May 13, 2020

Your CFA Daily Update on COVID-19

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If you would like to subscribe all your franchisees to receive our Daily Update, please contact Alex Mann at amann@cfa.ca. 

Astley Gilbert is offering a 10% discount to all CFA members.

Like all Canadians, we wanted to use our skills to help people in these challenging times and produced a line of products to assist with the current COVID-19 pandemic. 

Click here to review AG COIVD-19 Items for supply

Details of $1 Billion Regional Relief and Recovery Fund Announced

Today the government announced the details of the nearly $1 billion in funding being provided to the Regional Development Agencies ($675 million) and the national network of Community Futures Development Corporations ($287 million). SMEs may now apply for support through their local Regional Development Agency.

The Fund will help to:

• mitigate the financial pressure experienced by businesses and organizations to allow them to continue their operations, including paying their employees;
• support projects by businesses, organizations and communities to prepare now for a recovery.

The big difference between this program and others announced to date is that regional economic development agencies will have greater flexibility on how and to whom to allocate funding. We hope that this added discretion will allow the agencies to help SMEs with differing business models not covered by broadly-based programs like the Canada Emergency Business Account and Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy.

For More Information on the Program

Regional Development Agencies

• Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)
• Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED)
• Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (CanNor)
• Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario)
• Federal Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario (FedNor)
• Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD)

Alberta Biz Connect - Guidance for reopening

Workplace guidance and supports to help businesses and non-profits affected by COVID-19 begin to reopen and resume operations safely.

Telus is Helping CFA Members Stay Connected

TELUS Business is working to keep CFA members stay connected through these turbulent times. 
Find out more.

Ontario to ease COVID-19 restrictions starting Thursday

CBC News is reporting that Ontario will announce it will lift restrictions on construction work and will loosen restrictions on most retail shops as part of its COVID-19 reopening plan. The plan will allow the reopening of retail stores that are not in malls, seasonal businesses, pet services, household cleaning and maintenance, and in-person health and counselling services. Ontario will lift essential workplace limits on construction and allowing picnics in parks.  

Social gatherings will still be limited to five people. Information on school programs, child care and summer learning will be provided next week.

The opening of retail stores that are not in shopping malls would still involve some restrictions to enable physical distancing, according to the draft document. That includes "separate street-front entrances only, limiting the space available, limiting the number of people per square metre and/or booking appointments." Other details in the draft of Ontario's plans for reopening include: 

• Opening off-leash dog parks, outdoor sports facilities, rod and gun clubs, and "individual indoor and outdoor sport competitions without spectators," such as water sports, tennis, track and field and horse racing.
• Allowing pet grooming, regular veterinary appointments and public access to animal shelters.
• Allowing indoor and outdoor household services, such as cleaning and maintenance, to open with limits.
• Allowing all health and medical services to resume, such as in-person counselling and scheduled surgeries 

The Ford government said in its framework for re-opening Ontario, released in late April, that stage one of lifting restrictions would involve opening select workplaces, allowing essential gatherings of a limited number of people, and opening some outdoor spaces.

Alberta to relaunch Thursday – restrictions to remain for Calgary, Brooks

Alberta will proceed to the first phase of its relaunch plan on Thursday. Two communities — Calgary and Brooks — will take a slower approach to reopening because they have 85 per cent of Alberta’s active COVID-19 cases.

Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB) To Begin Friday

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau confirmed the date for opening the $9-billion program this morning during his daily briefing. Claimants must sign up for an account on the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) website to ensure the process moves as quickly as possible.

The benefit will provide eligible students with $1,250 a month from May through August. The benefit also is available to students who have jobs but are making less than $1,000 a month.

Other measures that have been announced to help students include:

• A stipend of between $1,000 and $5,000 for student volunteers, depending on the number of hours they work.
• A move to double student grants for eligible students — up to $6,000 for full-time students and up to $3,600 for part-time students.
• An increase in the maximum weekly amount that can be provided through the Canada student loans program in 2020-2021, to $350 from $210.
• Another $75 million in additional supports for Indigenous post-secondary students.

ARTICLES OF INTEREST FROM CFA MEMBERS

Deloitte: Small Business Relief Tool

• This tool is built to ask guiding questions that provide specific funding opportunities that meet your small businesses needs. Let’s find a program

Gowling WLG

• Cyber security resources for businesses facing heightened risk

PiinPoint Empowering CFA Members

CFA Members can get free access to PiinPoint’s Location Intelligence Platform with data for one Canadian province. 
Find out more.

UPCOMING WEBINARS

MAY 14, 2020
AT 2:00 PM ET

COVID-19 Consumer and Digital Trends Every Company Should Know  
 50 CFE PARTICIPATION  CREDITS  

SPEAKER: Steve Buors, Reshift Media

During this session, we will examine how consumer purchasing and digital media consumption has changed since COVID-19 began, and we will discuss what this could mean for businesses in the future.

MAY 19, 2020
AT 2:00 PM ET

Planting Leadership Seeds  
 50 CFE PARTICIPATION  CREDITS  

SPEAKER: Erik Therwanger, Think GREAT

With an emphasis on creating a deeper understanding of leadership, leaders will learn new ways to create a sense of urgency, set and accomplish goals, improve communication, and begin planning for a successful future while impacting each person today.

PRE-REGISTER FOR THE CFA'S CFE PROGRAM

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ON DEMAND HERE

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Feedback from our Members

"The work the CFA team does in many ways goes unnoticed and is simply taken as expected. I don’t see it that way. The work you do impacts so many and does great work in being the voice of the franchise community. It does not go unnoticed and unappreciated! Thank you for all you do!”

 - Paul C. Pascal, Vice President, Operations, Second Cup Coffee Co.

COVID-19's impact on the world is creating waves across all sectors and industries.

Every member of the CFA community is dealing with an issue that is affecting the world, our industries, our communities, our businesses, and our people.

We would like to hear from you if you have any topics, issues or questions to navigate turbulent times in order to support you further: