bus, if I'm on a ferry, if I'm on an airplane. These are recommendations now, not directives. But those recommendations are there for a reason.

Dr. Henry: We are lifting the provincial state of emergency. That, of course, will be Minister Farnworth's job very soon, but some of the provisions have been rolled into the regulations so that ticketing powers around certain aspects will still be maintained.

This is the summary of where we are in step three. As of July 1st, many of the orders that are currently in place will be rescinded. This is a very positive step as orders were only put in place when there's an urgent and critical need to do so. One of the most important ones will be the lifting of the orders under the Emergency Programs Act around mask wearing. That does not mean mask wearing is not important. It certainly is. We will now be moving to our guidance on where we should be wearing masks, and I will talk in a little bit more detail about that in a moment.

The other aspects that we'll be looking at are increasing the ability to do personal gatherings. We will be lifting the orders on personal gatherings. We'll be looking at increasing capacity around organized gathering, both indoor and outdoor settings, and we will be welcoming people from across the country -- particularly those who have been immunized -- to come and enjoy BC with us. Sports and activities will resume with their normal activity levels, and businesses will be changing as well. Finally, offices and workplaces will continue that gradual return to work.

Let's talk about a few of the details. Our updated mask guidance in this step. Mask wearing will be recommended in all indoor public spaces for all people 12 and over who are not yet fully immunized. That means it is important for us to continue to wear masks in those indoor settings when we are around people that we don't know and where we have not yet been fully protected.

Some people may also continue to choose to wear a mask, and that's okay. We need to remember that we all own pace, and there are some reasons why we may feel more at risk or it may be important for us to continue to protect ourselves using masks.

The next area is around gatherings. There are several different types of gatherings that we have had restrictions on in British Columbia, and now is the time when we can start to lift those. First the orders around personal gatherings -- that's the people you can have into your home or a vacation rental, for example. We want to lift those. We know that these are situations where these are people that we know. We are removing the order because we know with the risk. We know the vaccination status. We can invite people into our home based on our risk and the risk of those around us and our friends and family, so it is up to us to decide who we have in our home now.

In terms of organized gatherings, we are going to ease the restrictions. Again, it is the principle that outside is less risky than inside. Indoor gatherings up to now has been up to 50 people. As of July 1st, it will be 50 people or 50% capacity, whichever is larger for that venue. If your venue is one of that canhold a capacity of 60 people, then you can have 50. If it's 500 people, then 50 percent capacity would be 250. We'll need those communicable disease plans to make sure that we are minimizing the risks of people coming when they are sick and making sure they have base when they need.

For outdoor gatherings 5,000 people will be the limit. Below that, if your venue can hold up to 5,000 people, you can have a 100% capacity. Above 5,000 people the capacity will be 50% again, just to give us some time to adjust to having large numbers of people together. Indoor weddings, ceremonies and events will be very similar to indoor gatherings.

On the other hand, we know that there is a different risk when we have outdoor events like fairs and festivals and even some of the large trade shows. They can return to normal. These are events are what we are calling flow-through events where people can move away from others and keep their distance. It's not like being seated next to somebody or in an enclosed space.

In terms of travel, as we said, we will be welcoming people from other provinces, preferably vaccinated people. The guidelines will be what we have said all along. Be respectful of those who you are visiting and recognize that you are bringing risk with you. We know that as more people are coming into British Columbia, there is a chance that they will come with this virus, and they may come with different strains or variants of the virus. We need to have some measures in place to be able to detect people, and we have a strategy now where we will be testing everyone so we know exactly what strains are circulating.

But plan ahead. Do a little bit of research before you arrive at your destination and respect those local travel advisories. Not every community has received two doses of vaccine for all of their members yet, and not every community is ready yet to receive visitors, but many, many are.

In terms of workplaces, my office and the BC CDC and the public health teams have been working very closely with WorkSafeBC to assist employers to transition from the very specific COVID-19 safety plans to what we're calling communicable disease plans. They will focus on the appropriate pillars of hand washing or hand cleaning, hygiene in the environment, things like ventilation, and, of course, the most important, making sure that we have the ability for people who are sick to stay away from others and to stay away from work. And there's a whole bunch of processes that are involved in that.

We're removing most of the restrictions in restaurants, bars and pubs, and so you can determine how many people sit at a table. We're returning to normal liquor service hours, but we still need to have some measures in place in these inside environments. So for now, there's not going to be that socializing between tables and making sure we still have barriers in place where it protects people.

We've been working with the nightclub sector, and as you know they've been closed since last summer when we knew there were challenges in a high-risk environment. And so there will be some additional measures in place in the nightclubs that have been worked out with that sector, including some distancing or barriers between tables, and so not socializing between tables.

Finally, we've been working with the casino sector as well, and I know they've been working hard on this since everything shut down last year. They have very strong plans for reopening on July 1st and includes some restrictions and barriers in place in those settings.

Minister Kahlon: As we enter step three, employers will no longer be required to have COVID-19 safety plans. They will be transitioning to communicable disease prevention plans. WorkSafe BC has developed a Communicable Disease Prevention Guide that outlines the steps that employers must take to prevent transmission in the workplace.

Key elements of the prevention include regular hand washing, regular cleaning of surfaces, staying home if you're sick and, of course, encouraging people to get vaccinated.

As we enter Step 3, please continue to support your local businesses. Do some shopping. Have dinner with some friends at your favourite neighbourhood restaurant. This is how we will help our local businesses and communities get through this.

Reporter: Back on May 3rd, you said that large outdoor gatherings would not be possible this year. Obviously, this is a big change from that. Do you think it's too late for some festivals to get going, maybe Pride. Is it too late for them? Do you regret saying that maybe this was not going to be possible. I just want some clarification when it comes to indoor seated venues, the 50% capacity. Does that mean that people have to have physical distancing in place between tables or seats or groups of people?

Dr. Henry: The second one first. What we are trying to do is get out of the prescription business and say what we expect is people have up to 50% capacity and use the entire space to be able to give people the space you need within the venue. It will look different in different places. We've been working with some of the larger venues to look at that.

I think what I said was that not to see large international gatherings this summer but that we would have the opportunities to have festivals. I do remember talking about music festivals and especially outdoor festivals, so I guess it's a definition of what large is.

Reporter: We heard a lot of concerns when the mask mandate wasn't in place yet around people who would not listen to guidance when stores posted signs saying it's recommended, and people refused to because they said it's not against the law.

What should a business do now if someone refuses to put on a mask when it's only recommended?

Dr. Henry: We're going to be working with businesses to make sure that we can do this in ways that are respectful and safe for workers in particular, and that is the thing. There's some businesses -- look at health care -- where mask wearing is part of our requirements on a day-to-day basis. That won't change either. I ask people to support businesses, to protect their workers and to live up to the requirements that they have.

Minister Kahlon: When we started to put the plan together, the restart plan, one of the things that was clear from the business community that we wanted certainty in the restart plan.

Over seven weeks ago, we were able to provide them the restart plan that shows them clearly that when we move to step 3 -- which is today -- that the mask mandatory would go to recommendation, so we have required a lot of advance notice for business to prepare for this. But as I made a comment earlier, this will be a challenge still for businesses, so we're asking for people to be patient and respect the rules of the local business. We had some businesses who had challenges even whether when it was mandatory where people didn't want to follow the rules.

Certainly, the conversations we've been having with our industry engagement table about the next steps is that there will be some challenges. Every business will decide what they want to do, how much comfort that their patrons would like and how much comfort that they have on their steps forward. Overall, we've been getting a positive response of where we go, and the next few days, we're going to continue to engage with businesses on what challenges may arise as we proceed.

VICTORIA, BC: Melanie Mark, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport; Brenda Baptiste, chair, Indigenous Tourism BC; Walt Judas, CEO, Tourism Industry Association of BC; Ingrid Jarrett, president and CEO, BC Hotel Association; Anthony Everett, chair of the BC Regional Tourism Secretariat; and Richard Porges, interim president and CEO, Destination BC, have released the following statement encouraging British Columbians to travel B.C. this summer:

"Travel is part of our DNA. It gives us something to look forward to. It brings us joy to experience new places, new tastes, and new ideas. It’s the perfect antidote to recharge, connect with friends and families and create new memories. Tourism is fueled by people who are passionate about their work - their jobs are vital to our local economies all across British Columbia.

"We’re encouraging everyone to get both vaccines this summer, as we want British Columbians to safely travel across our province - to welcome our neighbours from coast to coast to coast, and for everyone to explore our cities, relaxing getaways and parts of the province less travelled as we look forward to welcoming people back safely.

"Tourism operators of every type – attractions, adventure experiences, accommodations, restaurants – have been gearing up to welcome travelers back and to ensure visitors and workers are healthy and safe.

"As the tourism sector opens its doors, there’s a growing demand for workers and opportunities for British Columbians looking for jobs to be a part one of the province’s most important sectors. There is an incredible variety of work with options to suit a wide range of skills.

"What makes a place great to visit is the same as what makes it a great place to live. A return of tourists will strengthen our communities, local jobs, and ensure what we love remains vibrant and welcoming.

"Summer 2021 is your chance to complete your BC bucket list. It’s your chance to give back to the businesses who supported the health and safety of our communities and essential services to keep us all safe. Inspire your family, friends, and colleagues to #ExploreBCnow so everyone can see everything B.C. has to offer!

TIABC is pleased to share the updated version of the re-opening toolkit for tourism operators that we've been working on together with our partners.

This toolkit is designed as a guide for operators for Step 3, which starts tomorrow and will run until at least September 7. It includes:

One of the biggest shift for operators in Step 3 is that COVID-19 Safety Plans are no longer required, and all workplaces will evolve to include communicable disease plans in their regular health and safety plan. To this end, go2HR is hosting a webinar July 5 from 2-3 p.m. on how to implement a communicable disease program. You can register here.

We hope this toolkit is helpful for you, and would happy to hear any feedback or suggestions you might have for the next version. We’ll be updating it as conditions change and as we learn more about operating in the current environment.

Click here for complete details on the Step 3 Toolkit.

The U.S.-Canada border has been closed since March 2020. With more and more people getting vaccinated in both countries, and things returning to normal, the "Open The Border Campaign" strongly believe it's time to start reopening the border so that Canadians and Americans can cross the border freely and businesses can get back to work.

The tourism industry has been effectively shut down for over a year. Canadian businesses bring in billions in revenue and show visitors what a beautiful place our country is. Without travelers, there is no tourism industry. Reopen the border immediately to allow travelers to safely cross!

While there are 30 logos in support on the microsite and over 1,100 letters have been sent, the campaign needs your support.

Click here for more information the campaign, and how you can support this important initiative.

The BC Active Transportation Infrastructure Grant Program offers two grant options for

Indigenous governments and local governments, including municipalities, regional districts and Islands Trust. Application deadline is July 30th.

Active transportation relates to human-powered forms of commuting to work, school, recreation, socializing or running errands. It can take many forms and is continually evolving as new technologies emerge. It includes walking, cycling, rolling (skateboarding, in-line skating), winter focused (xc skiing, snowshoeing), water focused (kayaking, SUP) and others.

The BC Active Transportation Infrastructure Grant Program provides cost-sharing opportunities for network planning grants and infrastructure grants. Funding from these grant programs support the development of active transportation infrastructure for all ages and abilities.

Click here for more information on the grant program, and to apply.

Destination Greater Victoria has just released the first in a series of seven televsion spots that will air on CHEK TV. The video series is aimed at promoting the concept of tourism as an essential element of the Greater Victoria area.

The first one is about how the cruise ship industry pays for local amenities and infrastructure.

Click here to view the video.

Effective at noon (Pacific time) today, campfires, Category 2 and Category 3 open fires will be prohibited throughout the province of British Columbia. This prohibition will remain in effect until noon on Oct. 15th, or until the order is rescinded.

A campfire is defined as any fire smaller than 0.5 metres high by 0.5 metres wide. In addition to campfires, Category 2, and Category 3 open fires, the following activities are also prohibited:

Click here to read the full announcement.

Despite the ongoing challenges our industry continues to face as a result of the impacts of COVID, TIABC is heartened to observe the strength, resiliency and innovative means taking place today. This new Bulletin feature will share stories of how businesses and organizations, large and small are doing things in a new way as they guide their enterprises through the pandemic crisis.

The City of Chilliwack will temporarily open several locations as Cooling Centres for residents and visitors to find relief from the forecasted high temperatures. This includes the Chilliwack Visitor Centre! Several locations will be open starting Friday, June 25 from 12 pm – 6 pm until the heat warning is lifted. The centres will follow all public health orders. The number of people allowed inside at a time will be limited, and masks and physical distancing will be required.

Click here to find out where you can beat the heat in Chilliwack, BC.

TIABC recognizes that many of our members have been supporting our organization's advocacy efforts for a very long time. In this new feature, we will be showcasing those businesses, associations, organizations and DMOs that been TIABC members for more than 10 years.

Band members of the Little Shuswap Lake Band conceived the idea of a hotel in 1979 to spur economic development. Elder and former chief, William Arnouse named the lodge “Quaaout” which means, “When the sun’s rays first hit the water” in Secwepemctsin.

Since the opening there has been additions and renovations added to the lodge over the past 20 years. The first change was the conference rooms. This gave people and businesses the opportunity to hold weddings and business meetings. The next phases included the opening of the golf course in March 2007, the addition of Jack Sam's lounge in 2008, the renovation to the hotel to a 5-star property and a spa completed in 2011.

Click here to find out more about Quaaout Lodge & Spa.

The month of July marks membership renewal dates for the majority of TIABC's members. Due to the difficulties our industry has faced since early 2020, we have extended various payment options to members if required. Please contact Deborah to learn more about how we can assist you with your membership renewal, or if you are interested in becoming a member

We strongly encourage you to consider membership with TIABC to support our important advocacy efforts on behalf of the entire visitor economy.

With Step 3 of the BC restart plan beginning on July 1, and the prospect of restarting more social connections and business activities, as well as the lifting of existing orders, including the need for written COVID-19 safety plans, many new questions and challenges emerge for employers as they navigate the new normal.

Safety plans might be out but it’s still important to remain vigilant about communicable diseases, including norovirus, seasonal influenza and COVID-19. Keeping informed about the overarching principles of communicable disease control and continuing to uphold and practice some of the familiar COVID-19 controls as part of your occupational health and safety program can help to prevent future illness and outbreaks. This can help to reassure your workers and guests about your ongoing commitment to their health and safety.

Join go2HR for our upcoming webinar, featuring expert panelists, Mark Lysyshyn, Deputy Chief Medical Health Officer at Vancouver Coastal Health and Lisa Houle, Manager, OHS Consultation and Education Services at WorkSafeBC. Learn how to implement a robust communicable disease program for step 3 of the BC Restart and get your questions answered!

Webinar topics include:

Register here for this informative industry event.

Join MP Patrick Weiler for a conversation with the Honourable Bill Blair, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness on Zoom or Facebook Live. Friday, July 9 at 12:00 pm PST.

They will be discussing issues related to the Minister's portfolio, including responsible and compassionate management of the border with the United States, action to address systemic inequities in the criminal justice system, First Nations policing, reducing the impact of climate-related disasters, implementing our firearms commitments, the opioid epidemic, and anti-money laundering.

Please feel free to share this event with your friends and networks, and submit any questions you would like to have answered to Patrick.Weiler@parl.gc.ca.

Topic: Town Hall with Bill Blair, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness

Time: Friday, July 9, 2021 12:00 PM

Facebook Live: https://www.facebook.com/PatrickBWeiler/

As an industry that continues to face enormous challenges during COVID-19, every once in awhile 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 share in our C-19 Bulletin.

Self-Guided Webinars 

Developing Winter / Shoulder Season Tourism Toolkit

Made up of six learning modules, this webinar will give you actionable advice on how to define your strategy, develop products and experiences, build collaborative partnerships and more to boost seasonal tourism in your business or region.

Winter / Shoulder Season Consumer Demand Research Report

Get access to free tools and strategies to grow your business and tourism in your region at the ECE content hub: https://ecehub.tiac-aitc.ca/en/