A number of years ago, the advent of spring meant the beginning of construction season. Those times have long passed and, with the increased population and demand for housing, the commercial growth happening throughout the province and the increased need to improve our infrastructure, construction season is now 12 months a year.
Mike Holmes is a "love him or hate him" kind of guy. His columns and shows bring out a character reminiscent of a personal favourite of mine, Don Cherry. They tend to take the direct route in making a point and are not afraid to offend in doing so.
However, when you get past all of the noise and clutter, you often see that their argument is valid and one worth heeding. Such was the case last week when Holmes's column in the Free Press dealt with the importance of skilled trades.
He dealt with the unfairness of the negative stigma frequently directed at trades from both parents and schools. He talked about the pride in craftsmanship, the constant improvement process and the changing attitude that is starting to prevail.
The respect shown to the art of a tradesperson's work should be equal to that of any other profession. However, Holmes warns of a pending shortfall of skilled labour in the trades. He predicts that by 2020, if things don't change, we could be short by a million skilled tradespeople.
Skilled construction labour is in strong demand across Canada.
Manitoba's requirements are rising more rapidly than most other regions. The recent Construction Sector Council report, Construction Looking Forward 2012-2020, ranked 29 trades and occupations and projected their needs for a 10-year period.
Of the 29 trades, 66 per cent were considered to be limited and employers were going to have to compete to attract needed workers. The remaining 34 per cent were deemed to be of the status that there were not enough workers available to meet employer demand.
It is estimated that the construction workforce will need to increase by 9,100 persons between 2012 and 2020. In this same period, it is estimated that 6,900 workers will be retiring and therefore will need to be replaced.
If current patterns continue, approximately 6,000 new entrants will be available to fill these spots. That will leave us short by 10,000.
A solution is needed. Next week, we will look at possible solutions.
Mike Moore is president of the Manitoba Home Builders' Association.
