CLRA is greatly impacted by the ongoing skilled trades shortage in Alberta. While the issue is not new, it continues to grow in urgency given the province’s rapid surge in population, leading to a spike in demand for housing, infrastructure, and other essential services. This demand increase is putting pressure on resources needed to maintain equipment, move goods, and support ongoing business and major project investments. Without a qualified workforce to execute these tasks, costs are rising, making businesses less competitive and everyday living pricier for Albertans.
As we have written about previously, the Business Council of Alberta’s Skilled Trades Task Force is actively studying and reporting on the shortage – both its root causes and potential solutions. Their latest report primarily explores the former: investigating whether the shortage is driven by supply issues or increasing demand. The answer, unsurprisingly, is both. Report findings show how, in the short term, Alberta will need to bring in more workers from outside the province to fill the labour gap – what CLRA describes as the “sod”. In the longer term, enrollment and graduation rates in local trades programs (the “seed”) need to grow in order to sustain a pipeline of talent, an idea CLRA has championed through our digital education and career campaigns over the past year.
The report found that job postings for trades-related positions in Alberta rose by 85%, a significantly higher increase than the 21% rise seen in other large provinces – but this demand is met with hurdles. The current workforce in the trades is aging rapidly, with many approaching retirement and not enough young, qualified individuals entering the field to replace them. Societal bias against “blue-collar” careers, low enrollment in trades programs, underrepresentation of women and immigrants in trades education, and limited resources to support trades classes are other factors at play. Furthering hindering the labour supply are low completion rates in training programs, unstable working conditions, and restrictive regulations governing entry to the trades.
If these obstacles persist, the skilled labour shortage will continue to be a headwind for Alberta’s economy. As the exclusive bargaining agent for 170 unionized contractors representing over a dozen trades, we are committed to combatting these challenges to ensure a stable and prosperous future in the construction sector.
Read the full report here.
