68th Annual PBCTCO Convention: Workshop Registration

This registration is for Workshop Registration for the 68th Ontario Building Trades Convention.

Please read as some things have changed.

• The Workshop Registration fee is $100.00 per attendee.

• As there will be three (3) different sessions running, please be specific when selecting your section.

• Lunch will be provided for all attendees.

Once the Workshop Registration has been completed and submitted, an email confirmation will be sent to you containing a ticket with a QR code. Please have this confirmation with you for onsite registration. Should changes need to be made to the registration, please contact us directly at the contact information listed below.

Workshop Registration is separate from the Convention Registration. To Register for Convention, please click here.

All Fees will be paid by certified cheque or credit card*. 

*A convenience fee will be applied to credit card payments.

2025 WORKSHOPS:

We have broken this years Workshops into three sections. Each session runs for the whole day (10am-3:00pm), so you will not be able to mix and match sessions. There will be a break and lunch during the sessions. Schedule and lineup may change closer to the date. Attendees will be updated by email closer to convention. In your registration form, please specify which section you're going to attend.

• Section One: Health and Safety - Occupational Diseases

  As apart of the Ontario Building Trades Health, Safety and Prevention Resource (OBT HSPR)

  Occupational illnesses and diseases are a significant concern in Ontario, especially within the construction industry. Workers in construction face various hazards such as physical, chemical, and environmental factors, which increase their risk to occupational exposures and diseases. This workshop focuses on occupational diseases within the construction sector to raise awareness and promote a safer working environment, advocated by the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario (PBCTCO)

  There will be three seminars of the following topics. Each seminar will be approximately 1 hour: 

  • WSIB Overview Occupation Disease and How to File a Claim.  

    By: Brad Valley, Jennifer Aziz, Lawyer, Building Trades Workers' Services (BTWS)

    • Participants will be educated on what constitutes an occupational disease and how the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, (WSIA) and the Occupational Health and Safety Act, (OHSA) establish standards and preventative measures. They will also learn how to file a claim with the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) for an occupational disease or exposure.

  • Expanding Presumptive Legislation for Construction Workers.

    By: Carmine Tiano, Director of Occupational Services, & Shavanni Singh, Paraleagal, Ontario Building Trades (PBCTCO)

    • Participants will learn about how presumptive legislation streamlines workers' compensation claims by automatically considering certain illnesses as work-related. They will also learn about the benefits available for specified illnesses that are presumed to be caused by work.

  • The Occupational Exposure Registry (OER) Project (Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training & Skills Development (MLITSD)

    • Ontario’s Government to create Canada’s first registry to track harmful workplace exposures, improve disease diagnosis, and enhance worker compensation.

      
      

• Section Two: Skilled Trades, Strong Foundations: Helping Apprentices Learn and Thrive

  As apart of Construction Training & Apprenticeship Ontario (CTAO)

  Presented by: Summer Burton, Executive Director, and Tamara Kaattari, Project Manager and Program Development Officer, Literacy Link South Central (LLSC)

  This workshop is based on the Skills Upgrading for Success workshop series offered by CTAO and LLSC in February 2025. You will learn about tools and resources to effectively assist your apprentices in upgrading their literacy and essential skills, and about new supports currently available to help apprentices with learning differences succeed. 

  
  

  For those starting in the skilled trades, some may be non-traditional learners. As Trainers you play a pivotal role in understanding and recognizing these challenges. In this workshop you will learn what supports are available to help apprentices build their fundamental skills and cope with learning differences. By helping apprentices, we build stronger Journeypersons. 

  This workshop will cover the following three topics: 

  • Literacy issues:  

    • How you as a Trainer can recognize and talk about challenges with reading, writing, math or digital skills.

    • Providing support and information on free training for soft skills.  

  •  Educational pathways:  

    • Grade 12 and equivalent options, along with recognition of prior learning and foreign credentials.

  •  Learning differences: 

    •  Understanding neurodiversity and learning disabilities and their impact on learning, strategies and accommodations that can help. 

      
      

• Section Three: Building Foundations for Equity Conference: Supporting Women in the Trades 

  Hosted by the Ontario Building and Construction Tradeswomen (OBCT)

  This year, the OBCT will host the second Women’s Conference titled: Building Foundations for Equity: Supporting Women in the Trades

  The first Conference was held in 2019 which led to a resolution being brought to the PBCTCO Convention and the formation of the OBCT. This year, we will celebrate the progress made and discuss the issues affecting retention of women in the skilled trades and work together to identify solutions and the goals of OBCT moving forward.

  
  

  Speakers include the OBCT Leadership Committee, Workplace Consultant Sally Wells, an update on the Anti-Discrimination, Anti-Harassment Course from PBCTCO’s in-house Paralegal Shavanni Singh, and a Women in Construction Leadership Panel with EPSCA Executive Director Caitlin Gascon, Mandy Bujold, a former Olympic Boxer who now works for the Grand River Construction Association, and Katherine Jacobs, Director of Research with the Ontario Construction Secretariat.

  
  

  You do not have to be a delegate to attend. This Conference is aimed at tradeswomen but all are welcome. 

  
  

  The OBCT extends our sincere gratitude to our sponsors for their generous support in making this Conference possible.

UPDATES:

• Updates will be provided to workshop attendees via email.

• If you wish to change what section you are attending, we recommend contacting us at the email below and advise which section you would like to attend.

• Convention and workshop details will be available at a later date, closer to Convention. You will be able to view them here.

CONTACT US:

• If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us at 416-679-8887 or info@ontariobuildingtrades.com.

• Cheques are payable to:

Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario 

401-75 International Blvd., Toronto, ON M9W 6L9

• If paying by Cheque, please reference the 11 digit order number(s) for the payment.