Auto Body Shops raising concerns over proposed SGI changes

A Southwest Auto Body Shop in the Southwest is among the business across the province voicing their concerns about a series of proposed SGI changes.

Barb Genert from Sunny’s Auto Body in Maple Creek travelled to the provincial Legislature in Regina this past week to meet with government officials after the opposition NDP raised her concerns during Question Period.

She said small body shops would be hurt financially after they were told that by April 1, 2020 shops were expected to get a certain amount of specialized equipment in order to repair new model vehicles.

“We were looking at a price tag of approximately $150,000. Well that is pretty unrealistic for any of the smaller rural shops, and even some of the smaller city shops. We just don’t have a volume to make that kind of extra payment. And this is specialized equipment. This is equipment that we don’t necessarily need,” Genert said in an interview this past week.

She noted that SGI said in part that the equipment was needed because of the new aluminum vehicles coming in, but aluminum has been on vehicles for decades.

“This is nothing new. This is absolutely something that they’ve concocted in their office.”

Genert was also concerned after receiving paperwork outlining a three-tiered pay system. She argued that only shops that can afford the specialized equipment would be Tier 1 shops and receive the most expensive hourly rate of pay. Tier 2 would remain SGI Accredited while not having the speciality equipment, but would have a lower rate of hourly pay. The final tier would be to unaccredited shops.

“I’m basically saying we all get the same education. All our guys are trained the same, they’re all Journeymen Autobody Techs. They all have to go to the same welding courses to keep up with their education. So why is there a three tier pay system.”

“They’re saying it’s an issue of safety. But then I question back that if a shop is unaccredited they can still do an SGI claim, but for half of the labour rate. So for $45 an hour they’re getting claims done. So this is absolutely, and 100 per cent just a way to try to pay us less.”

MLA Joe Hargrave, Minister Responsible for SGI, noted in an interview that no decisions have been made on either of these proposals, and that auto body shops are encouraged to participate in a series of meetings in order to provide input on the suggestions. The initial three consultation meetings have already been held in Regina and Yorkton, with a total of 12 occurring throughout the next few weeks.

“They’re talking about training and equipment. It’s about both,” Hargrave said of discussions during the initial meetings. “It’s about the newer vehicles and why there’s a need for additional training, why there’s a need for additional equipment, and asking them what they think.”

Hargrave said the concerns about the upgraded equipment overlooks the fact that repairs will still need to be made to older vehicles.

“I guess it all depends,” he said. “There is some specialized equipment that’s needed to handle some of the newer vehicles. Does than mean that there’s no business at all left for anybody? I don’t think so.”

“You need a piece of equipment that you don’t use everyday but you use on a regular basis.”

“I know that there’s certain things that are required. And that’s why the training is there…is a big part of this. It’s not just about here buy a whole bunch of equipment. It’s about learning what’s needed. It’s learning about some of the newer vehicles. Some of the new technology. Some of the newer materials that they’ve got.”

He noted that current vehicles are equipped with sensors in the body panels and numerous cameras and sensors as part of self-parking vehicles, lane assist systems plus collision avoidance systems.

“It’s not just unbolting a bumper and bolting a new bumper on. Everything has to be lined up and synchronized. It is a far more complicated system, but not every vehicle is made that way.”

“Those small body shops, they’re in all these communities employing people, they’ve always worked hard in there and we appreciate everything that they’ve done.”

Hargrave also said that at the same time that body shops are exploring investing in equipment and deciding what they want to fix and what they will be able to fix, it provided an opportunity to discussed payment levels.

“That’s one of the questions that we’re talking about at the consultations,” he said. “Should there be different levels? Where should we land on something like that? Obviously somebody that has all the up-to-date equipment I mean they can fix any vehicle. But somebody who doesn’t have it well they can’t. So how should we discern between them? But that’s why consolation is so important and that’s why we’re doing this all across the province is so we can hear from the shops.”

He added there are no time frames to complete their report.

“It will give us lots to analyze once its all done and see what direction we should take.”

Nicole Rancourt, the NDP Critic for SGI, is concerned that small body shops have been blindsided by these options and there was no pre consultation of these items.

She attended the initial consultation in Regina and noted shops are identifying the same areas of concern.

“A lot of the people there were talking about the concerns of how expensive a lot of this equipment is that SGI is requiring them to have. And how some of the equipment they are requiring them to have they don’t really need. There are very few jobs that they would require that equipment for.”

For the repair jobs that do require that specialized equipment, some smaller shops are subleting that work to a shop that has that equipment.

“So they’re looking at ways that they could maybe still be able to provide the service to SGI without having to have that huge financial impact on a very small business.”

Rancourt said it was important for SGI to provide an opportunity to hear from auto body shops that would be impacted by their proposals.

“I do think that the officials that were there are listening to the concerns of the auto body shops. So I’m happy to see that happening. And so what I’m hoping will happen is that they will serious take into consideration the concerns that these auto body shops have, and find a solution so that a lot of these smaller shops that maybe financially can’t afford to purchase that high tech equipment that is really costly could still find a way to be able to manage their business without having to potentially close their business if they can’t afford to have that equipment.

“Right now SGI is saying that if they don’t get the equipment that they will no longer be accredited come April 1, 2020. Whereas a lot of these shops that are really concerned are concerned as Elite shops at this moment with SGI, which is the top accreditation that you can get. It seems a bit unfair that on March 30, 2020 they can be an elite SGI Accredited shop, but April 1, 2020 they would no longer be able to get accreditation because they don’t have the equipment that SGI is asking for. I think there is a solution that we could come up with that can ensure that they can continue to service the customers in that area without having to be penalized in losing their accreditation.”

She added that this is a smaller shop issue and doesn’t necessarily have the same impact on bigger operators.

“It definitely is a smaller shop issue because they don’t have the business like larger shops would where they could financially afford to invest in the large scale equipment.”

She noted her office has been getting lots of calls and emails from Auto Body Shops from across the province who would be impacted.

“This could potentially be hundreds of jobs within our province lost in these smaller communities.”

An SGI Town Hall meeting is scheduled for Swift Current on Thursday, April 25 at Coast Hotel starting at 6 p.m.