By Mary Van Buren
Mary Van Buren is the President of the Canadian Construction Association. Across Canada, CCA represents more than 20,000 member firms drawn from 63 local and provincial integrated partner associations.
In public opinion polls conducted this Fall, Canadians rated the economy, housing, and unemployment among their top concerns. Politicians, always keenly aware of public opinion, are seeking ways to reassure citizens that they are listening and taking action to address these concerns. If they are looking for a policy approach that can address all of these priorities, look no further.
The construction sector is one of Canada’s largest employers and a major contributor to the country’s economic success. The industry employs 1.6 million people in Canada and contributes about $151 billion to the economy annually, accounting for 7.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP). Moreover, when the construction sector does well, it creates a ripple effect of expansion in other sectors like engineering, manufacturing, agriculture, technology, and retail.
The Canadian Construction Association (CCA) is urging the federal government to collaborate with the construction industry. Construction is the ideal partner to help drive economic growth for Canada — all while delivering housing and infrastructure that Canada desperately needs. Working with us is building a strong foundation for a stronger Canada.
However, to fully capture the growth potential of an industry that is at the heart of Canada’s economic success, Government can be a better partner in its turn, and remove three key obstacles by:
- Committing to a comprehensive investment strategy based on a 25-year plan, and one that includes housing-enabling and trade-enabling infrastructure.
- Addressing the workforce shortage by modernizing the existing immigration policy and points system to better reflect the workforce needs of the Canadian economy.
- Modernizing procurement to ensure practices better balance risk-sharing between public contracts and the private sector, reducing red tape, and accelerating approvals for critical projects.
With construction as its partner, the federal government can better address Canadians’ top concerns and build a stronger Canada!
The Canadian Construction Association (CCA) represents more than 18,000 member firms drawn from 62 local and provincial integrated partner associations across Canada. CCA gives voice to the public policy, legal and standards development goals of contractors, suppliers and allied business professionals working in, or with, Canada’s institutional, commercial and industrial and civil (ICIC) construction industry.
