In its letter to the Hon. Dwight Duncan, the OCC asks the Minister of Finance to commit to implementing its comprehensive tax package in full.

A reduction in Ontario’s CIT rate is an essential part of the province’s tax reform package, designed to create jobs and foster economic growth in the province. According to a report by Jack Mintz of the University of Calgary, Ontario’s comprehensive tax reform package will create 591,000 jobs and increase capital investment by $47 billion.

The planned CIT rate reduction is important to securing much needed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Ontario. According to a joint study by Harvard University and the World Bank, on average, a tax rate decrease of one percentage point results in a 3.3 percent increase in FDI inflows.

The OCC is urging the provincial government to fully implement its comprehensive tax package and to work cooperatively with its partners in the private sector to find ways to create jobs and grow Ontario’s economy.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) has been opposed to mandatory coverage for independent operators and executive officers since legislation was first considered.

The OCC believes that it is important to ensure that in these challenging economic times, legislation and regulation in Ontario do not create further financial burdens on small business operators – particularly in the construction industry as it relates to Bill 119.

The OCC purports these burdens do not make workplaces safer. Instead, increased costs drive businesses underground.

Read the OCC’s submission to the Standing Committee on Social Policy.

 Exemptions to Mandatory Coverage:

• Home Renovators: Home Renovators who are contracted directly with the person occupying the residence and work exclusively in home renovation are exempted from coverage
• Executive Officers, Partners: Businesses are allowed to select one executive officer or partner to apply for an exemption from coverage; this must be an individual who does not perform any construction work on any building site

As part of the implementation, the WSIB is allowing businesses to pre-register for coverage. Registration is free and the WSIB is notifying businesses when their coverage becomes effective.

For more information and to pre-register, contact the WSIB at 416-344-1000 or 1-800-387-0750.

The border deal will begin slowly, with pilot projects planned for the coming year for the screening of marine and land cargo.

With a two way trade relationship worth $646 billion in 2010, more than 200,000 people and $1.8 billion worth of goods cross the Canada – U.S. border each day.  However, congestion and delays are costing the Canadian economy an estimated $16 billion a year.

The Action Plan on Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness includes a pilot program to integrate some border law-enforcement teams and improve cross-border communication between law-enforcement agencies.

A notable piece of this agreement is a joint entry-exit tracking system, to be first implemented in September 2012 where the United States and Canada will effectively merge their land-border screening efforts by recording border crossings in either direction. Similar arrangements are under consideration for marine and rail travel.

To speed up the movement of goods, the U.S. will negotiate agreements that allow for preclearance of U.S.-bound goods and travellers from Canada that are shipped by land, rail and water. By March 2015, Canada will invest in new baggage screening equipment at Canadian airports to eliminate the need for Canadians’ baggage to be re-screened if they transit through a U.S. airport.

Under the Action Plan, membership in trusted traveler programs such as NEXUS will be made more useful and efficient for travelers. A five-year plan to invest in border infrastructure to pay for additional NEXUS and FAST lanes and faster document readers are meant to relieve congestion and speed up crossings.

In addition to overhauling border operations, The Action Plan on Regulatory Cooperation identifies 29 initiatives where Canada and the U.S. can align their regulatory approaches in agriculture and food, transportation, health and personal care products, and environmental issues. The goal of regulatory cooperation is to remove unnecessary requirements and align standards.

With 130 border crossings across Canada, 14 land crossings in Ontario alone, it is in Ontario’s economic interests to ensure there is both a secure, yet efficient border.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) believes the perimeter security initiatives such as preclearance for goods and travellers, and border infrastructure investments will enhance trade and enable a better flow of goods to markets on both sides of the border.

The OCC encourages both the U.S and Canada to stay committed to these proposed measures to ensure they are rolled out in a timely manner and successfully ease trade and travel for businesses that depend on the efficient movement of goods and people.

More information and details of the perimeter security plans can be found on the Government of Canada website.

The Drummond Commission will provide advice on how to deliver public services as efficiently as possible while finding cost-savings within the public sector. The Commission will report its findings to the provincial government in time to inform the 2012 Ontario Budget.

The OCC submission provides four key suggestions. We urge the provincial government to:

• develop a public sector compensation restraint strategy;
• control rising health care costs;
• ensure municipalities spend provincial transfers wisely; and
• identify programs that could be effectively and efficiently delivered by other entities.

The OCC submission advises the provincial government to look to the business community in their efforts to deliver programs and services in a more effective manner. As such, among other recommendations, the OCC submission urges the government to allow companies that meet general performance criteria to monitor their own regulation.

For more information on the OCC’s work on Public Service Reform, please contact Angie Brennand at angiebrennand@occ.on.ca or 416-482-5222 x 232.

To gather member input, our annual pre-budget survey will be distributed to local chambers within the next week or so.

As always, the purpose of the survey is to identify the public policy priorities of Ontario’s business community.

The OCC will use the results of the survey to develop the OCC’s pre-budget submission and prioritize areas of focus that will serve to improve the Ontario economy and foster a healthier business climate.

The recommendations within the pre-budget submission will be presented to Ontario’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs in its 2012 provincial pre-budget consultations.

We ask that OCC members complete the survey by January 9th.

For more information on the Ontario Budget process, please contact Liam McGuinty at liammcguinty@occ.on.ca or 416-482-5222 x 238.

In early November the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) and other representatives of the business and labour communities attended a meeting about the the WSIB Funding Review.

The meeting covered four broad topics, which will form the basis of Professor Harry Arthurs’ final WSIB Funding Review report:

• Funding Occupational Disease Claims
• Indexation for Partially Disabled Workers
• Rate Setting, Rate Groups and Employer Incentives
• Funding

At the WSIB Funding Review’s recent stakeholder meeting, the unfunded liability was revised to approximately $14.4 – $16.6 billon (as a result of increased entitlements and interest rates), from $12.1 billion the WSIB had previously estimated.

The Funding Review Committee also plans to recommend that premium rates increase in order to move past the ‘tipping point’. There is zero tolerance for further increases to premiums in the private sector.

As the OCC has stated previously, strategically repositioning the workplace safety and insurance system to effectively fulfill its mandate requires policy-makers to recognize comprehensive legislative and institutional reform as fundamental components of change.

The OCC has delivered a formal submission to the Funding Review Committee urging the Advisory Committee to tackle policies that will allow the WSIB to implement the types of changes required to strengthen and consolidate its financial situation over the long-run.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC), together with human resourcing consulting firm Mercer, have developed the first chapter in the OCC’s new health care work. Cost Trends in Health Benefits for Ontario Businesses: Analysis for Discussion was released in November at the Ontario Economic Summit in Toronto. This report has been prepared by Mercer to explain recent trends in the cost of employer benefit plans, and the impact of these costs on Ontario businesses going forward.

Cost Trends in Health Benefits sets out some of the current health care challenges facing Ontario businesses. Benefit cost and design trends in Canada and the U.S. are reviewed and the U.S. approach to controlling costs is examined. Ontario’s current benefit costs and cost management practices are described and areas for improvement are outlined. The expected future impact of high cost drugs is examined. Finally, future cost projections are presented, and examples of employer cost mitigation strategies are described.

Read Cost Trends in Health Benefits for Ontario Businesses: Analysis for Discussion.

Deputy Minister of Energy Fareed Amin will lead the first of such reviews and will consider:

• FIT price reduction
• Ensuring the long-term sustainability of clean energy procurement
• Consideration of new technologies and fuel sources
• Local consultations and the renewable approval process (REA)

Public feedback will be accepted through online surveys or written submissions until December 14, 2011.

The Board of Governors is the Ontario College of Trades’ governing body. The board manages and administers the affairs of the College. The Divisional Boards advise the Board of Governors on issues relating to trades within their respective sector including trends, emerging technologies, opportunities, challenges, and other issues.

These appointments signal the first step in establishing the College’s governance structure. These Boards focus on a variety of issues that impact the businesses and practices of tradespersons and employers from across the province.

The College of Trades will bring Ontario one step closer to full labour mobility by bringing skilled trades with no regulatory authority under one roof. The Ontario Chamber of Commerce will continue to monitor government progress in this area in order to ensure that full labour mobility becomes a reality for Ontario businesses and citizens.

Menial No More: A Discussion Paper on Advancing our Workforce through Digital Skills proposes that in order for the current labour market to thrive, radical changes are needed to enhance the skills of workers in these positions.

While one solution to this problem lies in training, workforce training systems are based on jobs that were once assumed to be ‘low-skilled’ and have not been updated to reflect the changing needs of the economy. The report suggests that Ontario’s adult education system could be enhanced by incorporating digital skills, basic science and job-specific training into essential skills education.

Other jurisdictions are finding success by mixing essential skills, with digital skills and science, technology, engineering and math to bridge the gap between the education system and the 21st century digital economy. Results to date have been positive with workers moving to employment more quickly and earning higher wages.

Menial No More invites us to think differently about how employer groups, government and the training community can design an education and training system that supports the growth of Ontario‘s workers and key sectors.