Hi Project Directors,

I hope this email finds you safe and healthy. Please see below for the weekly COVID-19 update from the Tides Canada Shared Platform about how we're prioritizing support for projects and what you can expect from us.

• The first weekly TCI COVID-19 Working Group took place on Friday March 20, with representatives from departments across Tides Canada to coordinate our activities. The outcomes are included in the list below.
• The Vancouver and Toronto offices are now closed, and staff are working from home. The Yellowknife office is currently open and following social distancing guidelines. As a result, many of our usual processes are being disrupted. We're doing everything we can to mitigate this, however the reality is that we are in a global pandemic and business as usual may not be possible for certain activities. We will do our best to communicate any changes with you as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience as we all grapple with an unprecedented situation.
• Project Specialists have compiled a list of all jurisdictions where projects operate and we are now including many of these municipalities in our daily review of government support programs.
• The communications team is leading the strategy for reaching out to funders about their plans, so that we can identify any overlap between TCF/TCI funders and ensure the best positioned relationship lead reaches out. We are planning on starting some conversations in the next week, and communication will likely be ongoing for some time. Project Specialists will inform you as soon as they have information from your funders.
• The Finance team has been working incredibly hard to process A/P as quickly as possible. Unfortunately we (like all organizations) are facing some COVID-19-related logistical challenges with cheque printing and couriers, and projects should expect some delays in vendors receiving cheques. 
  • To mitigate this, the Finance team is reaching out to all vendors with information about how to sign up to payment via Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT). Vendors are strongly encouraged to make this switch if they can as it will support timely payment moving forward.
  • For vendors who absolutely cannot receive payment via EFT, we are doing our best to get cheques out as quickly as possible for the time being. We'll keep you all updated with any changes.
• The People & Culture team emailed every Project Director last week to discuss support for employees, including relevant policies and procedures e.g. working from home, sick leave. Please keep in touch with them if you have any questions at all about how to support your staff.
• We are in early conversation about how best to access the Temporary Wage Subsidy for Small Employers, for which charities are eligible.  The program offers a wage subsidy of 10% of a charity's remuneration between March 18, 2020, and June 20, 2020, up to a maximum of $25,000 total per employer. This subsidy is applied through a deduction of income tax paid, and is not a direct payment to charities or individual employees.
  • As the employer, TCI is eligible for this subsidy and we've started conversations about how to best allocate the $25,000 of income tax savings among projects. For example, we could prioritize projects who are at risk of laying off staff, or we could allocate payments equally as a percentage of payroll. 
  • We'd like to include Project Directors in this important decision as it will impact all of you. If you are interested in participating, please reach out to me or your Project Specialist.
• We are compiling an online resource for projects (a smaller version of the Operations Manual) where we will post the latest COVID-19 information related to health guidelines, Tides Canada's response, government programs, these weekly updates and an FAQ. You'll receive a link to this resource by Wednesday.
• Project Specialists and other support team members are all working to keep up with day-to-day project operations, and we have put some other Shared Platform activities on hold for now to help us do this e.g. rolling out supports and standards, following up on survey results. I'll share more on updated timelines in the coming few weeks.

As always, please reach out with any questions or concerns, and look out for a link to our online resource coming shortly.

Warmest wishes to you and your loved ones,

Lizzie