The Associated General Contractors of America is holding an eight-part webinar series for contractors, addressing how to handle the impacts of response to coronavirus (COVID-19) and the construction industry. This webinar series is free for GBCA members, which are also AGC members (scroll down to get your AGC login credentials).

Topics will include legal liabilities, insurance challenges, labor and safety policies that should be put in place and what to expect out of Washington. Each webinar will take a deep dive into specific topics and feature AGC staff and outside expert speakers.

Navigating the Outbreak: An Eight-Part Webinar Series on the Factors that Construction Companies Need to Consider, as They Strive for Business Continuity
Dates: Weekdays, Monday, March 23 – Wednesday, April 1
Time: 2pm
Location: ONLINE
Pricing:

  • Members – Bundle Eight-Part Webinar Series – FREE
  • Non Members – Bundle Eight-Part Webinar Series – $599

 

There will be a live Q&A session at the end of each presentation. If you can’t make any of the live webcasts, register, and watch it later on-demand when it’s most convenient for you. The on-demand version is usually available 24 hours after the live event.

GBCA members are also AGC members. To retrieve your log in credential and create an account, click below. Once you create an account with your email address, and your company is verified as a member of GBCA, you’ll be ready!

 

Scroll down to learn more about each webinar in this series:

Navigating the Outbreak, Part I: Your Federal and State Legal Obligations to Provide Paid and/or Unpaid Leave to Your Employees
Monday, March 23, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

This webinar will cover both the old and the new federal requirements for paid leave, and generically, the state and local laws that the outbreak could also require you to consider. Along the way, the speakers will identify and explain the scope and nature of the many legal requirements for both paid and unpaid leave. Among other things, you will learn about the recently passed legislation requiring emergency paid sick and FMLA leave for those affected by the outbreak. The speakers will also identify what many consider best practices for helping employees remain focused and productive.

AGC Moderator: Claiborne Guy
Presenters: Patricia Pryor, Partner, Jackson Lewis P.C., and Leslie A. Stout-Tabackman, Partner, Jackson Lewis P.C.

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part II: What the Federal and Many State Labor and Employment Laws Are Likely to Require of You, as You Adjust Your Operations to Meet the Latest Contingencies
Tuesday, March 24, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

This webinar will begin with the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and generically, the state and local laws that the outbreak could also require you to consider. The bottom line is that these labor and employment laws create rights and obligations that could come into play in unexpected ways. And the leading construction companies are already going above and beyond the law, as they look for ways to help their employees weather the storm.

AGC Moderator: Claiborne Guy
Presenters: Patricia Pryor, Partner, Jackson Lewis P.C., and Leslie A. Stout-Tabackman, Partner, Jackson Lewis P.C.

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part III: The Contractual and Related Legal Protections and Risks for Construction Companies
Wednesday, March 25, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

Whether you are legally responsible for losses stemming from the outbreak or entitled to relief from them, will largely depend on three things: the terms and conditions of your construction contract, the surrounding body of construction law – and what you do right now. This webinar will identify the facts that you need to establish in order to qualify for the relief that a typical force majeure clause will provide. Along the way, the speakers will also underscore the importance of giving prompt written notice to owners and taking the steps necessary to mitigate the impact of the outbreak.

You will also learn how to give timely notice and still retain the flexibility to respond to rapidly changing events, and how owners are likely to treat claims for additional time, money or both, including claims for extended home office overhead or acceleration. You will also learn about the practical strategies that companies are implementing and the proactive steps they are taking to deal with potential price escalations.

AGC Moderator: Brian Perlberg
Presenters: Sara Beiro Farabow, Partner, Seyfarth & Shaw and Maria Matamoros, Vice President, Risk Management, The Weitz Company

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part IV: How to Protect Your People and Your Projects
Thursday, March 26, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

Are you doing enough to mitigate the risk that COVID-19 will infect the people working either in your home office or on your jobsites – including the risk for the many people working for your subcontractors? What are the practices that you should require all of your employees? What should you require more specifically of the people working in the field? In each case, how much protection is enough? The speakers will address the standard of care that the General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and perhaps the common law, require you to meet. The speakers will also provide practical guidance on the best practices for protecting your people and your projects. They will cover everything from preventative measures to protocols and procedures for responding to confirmed cases of COVID-19.

AGC Moderators: Kevin Cannon and Nazia Shah
Presenters: Howard A. Mavity, Partner, Fisher & Phillips LLP and Rocky Rowlett, CSP, Vice President of Safety, Faith Technologies

 

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part V: The Components of a Comprehensive Project Continuity Plan
Friday, March 27, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

This webinar will begin with a survey of the many ways that the outbreak could disrupt or delay a project. The speakers will also, suggest response action plans for each of these contingencies, such as an owner or government order to shut the project down, or a general workforce shortage, a report that a worker has tested positive for the new coronavirus, or delays in the delivery of materials. Along the way, the speakers will also suggest practical strategies for limiting access to a site, to the extent feasible. The goal is to help you minimize both the risk of a shutdown or other delay and the duration of any shutdown or other delay that becomes unavoidable.

AGC Moderator: Mike Kennedy

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part VI: Insurance Coverage and Claims for Losses Resulting from the Outbreak
Monday, March 30, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

This webinar will explore the many potential sources of insurance coverage for business interruption or other losses that may result from the outbreak, including property insurance policies, environmental or pollution policies, commercial general liability policies, and workers’ compensation. The speakers will also discuss the steps to take to preserve and protect your rights to insurance coverage under various scenarios, including key factors to consider and the documentation that an insurance carrier is likely to require, particularly for the costs of delays. As the speakers will also explain, contractors should carefully measure and record all of the financial impacts that the outbreak has on their projects and the rest of their businesses, without regard to insurance coverage, as there may also be other sources of recovery, such as federal or state grants and loans.

AGC Moderator: Leah Pilconis
Presenters: Tracy Alan Saxe, President & CEO at Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C., Paul Primavera, Executive Vice President, Lockton Companies and Frank Russo, Founder/Principal, Procor Solutions + Consulting

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part VII: The Additional Pressure that the Outbreak Could be Putting on Your Information Technology
Tuesday, March 31, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

In response to the outbreak, many companies are encouraging if not requiring their employees to work from home, and many, for the first time. The process could be putting new stresses and strains on both your information technology and the people using it. Does your system have the bandwidth to manage the increased load? Has everyone had the training they need to use the technology both safely and efficiently? Is there any evidence of an increase in the number of cyberattacks on companies like your own, or business in general? What are the vulnerabilities that your business continuity plan could be creating? During this session, experienced professionals will discuss the steps necessary to keep systems up, running and safe.

AGC Moderator: Pablo Destefanis

 

Navigating the Outbreak, Part VIII: What You Need to Watch, as the Outbreak Continues to Unfold
Wednesday, April 1, 2020 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT

This webinar will begin with the economic outlook for the construction industry over the coming weeks and months. The speakers will then identify the leading economic indicators that you should be watching carefully. How much is the construction industry likely to contract and how quickly is it likely to recover? What will be the signs that things continue to get worse – or that they are getting better? And how are Congress, the President and the rest of the federal government likely to respond to the latest developments? What are the next steps that any or all of them are contemplating? Come listen, learn and prepare for the road that lies ahead.

AGC Moderators: Ken Simonson, Jimmy Christianson, and Brian Turmail