CAODC calls on the Senate of Canada and the House of Commons to accept amendments to Bill C-69.

For Immediate Release: June 3, 2019
 
CAODC calls on the Senate of Canada and the House of Commons to accept amendments to Bill C-69.


CAODC, along with other industry, First Nation, and community leaders from across the country, is calling on the Senate of Canada and the House of Commons to protect Canadian jobs and small businesses by accepting the amendments to Bill C-69 as proposed by the Senate Standing Committee on Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources.

The Canadian oil and gas industry continues to manage through the worst recession in its history, and the implications of Bill C-69 in its original form have both deepened the recession's impact and further delayed any meaningful recovery.

Since the end of 2014, Canadian drilling and service rig companies have reduced the number of rigs in Canada by over 40 per cent. At the same time, the number of Canadian drilling companies has fallen by the same amount.

The exit of companies and equipment from the Canadian market has resulted in a permanent loss of approximately 90,000 high paying resource jobs. Many of these rigs, along with Canadian crews and technology, are operating successfully in the United States where the energy sector is robust with a government focused on energy independence and growth.

As Mark Scholz, CAODC President & CEO explains, "there isn't a single business in my membership that isn't looking seriously at relocating equipment and crews to the United States if they haven't already done so. It means fewer jobs and fewer opportunities for Canadian oil and gas families. The mere thought of legislation like C-69 has no doubt hastened their plans to leave Canada."

The last four years have been devastating for families across the country, particularly in western Canada. "Chronic unemployment has taken root, and the effects have been heartbreaking,” notes Scholz. “I know of several small business owners who had to refinance their own home to make payroll and keep the doors open. Some have managed to push through but are barely hanging on, while others get added to the growing list of failed businesses.”

The Senate of Canada has studied this bill extensively, consulted Canadians from coast to coast, and have tried to make things right by introducing 188 amendments to the bill. "Federal policymakers must get this right because too much is on the line for Canadians. We respectfully and urgently call on the Senate and House of Commons to do the right thing and stand up for hardworking Canadian oil workers and their families and approve C-69 as amended," concludes Scholz.

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For further information, please contact:
 
John Bayko – Vice President, Communications
Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors
Suite 2050, 717-7 Avenue SW Calgary, AB T2P 0Z3
Phone: (403) 264-4311 ext. 120
Email: jbayko@caodc.ca