Author: SHCA

This summer, motorists will see significant amounts of road sealing taking place across the province. Road sealing is a cost-effective method that extends the life of roads and highways by sealing cracks formed by temperature changes throughout the year.

“Seal-coating is an effective and useful tool in all areas of the province,” Minister of Highways Fred Bradshaw said. “This method takes just a few days and lasts 10 years – a worthwhile investment in our provincial highway network.”

In 2021, the Ministry plans to improve 510 kilometres of provincial roads and highways with pavement sealing, valued at over $20 million. Ministry crews will also be completing spot sealing throughout the province. This preventative maintenance treatment is completed on various spots to keep the moisture out of the roadbed. Without this treatment, the highways will deteriorate at a faster rate and will require more costly treatments in the future.

Pavement sealing works by covering the roadway with an oil-based substance. A layer of gravel is then placed on top. The mixture sits and cures for 24 hours and is then swept away by equipment, with the gravel collected for further use.

All pavement sealing sites are full construction zones with slower speed limits, additional signage and tripled speed fines. These are in place even when workers are not present to protect drivers and their vehicles. Speeding on the mixture can cause gravel sprays and damage to windshields, body panels and tires.

The Ministry of Highways publishes a weekly construction update to provide Saskatchewan residents with the latest details on projects that are underway. This update can be found at https://www.saskatchewan.ca/residents/transportation/highway-construction-projects/weekly-highway-construction-update.    

The Government of Saskatchewan is improving more than 1,350 km of provincial highways as part of its 10-year Growth Plan goal to build and upgrade 10,000 km of highways. With this year’s projects, the province is ahead of the pace needed to meet this target.  

The Government of Saskatchewan has invested more than $10.6 billion in highways infrastructure since 2008, improving more than 17,100 km of Saskatchewan highways.

In July, the Government of Saskatchewan announced approximately $13 million in new funding for Saskatchewan Polytechnic and the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship and Trade Certification Commission (SATCC) to deliver education and skills training programs to help grow a skilled workforce in Saskatchewan. 

This funding allows both institutions to deliver a variety of education and skills training programs in support of the government’s commitment to engage with under-represented groups, create jobs in long-term care and increase the number of apprentices in the province.

“Saskatchewan’s greatest resource has always been its people and this funding supports the provincial Growth Plan priority to develop a skilled workforce in our province through education and training,” said Jeremy Harrison, Immigration and Career Training Minister. “As we emerge from the global pandemic and work to build a strong Saskatchewan, this funding will target training for economic opportunities, promote recruitment and retention of young people, support participation of those currently under-represented in the workforce, and continue growing an engaged and inclusive workforce for the future.”

A total of $11.3 million will be provided to Saskatchewan Polytechnic for the purpose of developing and delivering three training initiatives in 2021-22. A total of $1.68 million will be provided to the SATCC.

“We’re excited about this investment and what it means for our programming,” SATCC chief executive officer Jeff Ritter said.  “We already engage Saskatchewan youth and Indigenous communities through our well-established Indigenous Apprenticeship Initiative (IAI) and Saskatchewan Youth Apprenticeship (SYA) programs. This funding will enable us to reach out in new, innovative ways. Ultimately, it will help facilitate a diverse, inclusive apprenticeship and trade certification system, one that is representative of our province’s population.”

In the month of August, the Saskatchewan Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) will be reaching out to customers across the province to gather feedback to help improve WCB services.

The information provided by customers will be vital in improving the WCB’s services over the short and long term. As customers experience these services from a different perspective, we will be seeking input from injured workers and employers at all touchpoints of their experience with us.

This information will be used in the development of a customer feedback system that will help us in the future to gather feedback at the most critical points of the customer journey. We will be asking customers about their preferred feedback methods. This information will be used to inform changes to how the WCB gathers feedback from our customers. Customer feedback is essential in our ability to be able to improve our services for our customers.

A survey was sent out to customers via email on Aug. 3, 2021. This email will come from the askwcb@wcbsask.com email account.

Please be aware that the WCB will never ask for personal information such as a claim number, bank information, payment status, SIN or any other personal identification or financial information when conducting customer research. 

If you have any questions about whether or not an email or call was legitimate, please do not hesitate to contact the WCB at askwcb@wcbsask.com or 800-667-7590.

The inaugural meeting of the Women in Construction – TEC Group was held in May to great success. The second meeting for the group is scheduled for late-August; contact the SHCA office for details on how to participate!