C-19 BULLETIN - December 16, 2020
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Report from the BC Meetings & Events Industry Working Group
After developing and circulating the BC Meetings & Events COVID-19 Safe Restart Guidelines in September as the framework for safe operations in our industry, the working group, which includes TIABC's Walt Judas, has been focused throughout Q4 on developing a restart proposal for business meetings & events that will be submitted in the new year to the Provincial Health Officer under Section 43 of the Provincial Health Act, specific to the 50-person limit for gatherings.
The BC Meetings & Events Restart Plan proposes that the business meetings & events industry is resumed in a four stage, graduated process. Each stage increases the number of attendees permitted within a range, the types of meetings & events that can be held, and the activities that participants can engage in. Strategic, incremental growth on a monthly or bi-monthly basis (within and between stages) is recommended based on continuous monitoring of meetings & events, along with rolling 30-day assessments by the Provincial Health Officer.
Stage One was essentially in effect from April until December, when meetings & events with up to 50 people were permitted. As of December, meetings have been prohibited outside of the workplace. With positive review of this proposed plan, our hope is that we can return to Stage One in early 2021, or as early as deemed appropriate by public health authorities.
Stage Two would allow for meetings & events with 100 people and potentially graduating to 250 people.
Stage Three would allow for meetings & events with 250 people, potentially graduating to 500 people.This assumes that contract tracing apps are widely available, and the possibility of rapid testing. Events over 250 people would be restricted to purpose-built venues such as hotels and convention centres.
Stage Four would allow for meetings & events with 500 people, potentially graduating to 1,000+ people. This assumes that rapid testing is widely available, and widespread access to a vaccine. As with Stage Three, events over 250 people would be limited to compliant venues.
Download the full update here
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Destination BC Industry Call
A friendly reminder that Destination BC's Tourism Industry Call will be held Thursday December 17th at 10:30 am.
This week, Neilane Mayhew, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport, will join to provide an update on the Province’s economic stimulus plan and the Tourism Task Force report, and Danine Leduc, Assistant Deputy Minister for Labour will provide an update on upcoming changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker program. In addition, Destination BC will provide an update on “Stay Local, Support Local” activities and the research and analytics process to inform recovery planning efforts in 2021.
To register for the call and obtain the Zoom login, visit:
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IATA Travel Pass
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that it is in the final development stages for a mobile app called IATA Travel Pass, which will enable flyers to easily display their COVID credentials at airports.
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Tourism in the News
BC Tourism Task Force Calls for $95-million COVID-19 Emergency Fund
The province’s tourism task force released a 26-page report that urged the government to create a $95-million emergency grant fund to help more businesses stay open until additional federal support arrives, as well as immediately match its existing $50 million for the sector with at least another $50 million to help overall recovery. It also called for $5 million to specifically help Indigenous tourism operators.
COVID-19: Rescue effort for tourism past due, sector leader says
Tourism operators are calling recommendations in the province’s tourism task force report, for $100 million in immediate assistance, a helpful beginning, but it is a first instalment that is past due.
Tourism Minister Melanie Mark promised to move as quickly as possible on COVID-19 assistance for the tourism sector, including the top recommendation to add $50 million to its fund.
OPINION: The long economic tail of COVID-19 (Jock Finlayson)
Overall, then, the state of the economy is considerably better than several months ago, even though the virus itself has not disappeared. But the economic ramifications of the pandemic will be with us for many months and probably years to come, even if vaccines succeed in eradicating COVID-19. For one thing, some sectors are expected to face a notably slow recovery process. This is especially true of tourism and travel-related businesses, where it will take a long time to return to 2019 levels of activity.
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Recruiting Foreign Nationals for Employment
December 15, 2020 Deadline
On September 18th, the Employer Registry was launched to better protect foreign workers in BC. Employers were provided with a 90-day coming into force date to ensure plenty of time for employers to participate in an overview of the new registry and to complete registration.
To date more than 900 employers have successfully completed the new registration process and the online searchable Employer Registry may be reached here:
As a reminder, effective December 15th, some employers will be required to hold a Certificate of Registration before they can recruit a foreign national for employment. The registration requirement applies to employers if they:
- Require a Labour Market Impact Assessment from the federal government; or,
- Hire through the federal Home Child-Care Provider or Home Support Worker Pilot Programs.
There is no fee to obtain a Certificate of Registration; this registry is an important step to ensure foreign workers are protected while working in BC, and fully implements the Temporary Foreign Worker Protection Act.
For more information about the Employer Registry, please visit:
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Rocky Mountaineer Continues to Achieve Recognition
Rocky Mountaineer named World’s Leading Luxury Train
at World Travel Awards 2020
Rocky Mountaineer has won the World’s Leading Luxury Train title at the World Travel Awards 2020. The World Travel Awards are a global initiative to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the global travel and tourism industry.
Rocky Mountaineer was crowned the winner after a year-long search for the world’s top travel, tourism and hospitality brands. Votes were cast by travel industry professionals and a record number of the public from around the world.
Rocky Mountaineer named Best Sustainable Train Journey
by Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel Awards
Global travel authority Lonely Planet has unveiled its much-awaited Best in Travel picks for 2021, reflecting an unprecedented year of disruption in the travel industry.
For the 2021 awards, Lonely Planet was looking at the important changes taking place globally, from sustainability to diversity, and shining a light on the individuals shaping the future of travel. This year, the Best in Travel list showcases transformative travel, which encourages travellers to find authentic and mindful moments during their journeys. Rocky Mountaineer has been singled out as one of the organizations transforming the travel industry.
Rocky Mountaineer has been awarded for its efforts to reduce carbon emissions, decrease wastage and increase on-board recycling, and partner with organizations to protect the local wildlife. More information on Rocky Mountaineer’s commitment to sustainability is available online.
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The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade’s Scale-up Centre for SMEs (SCS) is pleased to announce the 2021 Business Reinvention Awards.The purpose of these new awards is to recognize businesses who have reinvented, adapted, and shown resiliency in the face of all challenges and barriers in 2020.
So, if you know – or are - an outstanding small or medium-sized business that has reinvented itself during the current crisis, you can submit a nomination using this form!
Note: Nominees must be based in Greater Vancouver and must have no more than 250 employees
Award Categories:
Recognizes a business that quickly and strategically reinvented their business model and implemented new procedures to serve their customers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Excellence in Collaboration Award
Recognizes two or more businesses that have successfully partnered together to remain afloat and overcome the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Recognizes a business that has successfully engaged their employees through the pandemic. They have influenced employee motivation and happiness and created an overall positive workplace culture.
- Environmental Leader Award
Recognizes a business that has established and implemented sustainable policies to reduce the environmental impacts of their products or service-offerings.
Recognizes a business that achieved significant growth in sales, staff, and impact within Canada.
The virtual event will be held on February 26, 2021, but nominations are due on Friday, January 15th.
Learn more at:
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Fraser Valley Companies take BC Craft Beer to New Heights
This holiday season, two “uniquely adventurous” local brands have partnered to create the ultimate BC Craft Beer Experience.
SKY Helicopters - Greater Vancouver’s #1 heli-adventure company and Foamers’ Folly Brewing Co. – an award winning Pitt Meadows, BC craft beer institution; have created a unique holiday gift box offering an opportunity to take to the skies for incredible views of mountaintops, old-growth forests and un-touched nature before landing in the spectacular backcountry to sample 4 unique Foamers’ Folly craft beer selections.
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TIABC Welcomes New Members
TIABC continues to welcome new members who support our provincial advocacy efforts. Membership is key to our organization's success and we grateful for the support - particularly this year.
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Fortis BC is TIABC's Energy Partner - providing support to our organization during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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TIABC will be hosting a joint webinar this week with the BCHA and TOTA. In this webinar, we'll discuss the recent work done by the Tourism Task Force and the Tourism & Hospitality Coalition, provide an update on the industry, as well as an outlook for 2021.
Friday, December 18th
1:00pm PST
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TIABC's C-19 Bulletin will be published on December 18th and then we will take a break until the new year. If any important announcements are made by the Province of federal government, we will issue a Special Edition C-19 Bulletin.
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.
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