Finance committee  Perhaps I will start with budget 2022.

Finance committee  I'd ask for some leeway with the time, Mr. Chairman.

Human Resources committee  That's a great question. It's a very important issue to skilled trades workers across Canada. We're not asking for any treatment different from what other workers have under the Income Tax Act. Right now, many workers are able to deduct travel costs, accommodation costs, [Technical difficulty—Editor] covered by their employer.

Human Resources committee  Keep investing in training and in bona fide training centres that offer true economic opportunities for skilled trades workers through recognized apprenticeship programs.

Human Resources committee  There's a real push in many provinces and in the federal government already in advertising to get people to the skilled trades, so that needs to happen. The union training and innovation program needs to continue. There's been an allocation in previous budgets of up to $1 billion for the skilled trades—union and non-union—to attract more people.

Human Resources committee  Mark, do you want to talk about UTIP and its impact in Hamilton?

Human Resources committee  I'll start with that and then maybe Mark can share some experience from the field in Hamilton. I think the answer is yes and no. In Alberta, for example, MP Liepert, the oil sands deferred some maintenance through COVID, so this year during the turnaround period they're actually going to have a longer shutdown period than they have had previously.

Human Resources committee  Certainly, opioid use and opioid addiction are quite prevalent within the construction trades. I think the two trades with the highest incidence are transportation—with folks working hard and doing lots of driving across the country to keep our supply chain going—and construction.

Human Resources committee  That's a really good question. I know there has been some recent legislation around 10 paid sick days. I don't know how that would apply in the construction industry, but certainly, if there was more latitude around [Technical difficulty—Editor] and the impact it would have on you if you weren't able to get paid because you had to take time off.

Human Resources committee  Maybe I can take that one, Mark. We're suggesting a construction immigration pilot program. Right now it's very difficult for a construction worker [Inaudible—Editor] Canada. They just don't meet the requisite requirements. I did a quick survey—anecdotal, not scientific—and right now in Ontario we could use 25,000 construction workers basically tomorrow across mostly civil trades related to the building of transportation infrastructure.

Human Resources committee  Thank you very much for the question. Mark may want to weigh in as well. On cross-border mobility, right now we have challenges in Windsor, Ontario, for example, with the availability of workers. There's an opportunity.... Years ago, in the auto plants, we did share workers across the border for shutdowns and turnaround periods, but we're not able to do that right now because of the changing requirements for immigration and temporary work permits on both sides of the border.

Human Resources committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you for the opportunity to address the committee this morning and talk about labour availability challenges in the construction industry. My name is Sean Strickland. I'm the executive director of Canada's Building Trades Unions, and I'll be sharing my time with Mark Ellerker, the business manager of the Hamilton Brantford Building Trades Council.

Finance committee  Thanks for the great observation. I would make a couple of comments. In Prince Edward Island, you have a residential boom happening right now. A thousand workers are required. Meanwhile, in Newfoundland and Labrador, we have a surplus of workers. This is exactly why a skilled trades workforce mobility tax deduction would help, even in Atlantic Canada, for those workers in Newfoundland to potentially come to Prince Edward Island, rather than sometimes getting on a plane to go much further afield.

Finance committee  In terms of introducing young people to trades, you can also go to our website. On our website we have videos. We're in conjunction with all provincial building trades affiliates right across the country in developing videos to help introduce younger people to the trades and help them understand what a millwright does, for example, or an operator.

Finance committee  Absolutely. It continues to be a challenge in terms of supply chain. It continues to be a challenge in terms of the cost of raw materials. Also, the deliverability of goods is causing some delays on construction projects. It certainly is an issue for the industry and is creating upward pressure on the final prices of construction projects.