On behalf of construction industry employers, Brad Anderson of the Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA) says there is clearly a need to import offshore workers. Alberta has the greatest need for TFWs and British Columbia hasn’t been far behind, Anderson says. But put in proper perspective, worker imports do not deserve to be a hot political issue, he suggests. There are, currently, only 2,000 temporary foreign workers in a trades population base of about 200,000, he estimates. Solutions for dealing with manpower problems still have to be homegrown, he adds. Industry must recruit workers and ensure they are trained.

Anderson says he believes in an orderly policy of using Canadian labor first, then turning to U.S. labor pools second. “I mention the U.S. because I think it would be a very logical market. They’re our closest neighbors, and we share a lot of projects. We share geography.”

Canada is still on the learning curve when it comes to tapping into foreign labor markets, the COAA manager says. “One of the things we know is that places like the Middle East and Norway are very good at building megaprojects with workers from outside their countries and I think we can learn from them. I think there’s a fantastic international marketplace of skills out there. But first and foremost, I do strongly believe in Canada first – Canadian workers first.”

Here he finds consensus with CLAC’s de Jong who says his organization responds to imports of foreign skilled personnel on a case-by-case basis.“It’s CLAC’s policy to involve untapped labor sources in Canada – women and aboriginals who are under-represented on work sites.”

Anderson also looks to aboriginal people and women as potential labor pools within the province. About six per cent of Alberta’s population is aboriginal and this group’s higher than average unemployment rate makes it a potential source for workers. The proximity of many aboriginal communities to remote northern building projects is also a boon. “We should give the folks living near the operations a real kick at the cat. I do believe in that.”

This belief also means looking to another potential labor pool and one that is considerably richer in prospects.“About 50 per cent of the population are women. Then why aren’t half the workers in heavy industrial construction women?” says Anderson. In fact, in 2006 women comprised 45 per cent of the provincial labor force but only accounted for 14 per cent of the construction industry’s workforce.

Abundant reasons exist for the gender gap, ranging from custom to personal taste, but these should not be simply taken as given. “We should at least be trying to understand why there aren’t as many women working in construction as you might think there would be.”

In the construction industry, as it turns out, gender barriers may prove to be the hardest borders to cross.

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