BuildForce Canada Residential Construction Labour Market Forecast Shows Growing Career Opportunities over the Next Decade
Ottawa, ON – May 6, 2020 - The Canadian Home Builders’ Association (CHBA) today welcomed a new report by BuildForce Canada that affirms the tremendous career opportunities available for young women and men in the residential construction industry. The report (see Residential Summary 2021-2030) notes that employment in Canada’s residential sector is expected to rise over the next five years along with growing activity and increased retirement levels.
BuildForce Canada, with whom CHBA works extensively, outlined in their report that an aging labour work force and the expected retirement of over 134,600 construction workers will continue to be a key driver of demand requirements in the next decade.
“As our workforce ages, the challenge will be in finding young tradespeople with the right skills to take over. These are rewarding and well-paid jobs for those with the right training and the ambition to build a solid future in home building, renovation and repair,” noted CHBA CEO Kevin Lee.
According to BuildForce Canada, the residential construction industry will need to attract and train an estimated 148,000 workers over the coming decade to backfill retirements and meet rising demands for new home construction and renovation.
“CHBA continues to engage the federal government on expanding opportunities to promote skilled trades for young people and improve the immigration system to better respond to labour shortages through permanent solutions,” Kevin Lee added.
The resilience of the industry was most recently demonstrated by the strong demand for new homes and renovation even during the uncertainty of the pandemic, and the ability of the industry to take the necessary safety precautions to continue working as an essential service. The sector outlook will further benefit now from improved economic growth and immigration-driven population growth, according to BuildForce Canada.
“The demands from new projects and replacing retiring workers will be an important focus point for the sector,” said Bill Ferreira, Executive Director of BuildForce Canada. “It will be crucial to continue increasing efforts to attract workers from traditionally underrepresented groups in the construction industry, such as women, Indigenous people and newcomers.”
CHBA participates in BuildForce Canada’s Labour Market Information Committee to help inform their projections.
“We look forward to continuing this collaboration and sharing this data with governments,” Lee noted. “The residential construction and renovation industries are crucial to the Canadian economy at large and in every single community, and we need to work with governments to ensure young men and women have the skills needed to build a successful career in residential construction.”
CHBA continues to actively promote the benefits of a career in the sector. Young people considering such a career (and their parents) can check out CHBA’s “Imagine Your Future in Residential Construction” for more information.
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Journalists wishing to interview Kevin Lee, Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association are encouraged to submit their request by email to media@chba.ca.
ABOUT THE CANADIAN HOME BUILDERS' ASSOCIATION
Since 1943, the Canadian Home Builders' Association (CHBA) has been "the voice of Canada's residential construction industry." Representing one of the largest industry sectors in Canada, our membership is made up of some 9,000 companies – including home builders, renovators, land developers, trade contractors, product and material manufacturers, building product suppliers, lending institutions, insurance providers, and service professionals.
In 2020, the industry supported over 1.24 million jobs in new home construction, renovation and repair. It remains one of the largest employers in the country, with tens of thousands of business enterprises engaged. Total wages paid in 2020 were estimated at $81.1 billion. The construction‐related value of new homes, renovations and repairs produced by the industry, including both on‐ and off‐site activities in 2020 exceeded $138.1 billion. In 2020, 58% of the total number of jobs in residential construction in Canada were in renovation and repair while 42% can be attributed to new home construction.