July 31, 2006

Study calls for a national strategy to meet current and future labour shortage woes

OTTAWA

Development of a national strategic approach to meeting the demand for labour is a key priority for industry and governments, according to a just-released report from the Construction Sector Council (CSC).

Unprecedented construction investment, large-scale retirements, and reactive approaches to addressing the workforce needs of the construction industry are threatening the industry’s ability to meet the needs of the economy, the report says.

“There is concern about the labour shortages the industry is experiencing, but the first step to resolving this issue is to effectively manage the workforce the industry currently has,” says George Gritziotis, the CSC’s executive director.

“The first step ... is to effectively manage the workforce the industry currently has.”

George Gritziotis

The CSC

“There are tight markets right now, but there are also construction workers who are unemployed.

“Industry and governments need to target their effort to ensure the unemployed worker, Aboriginal people, women and immigrant workers are all part of a thoughtful solution.”

Gritziotis was commenting on the release of the National Summary of the council’s second annual Construction Looking Forward report.

New to the summary this year are analyses of the mobility of construction trades across industries and regions and of the replacement demand related to retirement.

Contractor Tim Flood, the business co-chair of the CSC, said “construction investment is a regional phenomenon, and will always create temporary imbalances across provinces, but the movement of labour, if managed well, does not necessarily mean that slower markets need to suffer.”

Flood, president of John Flood & Sons (1961) Ltd., said the reports provide industry with the labour market information it needs “to ensure the natural ebb and flow of projects does not reach excessive highs and lows that cannot be managed.”

Retirement is another factor that will impact the construction industry in the coming years.

“The breakdown of retirement rates ... is invaluable information.”

Robert Blakely

CABCTD

The National Summary indicates that from 2005 to 2014, more than 150,000 people will be needed to replace the retiring workforce across Canada.

“The breakdown of retirement rates in each trade, occupation and region is invaluable information,” said Robert Blakely, labour co-chair for the CSC and director of Canadian Affairs for the Building and Construction Trades Department, AFL-CIO.

“By 2010, the baby boomer retirement wave will have a powerful effect on the number of certified tradespeople available.

“Knowing what shortages will occur and where, industry has a stronger footing in determining the best way to manage the changeover and lessen the shock of the loss of labour.

“That means both short and longer term solutions are needed to address shortages and underemployment in regions of the country,” Blakely says.

DCN NEWS SERVICES

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