covid-19 Archives - Page 4 of 5 - Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie

Call for Nominations: Essential workers

by WPBGE | Feb 8, 2021 | Press Release

As we near the one year mark in the COVID-19 Pandemic, the Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie wishes to recognize the tremendous work carried out by essential workers in our region by profiling employees from various sectors.

Do you know an outstanding person in the Grand Erie workforce who has been working hard to support their family and our community during the pandemic?

We are asking our community for help with nominations so we may share their story and pay them tribute. Their story will be featured in our Frontline Fridays series over the next couple of months.

For more information and to nominate your exceptional essential worker, please contact Sylvia Hentz of the Workforce Planning Board at 519-756-1116, ext. 228.

COVID-19 Webinar Series. Register Today.

by WPBGE | Feb 3, 2021 | Press Release

A new series of free webinars will inform employers and individuals in Brantford, Brant, Haldimand, Norfolk, Six Nations and New Credit about resources and programs to support them during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie will present three live webinars in partnership with Service Canada, the Canada Revenue Agency, Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium, and the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development.

The sessions are designed to help participants make sense of the vast amounts of pandemic related information. They will explain the programs and financial resources available to businesses coping with the impacts of COVID-19. Participants can also have their questions answered by experts.

Space is limited and early registration is recommended. People can sign up for any or all of the COVID-19 webinars.

Feb. 23, 10 a.m.: In partnership with the Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC). This webinar will provide manufacturers with information about ManufacturingGPS, an extensive, up-to-date labour market intelligence tool for the manufacturing sector to help with business decisions, and other EMC programs.

REGISTER

Feb. 24, 9:30 a.m.: In partnership with Service Canada and the CRA. This webinar will assist businesses with HR planning. It will provide an update on Service Canada programs, including its Work Sharing Program. The CRA session will cover current wage and rent subsidies and loans available to businesses impacted by the pandemic.

REGISTER

March 2, 10 a.m.: In partnership with the Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development. This webinar will feature a live presentation and Q&A session on what employers and employees need to know about employment standards and occupational health and safety as they relate to COVID-19.

REGISTER

Each COVID-19 related webinar will be about 90 minutes to 2 hours in length.

For more information, contact Sylvia Hentz of the Workforce Planning Board at 519-756-1116, ext. 228.

Workforce Heroes: Celebrating employees & businesses

by WPBGE | Jan 14, 2021 | Workforce Planning Board Of Grand Erie News

Healthy, happy and prosperous New Year.

We start 2021 with hope that this year will be brighter than the last.

But also with pride that we are in many ways stronger for what we’ve been through.

The pandemic has had a huge impact on people’s lives, livelihood, work and job market in Brantford, Brant, Haldimand, Norfolk, Six Nations and New Credit.

2020 was a difficult year for our businesses and the workforce, with disruptive changes, from people working fewer hours, more hours or from home, to layoffs and business closures.

Not to mention the increased risk and fear that has come with conducting our work. We recognize that every member of Grand Erie’s workforce, from front-line essential workers to those who lost work as a result of the pandemic, and everyone in between, struggled.

Some people are still coping with unemployment. Some businesses are still struggling to stay afloat.

But as difficult as 2020 was, our Grand Erie community has shown its resilience and a generosity to help each other. That’s something to be proud of.

The Workforce Planning Board’s vision of “A skilled, resilient workforce contributing to dynamic communities and their economies” has been apt.

Workers have adapted to do their jobs differently, from wearing masks to working online. Businesses have had to be flexible, creative and resourceful, doing things differently, more virtually.

Today, as we begin a new year with fresh hope, the Workforce Planning Board celebrates just a few of the area businesses and their workforces that demonstrated resiliency and generosity in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many other great examples out there. We’re telling the stories of five in our Workforce Heroes series:

Apotex Pharmachem of Brantford
Battlefield International of Haldimand County
Brooks Signs of Brant County
Hometown Brew of Norfolk County
Six Nations Economic Development Corp. of Six Nations

Workforce Heroes: Battlefield International

by WPBGE | Jan 14, 2021 | Workforce Planning Board Of Grand Erie News

When there were dire warnings last year about a potential shortage of ventilators to treat Canadians with COVID-19, Battlefield International’s employees rose to the challenge.

Highly skilled staff at the Haldimand County high-tech aerospace company volunteered their time to produce a Manual Ventilator Automation Control (MVAC) device in a matter of weeks.

The Workforce Planning Board is celebrating Battlefield International as one of the local businesses whose employees are Workforce Heroes.

The MVAC would allow patients recovering from COVID-19 to get assistance to breathe properly while still having some “manual” control of the machine. The machine switches to automatic mode if a patient doesn’t take a breath within a set amount of time.

“Our employees were all eager to sacrifice their personal lives to do whatever was required of them to help,” said President Steve Fenton.

The parent of one of the firm’s designers, Sandy Vermeulen, suggested Battlefield consider designing a ventilator that could be used if hospitals ran short.

Meanwhile, Dr Shanker Nesathurai, Haldimand-Norfolk’s Medical Officer of Health, approached Fenton to discuss the same idea.

Battlefield workers, with Cam Brouwer taking the design lead, quickly got to work, researching manual devices with an automatic function.

Dr. Nesathurai put Battlefield in touch with respiratory therapists at Hamilton Health Sciences, who visited the firm’s Cayuga plant to share their expertise.

The respiratory therapists gave Battlefield several ventilators to study, along with tubing and other needed supplies.

Battlefield had a functioning prototype ready within 38 hours. More refinements were made. Needing help with the delicate wiring, Battlefield turned to Mike Montgomery of Alectra Utilities, who paid him while working on the project, and Adam Harrison, owner of AMCorp Technologies of Caledonia.
Soon after, Battlefield manufactured 100 of the MVACs, which were ready to be deployed for emergency use in health care facilities in Haldimand-Norfolk and Hamilton.

Fenton emphasizes that the ventilator was a team effort, including suppliers who stepped up: Cayuga Cabinets in Cayuga, Barlow Manufacturing in Stoney Creek, Aluminum Surface Technologies in Burlington, and IPEC Automation in Concord.

In all, the ventilator took 8 weeks to go from an idea to a completed machine.

The ventilators weren’t needed during COVID-19’s first wave and Fenton hopes they won’t be in future.

Visit Battlefield International’s website to learn more about the company.

Season’s Greetings from the Workforce Planning Board

by WPBGE | Dec 21, 2020 | Press Release, Workforce Planning Board Of Grand Erie News

Season’s Greetings and best wishes to a healthy, prosperous 2021 from the Workforce Planning Board of Grand Erie and the Skills2Advance Job Training Program.

For its holiday photo, Workforce Planning Board staff posed on Zoom with an item that was in hot demand during the early days of 2020’s pandemic.

2020 has been a difficult year, but our communities, businesses and workers have risen to the challenge, demonstrating generosity and resiliency.

We’ve continued to work throughout the crisis to serve our communities.

In 2020, we launched a number of initiatives to help our communities respond to COVID-19:

Grand Erie Jobs, a job board featuring postings from Brantford, Brant, Haldimand, Norfolk, Six Nations and New Credit. Also features a Jobs Map showing location of jobs and 400 community services, plus a Career Explorer tool with info on 500 occupations.

Skills2Advance, a rebrand of our job training program that trains people to work in manufacturing and warehousing. Several dozen job-ready people were graduated to work as Material Handlers and other positions in 2020.

Grand Erie Recovery Taskforce. The community taskforce surveyed workers and businesses about the pandemic’s impact and developed strategies for recovery. LEARN MORE

Virtual Job Fair & Skills Exploration event, held in October, connected job seekers with businesses, guest speakers and expert panels – all online. LEARN MORE

Navigating Grand Erie Transportation Survey, asking residents about their transit needs and challenges. You’re invited to TAKE SURVEY

We thank you for being there for each other. We look forward to a safe and prosperous 2021.