Eight in 10 British Columbians are in favour of requiring tradespeople to obtain a specified level of training before working in a skilled trade, according to a recent Research Co. poll commissioned by the BC Building Trades (BCBT).

B.C. is the only province without a compulsory trades system. Supporters say that restoring such a system, which was in place in B.C. until 2003, will help build the province’s capacity to meet its skilled-trades labour shortage. Others question whether mandatory education and training requirements are enough to meet chronic skills supply challenges.

“I don’t think 80% of British Columbians have any idea what compulsory trades is,” said Chris Gardner, president of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association (ICBA). “It’s a very complicated discussion. There is a shortage of skilled workers in construction – there’s no question about that, and that is the No. 1 challenge facing contractors.”

But according to Gardner, restoring compulsory trades may bring unintended consequences that could exacerbate that shortage in the short term.

“There just simply aren’t enough spaces in the training institutions to handle a deluge of construction workers all of a sudden registering,” he said.

It remains unclear how and when the B.C. government might re-introduce compulsory trades. Minister of Labour Harry Bains, Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Training Anne Kang and Parliamentary Secretary for Skills Training Andrew Mercier – former BCBT executive director – are expected to make progress on the issue over the next term, according to their mandate letters.

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