The pandemic first shook the mining industry when cases were confirmed at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) 2020 Convention that ran from March 1 to 4. The convention, in its 88th year, had over 23,000 attendees – including Minister of Natural Resources Seamus O’Regan and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Unfortunately, following the conference there were immediate reports of attendees testing positive for COVID-19.

The days following, all attendees were urged to self-isolate to prevent further spread. An email from the NWT & Nunavut Chamber of Mines, for example, stated “We are sending you this information because many of our members attended the PDAC conference,” before urging members who attended monitor themselves for symptoms and linking to a supporting Globe and Mail article.

After the outbreak, conferences and events quickly considered their options. Many cancelled, many postponed, and some moved online. Companies scrambled to learn if their employees had come into contact with those infected.

While the pandemic began shutting down the country, affecting the economy, the Mining Association of Canada (MAC) spoke about how essential mining was to providing resources for healthcare workers, among other areas of essential services. “Mining and its supply chains, critical to helping address the crisis today, will be equally if not more important to Canada’s economic recovery, and appropriate fiscal and policy measures to ensure the industry rebounds will be vital.”

Some provincial governments, such as the Alberta Government have made the decision to defer timber dues payments for up to six months.

“We applaud Minister Dreeshen for taking the initiative to make Alberta the first jurisdiction in Canada to defer timber dues,” said Alberta Forest Products Association (AFPA) President and CEO Paul Whittaker. “Like many segments of Alberta’s economy, the forest industry is experiencing an acute liquidity crisis from COVID-19. This decision will help forest companies have the resources on hand to pay bills and retain employees during the crisis.”

He asserted: “This is not free money for the forest sector. It is temporary help during a time of crisis. We do expect markets to recover and companies will pay their dues.”

Derek Nighbor is steady in his agreement with financial help. “Our industry is not looking for a bailout, but rather bolstered cash flow supports to keep our businesses operating through these difficult next two to three quarters. As we look to 2021 and beyond, Canada’s forest products sector has the opportunity to be one of the bright lights in the Canadian recovery – especially for northern and rural communities.”

The Changing Workplace

Essential sectors found themselves in a place where they needed to keep productivity up while keeping their workforce safe.

This meant different things for different companies, depending on where they were and how their workplace functioned. While measures taken from mine to mine differ, mines did enhanced screening for infection, hygiene and physical distancing, working remotely (for those able), travel restrictions, introduction of temperature screening, cutting activity and workforce, or halting production altogether.

Agnico Eagle, which oversees gold, copper, and silver mines in Nunavut and Quebec, also implemented COVID-19 laboratory testing at its Nunavut operations for employees and contractors. This rapid and accurate testing is meant to protect the surrounding host communities.

“The remote nature of our operations requires frequent travelling and accommodating employees in camp facilities,” Agnico Eagle Nunavut stated on their website. “We have enough room to set up the laboratory and accommodate
the expert team inside the Camp facility at both Meliadine Mine and Meadowbank Complex. The test is performed on a voluntary basis for employees and contractors working at site.”

De Beers’, which has operating diamond mines in Northern Ontario and the Northwest Territories, has stressed employees that live in remote, fly-in communities to remain home so as to not strain limited medical resources in those areas. Other mines in the area also sent employees home.

De Beers’ May 11 COVID-19 Mitigation Update read, “We want to thank our employees for putting safety first and pulling together at Gahcho Kué Mine with ongoing suggestions and
their commitment to following all preventative measures so we can continue to make coming to work at the mine safer every day.”

Unfortunately, some operations did see COVID-19 arrive on their doorstep. In early April, a worker infected with COVID-19 entered the Lac des Iles (LDI), which is located in the Thunder Bay area. According to Northern Ontario Business, “The employee passed all screening protocols upon entering and exiting the site, and did not notify local public health authorities of any symptoms.”

This led to 24 cases of COVID-19 throughout LDI, prompting the company’s to quarantine the workers in the mine, then putting the mine into care and maintenance.

Since the outbreak, according to a message released on their Facebook, LDI has completed a deep sanitization of the entire site, enhanced the daily sanitization in the bunkhouses, communal areas, and high-touch surfaces, added a daily assessment of symptoms to the five-point safety check, and created an employee and contractor guidebook with updated protocols.

The New Normal

As time progresses, a lot of articles question what the new normal will be. Though there is no way to know what that may be, we do know the world needs mining.

MAC stated in their April press release, “Mines produce materials that are essential for protecting Canadians, including medical technologies and medications, and it is important that supply chains stay open during this crucial time so that we can ensure mined products are readily available for the people and businesses who rely on them. Canada needs our products, and we must continue to ensure they are mined safely, not just for workers but for communities.”

As the pandemic continues, mines are adapting now so that they can thrive later. Closed mines are reopening and work is continuing. Though the economy is uncertain, businesses may find relief in the Canadian wage subsidy.

In late March, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that the government would extend the wage subsidy to include businesses of all sizes. According to Global Mining Review, the newly announced wage subsidy will play a significant role in providing support to Canada’s mining industry, which employs roughly 626,000 people across Canada.

Pierre Gratton, President and CEO of MAC stated, “The wage subsidy will help prevent further lay-offs, thus minimising both the scale and extent of disruption to both businesses, employees and contractors, and better position the mining sector to resume operations and support the many thousands of individuals who depend on it for employment.”

Alisha Hiyate, columnist for The Canadian Mining Journal writes, “While there is no way to know how long this virtual shutdown of the global economy will last, it is certain that when we come out on the other side of this, there will be a violent snapback of demand for just about everything. Miners who can hold on during these strange times will be essential in helping us all rebuild a new ‘normal’.”