Trades have always been in high demand. And with construction booming on Vancouver Island, these skills are in high demand. However, when ICBC surveyed contractors, respondents noted that it was becoming increasing difficult to find skilled tradespeople in all areas. In fact, 75% of companies reported a shortage recently, compared to the 59% last year.
With prices in the housing market on the rise, building and owning a new condo has increased dramatically. Companies are also expecting to pay their employees more, increasing up to 4.5% across all the trades in 2018 and up to 5.1% for 2019. According to ICBC, about 225,000 British Columbians work in construction, and the industry generates about 10% of the province’s GDP.
If you’ve driven around Nanaimo lately you’ll notice a huge boom in road construction projects. And the number of new apartment buildings and condos springing up doesn’t seem to be slowing down. And since 2007 Campbell River has been enjoying the John Hart Generating Replacement project, a $1.1 billion venturing revitalizing the area and expected to be completed fall 2018. Providing jobs for some 500 people at the site, it’s attracted a lot of local expertise.
Another benefactor of the Vancouver Island construction boom has been Osprey Electric Ltd., growing from only three people five years ago to staffing approximately 45 people now with plans for more. Part of Osprey Electric’s success is their commitment to the local community promoting a health work/life balance, participating in charity construction projects, sponsoring a local hockey, and promoting alternative energies with their growing solar power division, having recently built a 26-kilowatt solar system on Gabriola Island.
Currently celebrating its fifth year, the Women in Construction (WiC), a VICA committee, has been growing in popularity with every meeting with between 30-60 attendees in each of their chapters in Nanaimo and Victoria. Hosting speaker series within the industry they have created a supportive environment helping to encourage women working in the construction industry with members and volunteers in a wide variety of areas such as engineers, tradespersons, developers, architects, apprentices and more.
Phoenix Siding has also been in high demand, sharing their thoughts on the changes.
Construction on Vancouver Island has been really booming for the last 3 plus years. For us in Nanaimo and central Vancouver we have seen a growing population of people moving here for retirement from Alberta and Ontario for the warmer climate, as well as people from Vancouver cashing in on their properties over there and purchasing more affordable places on the island. Not to mention young families moving here for the affordability. This has created a lot of demand for new construction builds and renovations on older properties. We have been expanding our crew of tradesmen to keep up with the demand, however this big boom definitely is seeing a shortage a trades people to keep up with it all. But we do our best to keep up with the surplus of work as the market can always fluctuate.
With new technologies on the rise and a growing construction industry it doesn’t look like business will be slowing down anytime soon.