Big White Ski Resort Hosts Donation Drive for International Women's Day

In celebration of International Women's Day, Big White Ski Resort Ltd is hosting a week-long donation drive for the Kelowna Women's Shelter. The resort has set-up drop-off bins at the Concierge Desk in the Village Centre Mall for donations of gently used clothing, household items, non-perishable food, and/or gift cards for collection and distribution. Donations will be accepted until Sunday, March 14. 

The drive was spearheaded by Ashley Vander Laan, Food and Beverage Manager at Big White Ski Resort.

"I was fortunate to grow up with amazing and strong women in my life who shaped me into my weird and wonderful self," she says. "I have continued to grow and be inspired by some of the most outstanding women I’ve met here at Big White; from the amazing women in various leadership roles to entrepreneurs and amazing moms, friends, and sisters that form this wonderfully supportive community at Big White.

"I wanted to share some of what makes us so wonderful and to give back to our community, that’s when I reached out to Esther at the Kelowna Women’s Shelter, and the initiative was born!"

---

The Kelowna Women’s Shelter provides free food, shelter, counselling, support and preventive education to women and their children who have experienced partner violence. To donate directly, head to kelownawomensshelter.ca

This year's International Women's Day theme is "Choose to Challenge." To learn more, head to internationalwomensday.com. 

Big White Ski Resort has also asked its team members and community to send in a photo of themselves and their company/department for a video. You can watch the video here. here

Opportunities to Support Labour Force

Mentoring | Job Placements | Virtual Job Fair

TOTA is facilitating two virtual Tourism Skills Training Programs in order to support displaced employees and professionals transitioning to a career in the tourism industry. The curriculum prepares participants to work in various tourism and hospitality positions in the Thompson Okanagan region with a focus on serving domestic markets in 2021, ultimately increasing the labour pool for tourism companies. Curriculum topics were determined by TOTA through survey responses from tourism operators about labour needs, skills gaps, and general feedback.

Industry support is essential to help these up and coming tourism professionals achieve success as they journey down the path of their career.

TOTA is seeking tourism operators to provide mentoring during the program and job placements post-program for up to 75 job-ready participants.

 You may choose to participate with one or all of these opportunities. Please submit a form for each corresponding opportunity.

 The upcoming opportunities for tourism operators to get involved are:

Mentoring for 8 Weeks | Apply by March 16

By volunteering as a mentor you can make a difference for a budding tourism professional by sharing career advice, positive support, and encouraging words. Connect with a participant through virtual meetings or phone calls for 1 hour per week for an 8 week period between March 18 and June 13. We will attempt to match you with a mentee in your community or region.

Job Postings & Work Placements

Are you hiring? TOTA is matching participants with work placements. Participants will have a strong understanding of current tourism industry practices from the curriculum, have varying professional experience, and are seeking a range of positions from entry level to middle management roles. 

Sign up to receive a list of potential candidates based on location, interest, and experience. Job postings will be shared during and after the Job Fair.

Virtual Job Fair | April 22, 2021

TOTA is hosting a virtual job fair for Tourism Skills Training program participants on April 22. Employers will host a virtual booth and have the opportunity to meet with participants. Tech support for the virtual platform will be provided.

---

After you sign up, we will contact you with further details.

Spread the Word

Please share these industry opportunities with any tourism managers and leaders in the Thompson Okanagan tourism industry that may be interested.

---

Contact Us

Feel free to contact us if you have further questions about TOTA's Training Centre and programs:

Barbara Bonnough
Training Program Manager
Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA)
(778) 752-5877 |  Training@TOTABC.com

 The Tourism Skills Training Programs are delivered by the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA) in cooperation with the University of Victoria-Peter B. Gustavson School of Business and supported by the Province of British Columbia.

Canada’s Airports Reinforce Call for Government Action as Expected Losses Grow with New Travel Restrictions

March 4, 2021 | Canadian Airports Council

Canada’s airport are calling on federal and provincial  governments to work with airports and other industry stakeholders as a matter of  urgency if our country is to emerge from the pandemic with a functioning air sector that  supports Canadian travel, tourism and trade. The air sector needs a plan that will reverse domestic and international travel restrictions when the time is right, and ensure  Canada has a strong, competitive air sector on the other side of this crisis.  

With the increase in air travel restrictions, and new quarantine and testing requirements  imposed during the last quarter of 2020 and early 2021, the Canadian Airport Council’s  December outlook projects that revenue losses for Canada’s airports have deepened to $5.5 billion for 2020 and 2021 – a $1 billion deterioration since the last analysis was  released in August. Given that no more than 20 percent of the measures outlined in the  federal Fall Economic Statement will come in the form of direct grants to address  operational losses, Canada’s airports expect to take on about $2.8 billion in additional  debt in 2020 and 2021. 

Daniel-Robert Gooch, president of the Canadian Airports Council is worried that the effects will be permanent. “While the federal government has been supportive, it is  missing the sense of urgency to act quickly and decisively. The reality is that these  

losses are unsustainable. Without government action, air travel will not only become a  lot more expensive, but Canadians everywhere will have fewer choices of routes and  destinations, including at the four major hub airports.”

---

Prior to the onset of COVID-19, the majority of Canada’s airports were almost entirely  funded through passenger and aeronautical fees, which have dropped catastrophically  with passenger traffic at zero to 15 per cent of pre-COVID levels at most airports.  Unfortunately, the government’s mitigations such as ground lease rent relief and the  Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy provided only minimal aid. 

“These measures provided some assistance, but not enough to help support airports  dealing with higher costs and cratering revenues,” Mr. Gooch said. “In fact, our analysis  shows that even their modest impact was far less than the government projected.” 

When the 2020 rent waiver was announced in March the government asserted that it  would provide the equivalent of $330 million in relief to the airport sector. The CAC’s  data, aggregated directly from airports, show that the waiver saved only $137 million,  90 per cent of which benefited just four airports. Moreover, the majority of Canadian  airports pay no rent, so most airports saw no benefit from the waiver at all. 

Similarly, the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) provided $139 million in support  to airports in 2020 – a fraction of the $1.7 billion that the federal government says has  been provided to “air sector workers” – with 84 per cent going to the four busiest  airports. Moreover, about 200 municipal airports in Canada are not even eligible to  participate in the program. 

If the government does not increase its support, airports will have no choice but to  make some stark choices that will have a direct impact on their passengers and  communities. They can raise their fees significantly, continue to take on unprecedented  amounts of new debt, or reduce operations even more dramatically. 

To complicate matters further, air travel is very price-sensitive and airports must  compete with each other for service. If their rates increase too much, air carriers may  elect not to return or may do so at fares that are no longer competitive, driving  Canadians to fly on foreign air carriers and out of American airports as part of a vicious  spiral that further degrades air connectivity for Canadian communities. 

---

The CAC has identified a number of government-led actions to avoid the worst of these  outcomes, including  

• Working inclusively with Canada’s airports and industry partners on a plan to  safely restart air travel when it is safe to do. 

• Implementing a moratorium on ground lease rents and provide options for  interest-free loans (or equivalent operational support) until the business  recovers, which could take five years or longer.

• Expanding national transportation infrastructure funding to meet safety and  security requirements and adapt to COVID-19 and climate change. 

• Making permanent the elevated Airports Capital Assistance Program funding and  expanded eligibility criteria to ensure sustainable recovery at Canada’s regional  airports. 

---

”Since the outset of the pandemic, airports have worked with transport, border and  public health officials, among others, to ensure that air travel is as healthy and safe as  possible and to continue to provide essential and emergency services for Canadians,”  said Mr. Gooch. “We look forward to working with our government colleagues to  rebuild confidence in air travel and save the industry from long term and irreparable  damage.