Janvier Kenmoe is a Business Representative of LiUNA Local 183. He is a certified Blueprint Reader. He has been a member of LiUNA Local 183 for over 20 years and a union organizer for over nine years and is a current member of the LiUNA African American Canadian Caucus (LAACC). On behalf of the LAACC, Janvier volunteers with the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists as well as with the Toronto Community Benefits Network, where he has supported a number of community based initiatives through fundraising and program development. He was a guest speaker with Ontario Works, Tropicana, Building up, Trade Linx as well as various high schools in the GTA, churches and African community organizations. As the Director, Skill Development & Apprenticeship with ANCHOR - African-Canadian Coalition against Hate, Oppression & Racism, Janvier advocates for better treatment of Black youth in the school system.

Sherwin Steele is a Sheet Metal journeyman, Sheet Metal and Roofer Local 30, and S.M.A.R.T international member. As a member, he has served on numerous committees within his local union. He is the longest member on the education committee for 21 years, and also held the position of chair of this committee. He sits on the By-Law Committee and is one of the first people of colour fully certified as a steward in his union. As a former Executive Board member, he was also Vice President and the first person of colour to hold an office position in the 121 years of Local 30. Sherwin is also a mentor to apprentices who feel the challenges of being a person of colour in his union. He currently sits, and is the Secretary Treasurer for Hamilton Urban Core Healthcare services. This is all part of his work towards being involved in what concerns all people of colour. Sherwin has been relentless in his pursuit of engaging and helping young people of colour seeing trade as a viable future.

COMMUNITY BENEFITS RESEARCHER

1 POSITION

DEADLINE: FRIDAY, MARCH 5, 2021

Reporting to the Director, Community Benefits Campaigns, the Community Benefits Researcher is primarily responsible for leading community benefits research activities by supporting TCBN campaigns, initiatives and public policy goals. Learn more. Download the full job description HERE.

Janvier Kenmoe
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · February 25, 2021 10:36 AM

Sherwin Steele
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · February 25, 2021 10:35 AM

Mamadou Bah
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · February 10, 2021 3:51 PM

On Friday February 05, 2021 Toronto City Council approved the report on ‘Advancing the Community Benefits Framework’ which outlines key action steps and activities to implement the Framework over the next year.

Since November 2020, the Toronto Community Benefits Network (TCBN) with support from community, labour and institutional partners has encouraged City Council to take bolder steps in the implementation of its Community Benefits Framework in response to the immediacy of the health, social and economic crisis facing Black, Indigenous and other racialized people in our City.

Advancing the CBA Framework
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · February 03, 2021 2:21 PM

Advancing the City of Toronto's Community Benefits Framework
Posted by Michelle Francis · January 29, 2021 4:28 PM

MacDonald Block Reconstruction
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · January 29, 2021 4:19 PM

In January 2020, Infrastructure Ontario released the Project Agreement (redacted) with Fengate PCL Consortium for the MacDonald Block reconstruction project - a $1.536 Billion at Queens Park. 

TCBN would like to thank our labour member AMAPCEO, the union for Ontario's Professional Employees. AMAPCEO has been a leading champion to ensure that the MacDonald Block Reconstruction Project includes a Community Benefits Agreement.

Since the Winter QGM in Regent Park, the TCBN has been active in supporting the Regent Park Neighbourhood Association (RPNA) in leading a local Community Benefits Coalition of residents, community groups and organizations. The goal of the coalition is to secure a legally binding agreement with Toronto Community Housing (TCH) and selected developer that commits to both short and long term community benefits in Regent Park. After weeks of negotiations with TCH, the Coalition is excited to announce a Community Benefits Framework Agreement for Phase 4 and 5 of revitalization in Regent Park. More details to come. LEARN MORE

Canada’s Federal Government has identified infrastructure as a key component of Canada’s economic recovery from the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. They are planning to invest over $187 Billion tax payer dollars on infrastructure projects across Canada over the next ten years. Commitment to infrastructure, employment, and improved outcomes for diverse communities must go hand in hand. ENDORSE LETTER.

Vision

The Toronto Community Benefits Network (TCBN) envisions Toronto as an inclusive, thriving city in which all residents have equitable opportunities to contribute to building healthy communities and a prospering economy. Our strategic plan objectives are to:

1. Negotiate and Implement Community Benefits Agreements: Negotiate and support the implementation of meaningful community benefits agreements, starting with the Crosstown and Finch LRT projects, creating access to jobs and other opportunities for historically disadvantaged communities and equity seeking groups.
2. Build Community Power: Build the platform for community to exercise its power to advance the community benefits movement in major infrastructure investments in the City.
3. Community Benefits Knowledge Transfer: Contribute to the body of work on community benefits by documenting, evaluating and sharing, the process and evolution of TCBN community labour coalition.
4. Resource Development and Capacity Building: Strengthen the organizational structure and develop the systems and resources to support the strategic directions and goals of the TCBN.

Get the latest update about our progress in key performance areas linked to our strategic plan objectives.

• CBA Campaigns

  Organizational goals are linked to Strategic Plan Objectives 1 & 2 - Negotiate and Implement Community Benefits Agreements and Build Community Power

  View Report

• Capacity Building

  Organizational goals are linked to Strategic Plan Objective 4 – Resource Development and Capacity Building

  View Report

• Programs

  Organizational goals are linked to Strategic Plan Objective 1 - Negotiate and Implement Community Benefits Agreements

  View Report

• Communications

  Organizational goals are linked to Strategic Plan Objectives 2 & 3 – Build Community Power and Community Benefits Knowledge Transfer

  View Report

• Cross Department

  Organizational goals are linked to Strategic Plan Objectives 2 & 4 – Build Community Power and Resource Development and Capacity Building

  View Report

Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) are increasingly being utilized in government procurement to maximize the social and economic impacts when they buy, build, or provide financial incentives for construction or remediation. In Ontario, the community benefits movement is built on the premise of community and labour working together to ensure the people building public infrastructure projects represent the demographics of the local communities.

In 2015, the Province of Ontario’s Bill 6, Infrastructure for Jobs and Prosperity Act was introduced by the provincial government to ensure infrastructure planning and investment include community benefits, being the supplementary social and economic benefits arising from infrastructure projects that are intended to improve the well-being of a community affected by the project. From this legislation, the province identified five pilot infrastructure projects in its Long-Term Infrastructure Plan that would include community benefits requirements.

These community benefits include but not limited to:

• local and equity hiring in apprenticeships
• local and equity hiring in professional, administrative and technical positions
• social procurement supporting local businesses, minority owned businesses and social enterprises
• neighbourhood and environmental improvements as identified by the community

Following this policy, several others were enacted by the different levels of government, including:

• 2017: The Building Better Lives: Ontario’s Long-Term Infrastructure Plan
• 2018 Federal Community Employment Benefits, 2020 Investing in Canada Plan and 2021 Budget
• 2019 and 2021: The City of Toronto’s Community Benefits Framework

The TCBN supports four CBAs currently underway in Toronto:

• Eglinton Crosstown LRT, learn more
• Finch West LRT, learn more
• Casino Woodbine, learn more
• Westpark Healthcare Centre, learn more

All have at minimum, the requirement for 10% of all trade or craft working hours to be performed by apprentices or journey persons from historically disadvantaged communities and equity seeking groups.

In the midst of a busy month for the network in celebrating our five year anniversary at the Annual General Meeting, the coalition has been active in keeping pace with Community Benefits policies and large scale urban infrastructure developments in Toronto 

Municipal - Toronto Community Benefits Framework 

Last month, the TCBN and community, labour and social enterprise partners turned out at the Toronto Economic and Community Development Committee meeting to depute and provide feedback on the proposed Community Benefits Framework. 

In response to our feedback, Councillors on the committee were able to move three motions to strengthen the report to include hard targets, public reporting and opportunities for City support for CBAs where the community and developer are both willing to enter into discussions. 

These motions are a step in the right direction, however there is still more work to be done before Council. We are trying to meet with as many Councillors as possible, so please indicate if you are interested in meeting with your local Councillor. The report, along with additional information produced by City staff, will come to Toronto City Council on July 16th or 17th.

Watch Deputations & Feedback from City Councillors HERE 

Federal Community Benefits: Bill C-344 

In June, we received confirmation that Bill C-344 did not pass the Senate due to procedural hold up by PC Senator David Wells. This is how Bill C44 and others have been killed

Bill C-344, if passed would have given the Minister a new discretionary power to require bidders to provide information on the community benefits to be derived from a project should they be awarded a contract from the federal government. The federal government will be exploring opportunities to direct the civil service to pursue community benefits through a policy change in the procurement process. 

We would like to extend our thanks to MP Ramesh Sangha, Minister Ahmed Hussen and Senator Ratna Omidvar for bringing the Bill forward in the House and Senate. We would also like to thank Canada’s Building Trades Unions (CBTU), Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), Atkinson Foundation, Power Lab, Buy Social Canada and all our network members and community leaders for your advocacy on this Bill. 

We have built significant momentum for community benefits on federal infrastructure projects and hope to continue this over the next few years.

Sidewalk Toronto Waterfront Project 

Last month, Sidewalk Labs released its Master Design and Innovation Plan, Toronto Tomorrow. In the past year, the TCBN has hosted consultations with our network and Sidewalk representatives to raise concerns about the “smart-city” project and discuss our expectations for a community benefits agreement. 

We continue to review the 1,500 page plan and will be providing an update to our network this month. We want to ensure that Sidewalk Labs, Waterfront Toronto and the City of Toronto understand that large scale urban infrastructure projects must benefit all community members and not just a select few.

Waterfront Toronto is hosting a series of consultations in July. Details HERE

Some additional readings on this proposal include: 

Lauren Jacobs, Partnership for Working Families - Opinion, "Toronto, it's not you - it's Google" Toronto Star, July 4, 2019.

David Rider, "Sidewalk Labs wants to buy, develop and sell public land." Toronto Star, June 25, 2019.

Editorial, "The cracks in Sidewalk Labs' latest plans for Toronto," Globe and Mail, June 25, 2019.

John Lorinc, "Sidewalk Labs and the problem of smart city governance." Spacing, June 25, 2019

Bill 108 and Community Benefits Charge By-law 

In June, the Ontario government passed Bill 108, the More Homes, More Choice Act, 2019 which makes changes to 13 pieces of legislation including the Planning Act, Endangered Species Act and brings back the Ontario Municipal Board (OMB). This raises numerous concerns including our cities ability to raise money from developers to pay for necessary social infrastructure like affordable housing, parks, child care centres, libraries and other community benefits. The Ontario government is now seeking feedback from the public and municipalities. Keep posted for webinar sessions this Summer to learn more and discuss the impact and response to these changes. 

Newsletter November 2021
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · November 02, 2021 2:43 PM

Newsletter October 2019
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · October 30, 2019 5:31 PM

Newsletter June 2019
Posted by Rosemarie Powell · June 01, 2019 12:29 PM