A coalition of representatives from the business, educational, health and labour union sectors asks that the question of the important labour shortages expected in the Canadian construction business in the years ahead be debated during the present electoral campaign.
Paul Charrette, the president of the coalition, and also president of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA), has said: « For itself alone, the construction sector will need almost 260 000 workers in the next eight years. We want all party leaders to tell Canadians how they intend to tackle this crisis. »
According to the coalition, this reality of labour shortages affects all sectors of the Canadian economy, and many small and medium-sized businesses will have to choose to operate with fewer employees and give up on growth potential.
The following reflexion by Jayson Myers, the president of the Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, expresses well the present situation: « Whereas our country prepares itself to face bigger economic incertitude, we can choose to invest in specialized labour capable to compete with the best in the world, or we can continue to ignore the problem and force our employers to fight each other over a resource that will become scarcer and scarcer. »