RESCON donates PPE to community groups and charities

VAUGHAN, ONT. — The Residential Construction Council of Ontario (RESCON) is donating $40,000 worth of personal protective equipment (PPE) to four community groups and local charities in Ontario.

The announcement was made by RESCON representatives at the Muslim Association of Canada’s Olive Grove School in Mississauga, Ont. It was attended by Labour, Training and Skills Development Minister Monte McNaughton and Mississauga East-Cooksville MPP Kaleed Rasheed.

Associations receiving the PPE include the Muslim Association of Canada; St. Clare’s Multifaith Housing Society; United Jewish Appeal; and Edvance.

When the pandemic first struck earlier this year, RESCON was instrumental in developing and implementing COVID-19 protocols for residential construction sites. The residential construction sector was the first in Ontario to produce sector-specific guidance documents to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on worksites, states a RESCON release, adding the documents were approved by labour and management and served as a blueprint for the development of the province’s 170 sector-specific guidance resources.

RESCON hopes other organizations in Ontario will step up and donate PPE to schools, community groups and charities as well.

“With this second wave of the pandemic upon us, our industry wanted to give back to schools, those who are without homes, and the community at large by providing the necessary PPE such as masks and hand sanitizer to help keep students safe,” said RESCON president Richard Lyall in a statement.

“The groundwork laid by construction contributed to the industry doing well in dealing with COVID-19 across Ontario and that is why we want to give back to Ontario communities. RESCON will continue to prioritize the health and safety of workers and work with industry and government to ensure that appropriate measures are being taken on construction sites.”

“St. Clare’s has great admiration for our staff who arrive every day at work ready to work for our tenants in these challenging circumstances,” said Andrea Adams, executive director of St. Clare’s. “We are grateful to RESCON for helping us show our respect to those staff by donating PPE to help keep them safe while they work. We are working together to keep people housed and healthy to the best of our abilities.”