How can we address the skilled trades labour shortage in southern Alberta?

Crew sizes on construction jobs are dwindling as a new report shows Canada’s skilled trades labour shortage is getting worse.

“21 per cent of the labour force is expected to retire by 2030 and we’re not seeing enough people enter into the industry to be able to cover off those retirements, so this is a big concern,” said Bridget Mearns, executive officer for BILD Lethbridge.

According to a recent CIBC report, the job vacancy rate in construction is at a record high with around 800,000 vacancies.

Mearns adds these vacancies will cause delays down the line and push up building costs.

“Canada is looking at this housing crisis across the country and there’s a real effort by the government to invest in new housing units including in the city of Lethbridge; so how can we accomplish that if we don’t have the workforce to do that,” asked Mearns.

Joel Spanos, construction manager for Stranville Living, said he’s never seen it like this.

“There’s constantly ads coming out from all of our contractors just looking for new apprentices or new people coming up in the industry it seems to be a real struggle out there,” said Spanos.

Mearns notes that there is an effort in southern Alberta to encourage people to get into the trades, but the interest remains low.

“There seems to be this inequity around you known, kids go to post-secondary, that’s understood, and trades is something you fall back on or something you do if you don’t do that but it really is a legitimate career path,” said Mearns.

Lethbridge College is using a $300, 000 grant from the province to introduce its new 15-week Pathway to the Trades program. offering newcomers to southern Alberta a crash course.

“This won’t give them the formal apprenticeship straight in but it will give them a flavour of, is there a trade that they’re interested in, is there a trade that they wish to do,” said Kevin Smith, Dean of the Centre for Business, Arts and Sciences (CBAS), Lethbridge College.

Smith says the benefits could be wide-ranging.

“The contruction industry but also all the industries in southern Alberta are crying out for people at various levels.”

Just one initiative that will hopefully nail down more tradespeople for the future.