Mandate of BuildForce Canada

Originally created in 2001 as the Construction Sector Council, BuildForce Canada is a national industry-led organization committed to working with the construction industry to provide information and resources to assist with its management of workforce requirements.

The mandate of BuildForce Canada is to provide accurate and timely labour market information (LMI) to advance the needs of the entire construction industry. BuildForce Canada will lead value-added programs and initiatives that build the capacity and the capability of the construction workforce to meet current and future industry demand to drive economic growth in Canada.

BuildForce Canada and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)

PIPEDA, the federal privacy act, took effect on January 1, 2004. The Act requires that all organizations that collect, use or disclose personal information do so in a manner that recognizes the right of privacy of individuals. It sets out 10 principles for compliance: accountability, identifying purposes, consent, limiting collection, limiting use, disclosure and retention, accuracy, safeguards, openness, individual access, and challenging compliance.

In an effort to meet those requirements, BuildForce Canada has developed this privacy policy. The publication of this document meets the principle of “openness.”

The privacy office within BuildForce Canada

The staff person responsible for the protection of all personal information at BuildForce Canada is Tara Ricci. She is the defined privacy officer in accordance with the Act.

Bill Ferreira, the executive director of BuildForce Canada, and Tara Ricci are the staff members who make up the PIPEDA task force. The task force is set up to help the privacy officer ensure that BuildForce Canada is in compliance with the Act.

The executive director is ultimately accountable for compliance with the provisions of the Act. It is his responsibility to:

• maintain this privacy policy in a current state
• develop and maintain staff training programs and materials concerning these policies and practices
• provide information explaining BuildForce Canada policies and procedures

What types of personal information does BuildForce Canada collect and use?

• Contacts lists for information and communications
• Information related to employment at BuildForce Canada
• Information received from persons seeking employment at BuildForce Canada
• Information received from persons applying for a partnership with BuildForce Canada
• Information received from and about persons registered in workshops, seminars, and other programs offered by BuildForce Canada and its partners
• Information received from persons completing comment forms from BuildForce Canada workshops, seminars and other programs offered by BuildForce Canada and its partners
• Information posted to the BuildForce Canada website
• Information received from participants in industry consultation activities
• Information provided to and received from third parties, such as consultants, who are contracted to do work for, or on behalf of BuildForce Canada.

Why does BuildForce Canada collect and use personal information?

• To develop and to market BuildForce Canada, its programs and services
• To provide and to communicate information about BuildForce Canada, its programs and services
• To provide and exchange information with partners and other interested parties to further its objectives
• To update contact information in our database
• To conduct surveys for research purposes
• To engage interested parties in policy/program development

When and to whom does BuildForce Canada disclose personal information?

Personal information is collected, used and disclosed by BuildForce Canada only in accordance with this privacy policy.

Research

When using third parties to conduct market research, surveys, product/program development, etc., BuildForce Canada will provide only the information necessary for project completion. All information released to third parties is confidential and protected by legal agreement outlining its use for each project.

Third parties


Personal information, e-mail addresses or other data will not be sold, rented, exchanged or passed on to third parties, other than as outlined in this policy or unless expressly indicated otherwise.

Website

The BuildForce Canada website is used to provide information on the role of BuildForce Canada, its programs and services. We offer such information to interested parties electronically through the website. It may be downloaded from our server by you, and/or you may provide us with personal information to allow us to deliver additional information to you. We collect personal information about you only when you specifically and knowingly provide it; for example, when you subscribe to one of our mailing lists. If you would like to be removed from our mailing lists, you can let us know at any time.

We do not use our website to gather personal information other than that which you affirmatively agree to supply to us. However, when you visit BuildForce Canada’s website, the website may use the IP address from which you access the site to compile statistics regarding the volume and timing of access to our website. We do this so that we can improve the content and structure of www.dev-bf-hub.pantheonsite.io.  We will not share or sell this information to a third party, except in cases of electronic intrusion, attempted or successful, where material pertinent to the intrusion may be shared with computer security professionals as well as with law enforcement officials in those cases warranting legal attention.

The website contains links to other websites. BuildForce Canada is not responsible for the privacy policies and practices or the content of such websites. We encourage you to review each partner’s policy and procedures for collecting, using and disclosing your information.

When using third parties to conduct market research, surveys, product/program development, etc., BuildForce Canada will provide only the information necessary for project completion. All information released to third parties is confidential and protected by legal agreement outlining its use for each project.

Personal information, e-mail addresses or other data will not be sold, rented, exchanged or passed on to third parties, other than as outlined in this policy or unless expressly indicated otherwise.

Contact information

We may disclose contact information of our staff and board of directors to further the mandate of BuildForce Canada.

How accurate is the personal information held by BuildForce Canada?

BuildForce Canada makes every reasonable effort to ensure the accuracy and currency of any personal information we collect, so that we can meet the need for which it is was collected in the first place.

How do you access the personal information held by BuildForce Canada?

The following is the process used for handling requests for personal information:

• The person makes a request for details about his/her personal information to BuildForce Canada.
• This request is sent/directed to the privacy officer.
• The privacy officer responds to the person in writing.
• The privacy officer responds to the request within two weeks of receiving the form.
• If the person would like to see a list of personal information BuildForce Canada has about him/her, the privacy officer will send him/her a hard copy of the list through the mail, marked confidential.
• If the person would like to see the personal information that BuildForce Canada has about him/her, the privacy officer will schedule a meeting with that person to give him/her access to this personal information.
• In the letter and/or in the meeting, the privacy officer will let the individual know that he/she is welcome to follow up at any time.
• After sending the letter or holding the meeting with the person, the privacy officer will record the letter/meeting information in a hard copy file that is stored in a locked file cabinet.

How secure is your personal information?

BuildForce Canada makes every reasonable effort to protect any personal information we have in our possession by implementing security safeguards against loss or theft, as well as unauthorized access, disclosure, copying, use or modification. In addition, BuildForce Canada ensures that employees understand the importance of maintaining the confidentiality of personal information.

What if you have a question or concern about this privacy policy or BuildForce Canada privacy practices?

Any individual may address a challenge concerning BuildForce Canada’s compliance with the Act to the privacy officer. The complaint procedure is outlined below. BuildForce Canada will investigate all complaints and, if justified, take appropriate measures, including amending these policies and procedures.

Process for handling complaints

When BuildForce Canada receives a compliance challenge or complaint, these steps will be followed:

• The privacy officer is immediately made aware of the complaint.
• The contact information for the complainant is recorded and sent to the privacy officer immediately.
• The person is asked to make the challenge or complaint in writing to the privacy officer.
• The privacy officer reviews the complaint and responds to the complainant within a reasonable amount of time.
• The privacy officer informs the complainant that he/she may contact the privacy commissioner about the complaint.

Privacy officer contact information:


Tara Ricci
BuildForce Canada
280 Albert Street, Suite 700
Ottawa, ON
K1P 5G8
Canada

Phone: 613-569-5552
Fax: 613-569-1220
ricci@buildforce.ca

More information on PIPEDA:

Office of the Privacy Commissioner: www.priv.gc.ca
Department of Justice: www.justice.gc.ca