Budget 2022 included some important wins for workers, one of which is something we've been working on for a long time. It's the labour mobility tax deduction for tradespeople.
With this proposal, tradespeople who have to travel far from home will now be able to deduct those expenses from their income, something they previously could not do under the Income Tax Act. This will make it easier for workers to go where the work is, and still support their families back home.
I want to thank the finance committee for including this in its pre-budget report and recommendations.
The budget included other wins for workers and Canadians, such as doubling the funding for the union training and innovation program, a program that has allowed training centres and organizations to expand, innovate, and improve training for skilled tradespeople. It included projects like the creation of the office to advance women apprentices. This focused on offering wraparound support services to increase the recruitment and retention of women in the skilled trades.
There were also investments in new home builds; funding for research investments in green technologies, like small modular reactors; an investment tax credit for carbon capture, utilization, and storage, which is really important in our move to a net-zero-based economy; investments in child care, health care, and a national pharmacare program; and a new union-led advisory table that brings together unions and trade association that will advise the government on priority investments to help workers navigate the changing labour market, with a particular focus on skilled mid-career workers in at-risk sectors and jobs. These are just a few of the highlights included in budget 2022 that benefit workers and Canadians.
As we look beyond budget 2022, CBTU urges the government to focus on reforms to the temporary foreign worker program as part of the short-term solution to labour availability.
Where unions are able, make them a designated employer for the temporary foreign worker program to ensure that workers are treated fairly. Unions can leverage our hiring hall systems to put temporary foreign workers to work with different employers, better addressing labour availability.
Building trades and local building trade councils can also be included, when you're making an assessment of the viability of the temporary foreign worker program in any particular area in Canada.
Regarding changes to employment insurance, make permanent the current temporary change to the allocation of separation monies; allow apprentices to apply for EI in advance of their training, which would provide better financial security to update their skills; and when re-establishing the board of appeals, ensure that there is designated labour representation on that tribunal.
One other issue that we could look at going forward to address labour shortages is to address and ease cross-border mobility for skilled trades workers between Canada and the U.S. There are 197 training halls across North America. We know that training qualifications for many of our trades are nearly identical on both sides of the border; therefore, it just makes sense to allow workers to travel back and forth to address labour shortages which is very difficult to do.
In conclusion, as parliamentarians you know that there is always more work to be done. On behalf of our 600,000 unionized construction workers, we thank you for your service, and encourage you to pass the budget to the benefit of not only our members but all construction workers in Canada.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman and committee members.