B.C. construction jobs offer entry wages up to $27.31/hour, and they’re growing: survey

Finding a high-paying job can be a tough task in Metro Vancouver.

But there’s one sector where wages for even entry-level workers run as high as $27.31 per hour — construction.

Coverage of construction on Globalnews.ca:

1:51 Giant monster house under construction in Richmond

• Giant monster house under construction in Richmond
• Construction begins on Vancouver’s one of a kind modular home project
• Report calls for changes to housing construction to address affordability crisis
• Construction and renovation costs expected to climb with drywall tariff

Previous Video

Next Video

B.C.’s building boom isn’t slowing down, and the coming year is expected to be a profitable year for construction.

And an expensive one, if wages go up as much as professionals expect them to.

View image in full screen

A survey by the Independent Contractors and Business Association (ICBA) shows that construction wages in B.C. grew by over 10 per cent over the past three years.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

In the coming two years alone, wages are expected to grow by just over nine per cent.

And the increases are even more dramatic when you look at specific trades.

READ MORE: If you want to make above-average money, B.C. may be your worst bet: CIBC

Wages for ironworkers alone are set to grow by 7.7 per cent in 2018, while roofers and pipefitters are each expected to see pay hikes of 6.7 per cent.

The highest entry-level wage? That would be for a safety officer, where you can make $27.31 per hour when you’re starting out.

But the highest foreman wage went to refrigeration and HVAC professionals, at $45.55 per hour.

View image in full screen

The wage increases are “far outstripping inflation,” and that’s significant, ICBA president Chris Gardner told Global News.

“If you’re a young person looking for, considering career opportunities, and you want a job in construction, you’re going to find a job.”

Metro Vancouver’s construction boom is taking most of the attention, but demand for trades workers is province-wide.

“If you’re working in construction or looking for opportunities in construction in the north, in the Interior, on Vancouver Island or here in Metro Vancouver, you’re going to find a job,” Gardner said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "If you're working in construction or looking for opportunities in construction in the north, in the Interior, on Vancouver Island or here in Metro Vancouver, you're going to find a job," Gardner said.

And project proponents are likely to see higher bills.

“We’re already seeing it in housing,” Gardner said.

But high demand also means that it’s difficult to find workers in various trades.

Of the employers surveyed by the ICBA, 100 per cent said they couldn’t find enough glaziers, or workers who install windows.

View image in full screen

That presents a problem in a place like Vancouver, where the exteriors of numerous condo buildings sometimes look like they’re made completely of glass.

Meanwhile, 93 per cent of employers said they faced critical shortages when it came to pipefitters, 91 per cent when it came to sheet metal workers, and 89 per cent each when it came to electricians and plumbers.

Regionally, the Interior appears to be facing the most critical shortage of qualified workers overall.

There, 82 per cent of employers say they’re having trouble finding people, compared to 80 per cent in Northern B.C., 76 per cent on Vancouver Island and 74 per cent in the Lower Mainland, the Fraser Valley and Whistler.

• Video report by Geoff Hastings