Canada’s Building Trades Unions welcomes the speech from the throne delivered today by His Majesty King Charles III, reinforcing our sovereign leader’s support for Canada amidst these extraordinary times.
The unique challenges Canada currently faces present opportunities to build and expand on existing infrastructure to secure our energy independence and reinforce our economy. As Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government works towards accomplishing their goals, Canada’s skilled trades workforce is the mission critical component needed to execute the work safely and efficiently, and support Canada’s global ambitions. As King Charles III stated, it is the priority of this government to “build hundreds of thousands of good careers in the skilled trades” to meet the significant investments being made in Canadian infrastructure. “To support the government’s mission, we are ready to welcome Canadians to the unionized skilled trades to boost our workforce and offer rewarding careers,” said CBTU Executive Director Sean Strickland.
The federal government has committed to introducing legislation to remove internal barriers to trade and labour mobility that will support our members in being able to mobilize across the country to be where the projects are. In addition, through the creation of a new Major Federal Project Office, the time needed to approve projects will be reduced from five years to two years, and co-operation agreements will be made with interested provinces and territories within six months to ensure the government’s goal of ‘one project, one review’.
“These measures are a strong show of support for our industry and our workforce. It has never been more apparent that the skilled trades will be the dominant focus of this government as the backbone of Canada’s economy. Today, Canada’s sovereign addressed our nation with a clear message: Canada is strong, and we have strong allies. As we face new challenges and a renewed focus on energy and infrastructure, Building Trades members stand ready to build the major projects of today to ensure Canada’s prosperity of tomorrow.”
-CBTU Executive Director Sean Strickland
