Contractors launch campaign for prompt payment, adjudication

The Sault Ste. Marie Construction Association says it welcomes a new Ontario-wide campaign to raise awareness about prompt payment and adjudication.

These are two processes provided under Ontario’s new Construction Act to help contractors to get paid on time.

And now they are hoping to spread the word about online tools to improve the situation for contractors.

The campaign is coordinated by the Council of Ontario Construction Associations, a federation of 29 member organizations that includes local contractor associations in cities across Ontario, as well as specific trades and specializations such as concrete flooring, millwrighting, electrical, demolition and sheet metal.

The group has created the Prompt Payment and Adjudication Toolkit, which they describe as a comprehensive online resource centre to help all parties to construction projects understand the rules.

The construction industry is plagued by routine payment delays, the council noted in a news release.

“Timely payment should be the norm in the construction industry like it is in every other sector,” council president Ian Cunningham said.

“Contractors deserve to be paid on time for work that they have completed. To ensure timely payment, they should make themselves aware of the prompt payment and adjudication guidelines and be ready before a dispute arises.”

Prompt Payment legislates mandatory timelines for payment. Adjudication is a dispute resolution process that allows a contractor or subcontractor to enforce claims for payment in a more efficient and less expensive way than the previous method of going through the court system.

“Only a small number of contractors are using the prompt payment and adjudication tools provided under the Construction Act to get paid," Cunningham lamented. 

"Most don’t know about this new process.”

That’s where the Prompt Payment and Adjudication Toolkit comes in, according to the construction association. 

The toolkit features downloadable documents with clear, concise information for owners, contractors and subcontractors.

Prompt Payment Adjudication 101 provides an overview of the Act in layman’s terms, and there is information about holdbacks and proper invoicing.

A prompt payment webinar can also be viewed and there are links to government resources.

Learn more about the toolkit at this link.