
CCA
The Canadian Construction Association
Outlines Its Priorities for Budget 2018
Supporting apprenticeship training, increasing industry productivity
and creating a more efficient system for infrastructure funding
By Kyle Larkin, Canadian Construction Association
As part of the House of Commons Finance Committee’s
2018 pre-budget consultations with Canadians, the
Canadian Construction Association (CCA) provided
recommendations to help the construction industry and the econ-omy.
Our economy faces many challenges such as labour shortag-es,
increased competition and capacity constraints, all of which
can be aided by a stronger construction industry. This year’s sub-mission
focused on supporting apprenticeship training, increas-ing
industry productivity and creating a more efficient system for
infrastructure funding.
Changes to the Apprenticeship
Job Creation Tax Credit
Canada’s construction workforce, like that of many other industri-al
sectors, is facing a significant future labour challenge brought on
by increased retirements and continued high demand for construc-tion
services across the country. According to the latest 2017–2026
BuildForce Canada labour market information survey, 32,000 work-ers
from other industries or from outside Canada will be needed
to remain competitive. To help increase the supply of skilled trade
workers in Canada, several federal initiatives either currently ex-ist
or have been proposed to help promote apprenticeship train-ing
across Canada. CCA believes, though, that the Apprenticeship
Job Creation Tax Credit (AJCTC) needs to be increased from a max-imum
of $2,000 to a maximum of $5,000 annually. Furthermore, the
application of the credit should be broadened to include all years of
a provincially recognized apprenticeship program, not just the first
two years.
Advance on EI benefits to
encourage labour mobility
Another measure to help labour shortages across Canada is to en-courage
labour mobility. Current tax policy permits deductibility of
most reasonable expenses associated with permanent relocation.
Larger employers will often provide tradespersons with some assis-tance
to help offset costs associated with temporary relocation and
recruitment; however, the vast majority of construction employers,
due to their size, cannot provide such support and continue to rely
on more traditional types of employee recruitment techniques to staff
projects. This is why the CCA recommended a change to Employment
Insurance policy to permit unemployed construction workers to ob-tain
an advance from their approved benefits of up to $2,000 to sup-port
their employment searches outside their local area.
Single window for accessing
infrastructure funding
Finally, the federal government has continuously been commended
by the CCA and partner associations on the amount of funds com-mitted
to infrastructure spending. However, with an ever-increas-ing
number of programs, managed by numerous departments and
organizations, it can be very difficult to know how best to access
them. This is why CCA recommended creating a single window
for municipalities to more efficiently access infrastructure fund-ing.
Similar programs should also be consolidated to cut down on
the number of programs that make it difficult for municipalities to
identify which fund is more suited for their projects.
Ensuring construction
industry’s voice is heard
Over the course of the next few months, CCA will be
presenting these and other recommendations to the
finance committee, as well as meeting with important
officials to push for solutions that would bolster
our industry. We continue to be engaged at the
highest levels to ensure that our voice is heard
in every step of a variety of consultations.
Kyle Larkin is the acting
manager, Government
Relations at the Canadian
Construction Association.
thinkbigmagazine.ca | Quarter 4 2017 | Think BIG 51