Jim Kellett Takes the Lead at ECAO 2011 ECAO Industry Conference

2011 ECAO ANNUAL REPORTPresident’s Report - (continued)Too often these matters end up with yourcustomers, regulators or others with marketpower on the opposite side of the issue andat the table.One area where ECAO could do a betterjob of running interference for the membershipis standard commercial practices. Overthe past five years, ECAO has graduallyexpanded its educational and lobbying rolerelated to our favourite topic of getting paid,but there is a lot more to be done. In recognitionof this, the ECAO board has createda new standard practices committee whoserole will go beyond education and mayinclude interceding on behalf of the membershipon matters related to tendering andcontracts. Some area ECAs already have awell-developed process in place for this, butthere is a need to ensure that the same messageis delivered to clients, their representativesand general contractors throughoutthe province - and that it is delivered by theassociation. This whole issue will be fleshedout in development of the new ECAO strategicplan this spring.As the electrical trade and business evolves,ECAO’s commitment to protecting thescope of the electrical business and maintainingopen and fair access to electricalmarkets becomes increasingly valuable andwell recognized. It is an asset we shouldexploit whenever necessary to allow electricalcontractors to do what they do best -grow the market.The new ECAO strategic plan will bedeveloped in May 2011 with participationof all area directors and labour relations representatives.The new plan will be presentedto the membership at the annual meeting onJune 16.My years on the ECAO executive and,in particular, the past two years as yourpresident have been both challenging andexciting. During my tenure the associationhas faced recession, renewal of the no strikeaccord, collective bargaining, decline of ourindustrial work base and emergence of newmarket opportunities in the commercial andrenewable energy sectors. It has been quite aride, but through it all I have had the privilegeof working with a committed team ofcontractor volunteers and ECAO staff withthe best interests of the industry foremostin mind.On behalf of the members of the board ofdirectors and myself, I wish to sincerelythank all the volunteer members of ourcommittees and our staff for their dedicatedefforts on our behalf. If you have notalready done so, please go to www.ecao.organd check the names and affiliations of ourmany committee volunteers. These peoplework with the support of their companies tohelp improve the working environment forall of us. Likewise our staff who work longhours to operate a very effective associationdedicated to the betterment of its members.Please tell them thanks the next time yousee them.Executive Vice-President’s Report - By Eryl RobertsIn last year’s report we wrote that economicstability might be a thing of the past- a figment of an economist’s dream. Thestrengthening Canadian dollar reinforcesour concern about any real advances in theindustrial sector which has traditionallybeen our strong suit. We are, however, stillbetting that the recovery will be led by thesmall commercial market. Our record in thismarket is not so good, but if that is wherethe work is going to be, there is where wehave to go. In the 2010 round of bargainingwe made it a central issue and found somesuccess with an additional four locals negotiatingmore competitive conditions for thistype of work. Unfortunately, a month oflabour/management brainstorming duringprovincial negotiations does not solve theproblem. We have to keep at it during theterm of the agreement, particularly duringa period when massive infrastructure/stimuluswork is masking the reality of small jobcompetition. Typically it is during periodsof relative good employment on the megajobsthat we get killed on the small work.After the negotiations proper, the ETBAand IBEW-CCO met on several occasionsto deal with solar farm installations. Thesetalks resulted in development of a protocolfor application in each area and dealt withissues such as work assignment, trade jurisdictionand temporary help. Though theseinstallations are impressive man-hour generators,the market will be saturated by theend of the current agreement. The sustainablegrowth will be in the ICI rooftop installations.Our involvement with the IBEW onthis has been directed at confirming solar aspart of the electrical trade and establishingOntario Electrical Contractor26quality standards and training to differentiateour product from the others. Some areaECAs and local unions have begun to considerdifferent employment terms for thiswork, but the market is so new it is hard to