Joining forces makes sense as the communities are interdependent on each other. Last week, the Victoria fire department announced mutual aid agreements with neighbouring municipalities.

“This program will provide business owners with the ability to expand their online presence and create a customized e-commerce site that will give them the boost they need to keep moving forward,” said Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, in a news release.

Businesses must have fewer than 150 employees and generated more than $30,000 in sales in 2019 or 2020. The program is administered by Alacrity Canada.

​“We launched an online shop within 48 hours after the lockdown,” David Nicholls, general manager of Vancouver Island Brewing said in the news release. “While we were happy to get it off the ground, we soon realized that the online store could not meet all of our needs and the uniqueness of shipping beer. “

Grants of up to $7,500 are available for online-related expenses, including pictures, creating an online inventory system, advertising costs, subscription costs of an e-commerce platform and training staff to manage the website.

WorkBC has opened the program up recently to make it accessible to more people looking for work. The hope is that it can help people get the training needed to take on roles that employers are having a difficult time filling. The Chamber continues to advocate for programs that help employers find and keep workers, and we know that this is an underlying concern for our region’s economy.

To find out more about the program, an info session is planned for Feb. 10, starting at noon.

WorkBC is also hosting an info session on cultural awareness on Feb. 8, from 9 to 11 am. Inclusion is another advocacy priority for The Chamber, allowing employers to successfully widen their talent pool and contribute to the community.

While many media stories this week have focused on pandemic fatigue, the CHEK report offers some context to Henry’s plea for British Columbians to do more.

“If we can just get through the next few months and get to that place, we’ll be able to do a lot more this summer than we ever did last summer,” Henry said in the interview. “And we’ll be able to get to that point where we can get back to not wearing masks again, where we can get back to being together in that way we all so want to.”

“We now need to talk about going back to regional restrictions, even though it’s not an easy conversation,” Chamber CEO Bruce Williams says. “Re-opening of businesses and ensuring economic activity is vital to public health. Restrictions are taking a toll on the mental and emotional well-being of people in our community.”

Throughout the pandemic, Vancouver Island has consistently had much lower case counts than other health regions in BC. Clearly, Islanders are overwhelmingly abiding by restrictions that slow the spread of COVID-19.

“We can do this. Better times are coming. As entrepreneurs and business leaders, our members know how to deal with adversity while keeping a healthy sense of cautious optimism,” Williams says. “They deserve to be recognized for their efforts by being allowed to get back to business with restrictions that reflect what’s happening in our region.”