CBC NewsSeveral factors, including an aging workforce, have contributed to the shortage of construction workers, experts say.
There are already thousands of vacant construction jobs in the city, according to Frano Cavar, director of government relations at the Calgary Construction Association."Our message is, what happens when you don't have the workers to fill your housing needs? Prices increase and projects become delayed."Cavar said that while the labour shortage the city is currently experiencing isn't a new phenomenon, several factors have contributed to the current crunch.
On Sept. 17, Calgary city council voted in favour of a new housing strategy that's intended to help the city move toward increasing the supply of market and non-market housing in order to meet demand and improve affordability. SAIT's dean of apprenticeship, Jim Szautner, said a recent "tremendous surge" in apprenticeship enrollments is a positive sign for the industry.