Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the committee for inviting me to speak today.
Today I would like to explain what the Ontario Construction Secretariat has seen regarding the skills shortages in the greater Toronto-Hamilton area, and some of the challenges associated with them.
For the sake of speed, I'm only going to use two acronyms. Ontario Construction Secretariat is going to be OCS, and the greater Toronto-Hamilton area is going to be the GTHA. They're both mouthfuls.
I will conclude with recommendations on how to increase the construction skills development in this region.
The OCS was formed in 1993 to represent the collective interests of the unionized construction industry in Ontario's industrial, commercial and institutional construction sector. The OCS is a non-partisan, joint labour-management organization that works with 25 unionized construction trades and their contracting partners. We represent over 100,000 union members and 5,000 union contractors who actively train the skilled construction workforce.
The OCS believes that the skills gap in the construction skilled trades in the GTHA is nuanced and multi-faceted. In a 2018 survey of contractors, we found that among the variety of challenges that contractors are experiencing, recruiting skilled workers was their biggest concern. We will be presenting the results of the 2019 survey of contractors in early March, and will share that report in our written submission.
BuildForce Canada also reinforces this point, citing that as major project requirements approach an anticipated plateau in 2020, keeping pace with rising employment demands across most of the province's regions will remain a challenge for the industry. Although other areas will face skills shortages, the GTHA will be the epicentre of labour market issues, given the size of the construction market and the number of significant major projects currently on the books.
I would like to address the challenges associated with the lack of skilled workers in the industry. Skilled workers are the backbone of this country. Building the Canada of tomorrow requires a focused effort to attract, train and retain a skilled construction workforce. Without sufficient workers, projects are delayed and costs increase.
A number of systemic challenges are associated with future-proofing the construction industry's skilled workers, including an overall lack of awareness of the skilled construction trades, navigating through the complex apprenticeship system and pathway, economic barriers for training, a lack of labour mobility and apprenticeship completion rates. Each of these challenges has complex roots and is not easily solved.
It is important to understand that each trade is distinct in its overall requirements and the number of skilled workers in the labour market. Although the skills gap is an issue facing the vast majority of the construction trades, a one-size-fits-all approach will be less than effective.
For the purposes of my presentation, I'd like to primarily focus on the lack of awareness of careers in the skilled trades, the complexity of the apprenticeship system and the barriers associated with labour mobility.
I'd like to speak about some recommendations of how to increase skills development in this region.
The stigma associated with the skilled trades is central to the ongoing challenge of attracting workers to the construction industry. To better understand the extent of this issue, in 2017 the Government of Ontario undertook a province-wide engagement with more than 1,000 stakeholders in the apprenticeship community. During this consultation the most common recommendation was that there was a definite need to improve the perceived value of careers in the skilled trades and that earlier outreach to elementary and secondary schools is needed. Much has been done, but there still is a need for more.
The OCS started the Future Building expo in 2001, specifically to address this need. This is an annual three-day interactive event co-funded with the Ontario government. Future Building has brought a hands-on trade experience to over 200,000 youth to introduce them to and stimulate their interest in the construction industry's skilled trades. This generally gets moved around the province. It's not in the same place every year.
What we have seen, and my staff has witnessed first-hand, is that young career seekers and the general public do not understand the diversity of jobs and the opportunity in the skilled trades.
I digress for a second. How many people know what a glazier or a millwright or a boilermaker does? How do you research a career option when you don't know that the option even exists?
Returning to Future Building, this event also shows us that hands-on experience in the trades works. Our annual Future Building survey of students and teachers showed that 57% of the students who came to Future Building 2018 are now more likely to consider pursuing a career in the construction trade.
Our goal is also to showcase the trades to influencers. Of the teachers who attended Future Building 2018, 81% were more likely to encourage students to pursue a career in the construction trade after attending it.
Unfortunately, 2019 is the last year of our three-year funding agreement with the Province of Ontario, and we are in the process of looking for new federal and provincial partnerships. We would be happy to showcase our event in the GTHA as we have in the past. I would also like to extend an invitation to everyone here to come out to Future Building in Ottawa. It's going to be held at the EY Centre on May 14 to 16. I'll send that information later.
One of the best ways that more skilled workers can enter the GTHA labour market is to increase apprenticeship levels across the area. In recent years there has been much done to encourage individuals to enter into the apprenticeship system. The continued promotion of supports available for apprentices, such as the apprenticeship completion grants and the Canadian apprenticeship loan system, are vital for those deciding to enter into the skilled trades.
Increased supports can also come from existing EI payments available to those attending the in-class portion of their apprenticeship. When an apprentice is in an official program, part of it is on the job, and then they generally have three eight-week blocks in class. When they go in class, they're eligible for EI. The problem is that, in many cases, the EI payments are delayed and frequently don't arrive until after the eight weeks. During those whole two months, they're not getting anything when they're used to getting paid every Friday. There have been problems with EI payment delivery for years.
This obviously is a challenge to those who live in the GTHA because of the high cost of living. An increase in these payments when apprentices are entering block training would dramatically alleviate the financial hardships that many apprentices experience when they attend their training centres. We recommend the government review the use of these programs and continue to promote them in the GTHA.
Many unions also stress that workers themselves require more support. This is especially important, as some skilled trade workers travel up to 200 kilometres a day, round trip, just to get to the sites in downtown Toronto and downtown Hamilton. While some trades have travel provisions negotiated that provide financial compensation for travel, a better understanding of costs and restrictions on the labour force will provide effective solutions. Many of these costs are unique to the construction skilled trades as workers do not have conventional working situations.
Construction is project-based employment. This means a worker can be dispatched to many different locations throughout the year. It is not the same office address every day; it can be all over the place. Ideas such as allowing workers to claim mileage and parking costs as tax deductions would significantly reduce costs associated with transportation and thus increase the labour pool and labour mobility. Consultants, salespeople, accountants and lawyers are allowed to deduct their travel expenses and parking. This would be welcomed in the construction industry as well. It would also be an advantage for non-union tradespeople, who do not always have the same level of support that those in a unionized environment have.
Research is the foundation of the OCS. As I conclude my remarks, I want to provide you with a summary of some of our current studies. The OCS is in the process of working on a demographic and diversity study. Our apprenticeship longitudinal study is in its fifth year. We are doing an updated study of union investment and training and an update on the underground economy. We are more than happy to provide these reports to the committee and assist with any research requests relating to labour markets in Ontario.
Thank you again for allowing me to make this presentation on this important issue.