Productivity and the health and safety of construction workers are among the top concerns raised by contractors in the second of a series of surveys about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic prepared by the Ontario Construction Secretariat (OCS).

Released on May 25, the Coronavirus Contractor Survey 2: Restart & Recovery captured the opinions of more than 200 industrial, commercial and institutional contractors across Ontario during the week of May 11 to 15. It shows that, as they return to work, contractors’ two principal concerns are ensuring health and safety of workers and staff, and maintaining productivity while meeting physical distancing requirements. But, they say, meeting these goals won’t be easy.

More than three in ten respondents (31 percent) believe it will be highly difficult or impossible to ensure work sites are adequately sanitized, 75 percent said maintaining physical-distancing requirements would have a medium or high impact on project costs, and 73 percent worried about the impact of distancing on project schedules.

Other prominent concerns for respondents included reduce demand for, and in investment in, construction projects, the government’s capacity to quickly roll out infrastructure stimulus spending, and disruptions to their supply chains.

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected contractors’ bottom lines. More than three quarters of respondents said their firms have less revenue compared to the same period last year—although that figure is down slightly from the 83 percent in a similar OCS survey conducted in late April. On average, firms reported a loss in revenue of about 33 percent, which again was improved from the 42 percent recorded in the April survey. Overall, 73 percent of respondents said they expected to earn less revenue over the course of 2020 as a whole, and the average expected drop in revenue was 26 percent.

Despite this news, and the fact that four in ten respondents said they needed government support to stay in business, 82 percent of respondents said they were absolutely or moderately certain that their firms can stay in business over the long term.

Firms are ready to work, says the OCS report. Eighty-six percent said they will have the capacity to take on extra work as and when shovel-ready projects are brought forward. This fact may be a function of reduced bidding opportunities, however. Nearly 60 percent of respondents said they have bid on fewer projects since the pandemic began; one in three said their bidding volume has not changed. Nearly 70 percent said they have seen fewer projects available to bid on.

Forty-three percent of respondents believe it will take them six months or fewer to get back to business as usual, while 9 percent don’t believe they will ever get there.

Supply chain disruptions are still a concern for builders. Two-thirds say they are facing medium to high impacts to their supply lines—that total is up somewhat from the April survey when 63 percent worried about disruptions. Such shortages are causing impacts on project costs and schedules. Sixty-eight percent said supply chain shortages will have medium or high impacts on project costs, while 65 percent worried about supply impacts on project schedules.

As a result of the pandemic, 62 percent of respondents said they intended to source more material locally or domestically.

What are some of the steps contractors are taking to maintain workplace health and safety? A large percentage of respondents said they will or have introduced measures such as offering more hand-sanitizer and hand-washing stations (97 percent), creating procedures to report unsanitary conditions (92 percent), and sanitizing washrooms more frequently (89 percent).

Other measures being put in place include establishing contact tracing procedures (71 percent), having only one trade or subcontractor on site a given time (67 percent), using technologies to manage the number of workers on site at a given time (48 percent) and checking workers’ temperatures (42 percent).

Respondents were split on who should bear the cost of the additional personal protective equipment being used on sites. One in three suggested owners should carry that cost, one in four said governments should, while 18 percent and 16 percent indicated these costs should be carried by general contractors and subcontractors. Eighty-three percent of respondents said they expect workplace sanitation practices to change permanently as a result of the pandemic.

On average, contractors said they expect PPE and physical distancing requirements to increase project costs by 28 percent; 39 percent expect physical distancing to have a high impact on project completion times.

“This second survey show us that contractors are adapting to the constantly evolving environment,” said Katherine Jacobs, director of research with OCS. “As anticipated, the gradual re-start of the construction industry is seeing more contractors and workers back on jobsites across the province and therefore reporting a reduced impact on their firms’ activity, financial impact and need for government assistance. Return to work, however, has created new challenges in terms of costs and productivity as contractors adapt to comply with requirements for PPE and physical distancing.”