Doug Ford not worried about Alberta program to recruit skilled trade workers

As Alberta launches a new program to try and recruit skilled trade workers, advocates say they should be focused on expanding the pool of workers across the country while Premier Doug Ford said he’s not worried about losing people.

Alberta is currently offering a one-time $5,000 tax rebate to entice skilled tradespeople to the province from Ontario and other parts of Canada. The $10 million program will be capped at 2,000 people.

Director of Research at the Future Skills Center, Tricia Williams, said incentives and credits should be focused on growing the current pool of workers, rather than poaching what is currently available.

“We would be better served to focus on the people that are already in that pipeline. How do we support them to finish the programs they’re in? How do we recruit more people into those programs so that we’re maximizing the total availability of those skills,” said Williams. “Taking a focus that really focuses on recruiting people from other provinces and territories is too short-term.”

She said Alberta is recognizing that they need to support individuals who make those transitions.

“In this case, they’re thinking about geographic transitions and also recognizing that the need for skilled tradespeople is really critical and time sensitive.”

Williams said they have conducted a number of pilots with different organizations on this topic and found there are lots of barriers when it comes to growing the pool of skilled tradespeople.

“What we found in our research is that there are a lot of barriers to not just starting a skilled trades program, but also completing it. There’s a huge attrition and people have demands on their time, they can’t finish the program. It’s not always welcoming to women or new arrivals to Canada,” explained Williams.

She said the whole country could suffer if these barriers aren’t fixed.

“We may need more direct training credits or more incentives to complete programs, more actual matching with employers, and staying really tightly focused on the demands in the labor market. But, really, I think Canada will only suffer if we’re just competing for the same pool of talent,” added Williams.

Ford was asked about Alberta’s incentive-based approach at a media event on Wednesday and whether Ontario would consider similar initiatives.

“We do right now when it comes to healthcare workers. We’re paying for their education, their books, along with our police officers, we’re paying for their education,” said Ford, adding he wasn’t worried about losing people to Alberta.

“I love the people of Alberta, but there’s no place like Ontario anywhere in the world and people are coming here by the droves,” said Ford. “There’s no better place in the world, and the world is talking about it, than here in Ontario.”

Ontario is facing what has been described as a historic labour shortage, with an estimated 300,000 jobs unfilled across the province. Many of them are in the skilled trades.

The Ford government said 100,000 people will be needed in the construction industry alone over the next decade.

“We need to grow our electricity grid significantly. There’s a big focus on upgrading infrastructure, even in homes, as we move to heat pumps or clean energy sources,” added Williams.

The province has implemented other initiatives to get more students into trades. They announced last year they would allow Grade 11 students to enter skilled trades apprenticeships full-time.

It’s projected that by 2026, one in five job openings in Ontario will be in the skilled trades.