Union president warns real shortfall still to come
The president of the Vancouver Island Building Trades Council says the issue of a skills shortage has not been accurately portrayed.
Vancouver Island is not in the midst of a shortage as much as some skills are in particular demand, Philip Venoit said. These include cement finishers, drywallers, painters and glaziers.
There is a shortage of properly certified workers, he said.
"One only has to look to the skyline at the tower cranes which attest there is no skilled trades shortage," Venoit said in a letter. "There is, however, a shortage of of skilled trades people willing to work below the wage level they expect for an honest days work ..."
Along with other sectors, there may be a skills shortage in the future as baby boomers retire, he said.
Venoit points out there was no shortage of union members to build condominium projects such as Concert Properties' Astoria and Belvedere in downtown Victoria. "Yes, high-rise construction in Victoria is fairly busy right now, but employers willing to value their employees with a standard compensation package have no problem getting projects completed."
Union workers do about half the commercial and industrial construction work and virtually all of industrial work on the island, he said.
However, Philip Hochstein, of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of B.C., said there is so much work, contractors can pick and choose who to work for. Hochstein said most construction work is open-shop these days.
His organization is calling for more immigration of skilled workers. He is not asking to change the number of immigrants, only to increase the proportion of newcomers skilled in trades.
Last month, the head of the Vancouver Regional Construction Association announced he was heading to job fairs in Germany and the U.K. to find workers.
Kael Campbell, of Victoria-based Red Seal Recruiting, has staged cross-country recruiting drives for Island and out-of-province employers. One client is an oil firm in Alberta. Campbell is also trying to fill jobs for the specialty pulp mill in Port Alice, which won a new lease on life after being shut down.
"There is not a ton of applicants applying because they are all working, so you really have to go out and find the applicants," says Campbell, who approaches facilities that are closing, such as a mainland mill, to find workers.
David Podmore, head of Vancouver-based Concert Properties, which uses union workers, said his company has ready access to highly qualified tradespeople because it has a reputation for treating employees well, and paying them in a timely way. "They know that we have a continuum of work ... Even in a slow market, we are going to be active."
Wayne Farey of Campbell Construction says his company has maintained a large crew of union workers, some of whom have been with the firm for nearly 40 years. "We try to keep skilled people on our crews and we pay them accordingly."
One long-time employee is Russ Curry, 58, site superintendent for Campbell Construction on Humboldt Street and Fairfield Road, where the Astoria and Belvedere condominiums are being built for Concert. "I'm here because I enjoying coming to work everyday. I could go and collect a pension. This is fun."
As a cement truck rumbles in the background, Curry said there is a future in trades. "If guys work hard and do well, they can make a good living in this."
Experienced workers are teamed with newcomers for on-the job training. Journeyman carpenter Dave Paul, 58, who is working on the Belvedere, is in construction because he likes working with his hands.
Another carpenter on the project, Dan Sigurdson, 28, started sweeping floors and now leads a crew of 18. He owns a townhouse in Langford, his wife bought a new car last year, and he drives a "nice truck."
Sigurdson is proud of the work he's done on about a dozen projects in town. "It is something that you can say that you have done."
