Supporting Skilled Trades Labour Supply as Canada Embarks on Historic Building Boom

Canadian governments and industries are getting set to launch a major expansion in infrastructure and housing construction, as part of the ‘elbows up’ response to uncertainty caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. One potential challenge in that strategy will be ensuring adequate supply of skilled construction workers.

To discuss this issue, Centre for Future Work Director Jim Stanford recently joined Matt Galloway, host of CBC Radio’s The Current, for an in-depth interview on the opportunities and challenges of skilled trades work as Canada gets ready to “build, baby, build.”

Stanford made several points during the interview challenging conventional wisdom that there is a perpetual ‘shortage’ of skilled labour in Canada, and that ‘red tape’ regarding certification and interprovincial mobility of skilled workers is holding back construction work:

Reported shortages of construction work have eased dramatically since 2022—when labour supply was severely disrupted by the pandemic. Unemployment among construction workers has averaged over 8% so far in 2025, higher than the average for the national labour market. And job vacancies have fallen by more than half, from over 7% of employment in 2022 to around 3% today. The slowdown in construction resulting from high interest rates and now the effects of Trump’s tariffs have caused a downturn on construction employment. Shortage of jobs is currently a bigger problem in construction than shortage of workers.
Canada already has a very effective program of interprovincial mobility for skilled trades workers, called the Red Seal Certified tradespeople write an exam and document their on-the-job experience to receive Red Seal credentials, which then allow them to work in any province without additional certification. (Quebec has a separate but similar program.)
Claims by business lobbyists (such as the Canadian Federation of Independent Business representative also interviewed by Mr. Galloway) that government ‘red tape’ has created a labour shortage are false. The main reason some businesses face problems recruiting and retaining skilled workers is their stubborn refusal to offer better wages and conditions. The CFIB’s own data suggests that for 57% of their members, the biggest problem in recruiting labour is a ‘disconnect’ between potential employees’ salary expectations, and the employers’ willingness to pay.

As Canada embarks on this historic building boom, it is vital that apprenticeship and qualification standards for skilled trades workers be strengthened, to ensure the work is performed safely (for both workers and the public) and to the highest standards. That means expanding the system of skilled trades certifications to include new skills (like solar and wind power installation, and advanced energy-efficient construction techniques); expanding public support for vocational colleges, apprentices, and work placements; and making publicly-funded investment projects contingent on strong labour standards (including prevailing wages, employment equity, and union representation).

Please listen to the full interview on CBC’s The Current here.