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# Immigrants recruited to boost Trudeau's homebuilding plan
Admissions of permanent residents with trade skills rose 29% from the
average quarterly rate in 2023
Author of the article:
Bloomberg News
Randy Thanthong-Knight
Published May 08, 2024 • 3 minute read
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Canada's on track to add more immigrants with construction skills, a
sign that targeted immigration is working. Photo by Cole
Burston/Bloomberg
## Article content
Canada is on track to add more newcomers with construction skills than
in recent years, an early sign that a targeted immigration program is
working, though still not quickly enough to close a massive housing
supply gap.
Admissions of permanent residents with trade skills rose 29 per cent
from January through March from the average quarterly rate in 2023,
according to government data obtained by Bloomberg. If that pace is
sustained, Canada will grant residency to some 17,800 skilled
construction workers this year.
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Article content
The increase is solely driven by recent immigration policy changes to
bring in more tradespeople to ramp up homebuilding. It's crucial to
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's goal to more than double the pace of
construction to add 3.9 million homes by 2031 as he tries to calm
housing angst and reverse waning popularity.
Immigration Minister Marc Miller has said Canada needs to do a better
job of matching incoming talent to construction labour needs. In
August, he announced the country's first-ever targeted selection
program for newcomers with trade expertise to address shortages in the
sector.
While the policy alone isn't a panacea for Canada's chronic
underbuilding of homes, it begins to address a dilemma seen across
many developed economies in recent years: A surge of newcomers
exacerbates housing shortages, yet at the same time, these aging
countries need more migrants to boost home construction and restore
affordability.
"We're at the point in Canada where we need to look at any
contribution to accelerate the pace of housing starts," Mathieu
Laberge, senior vice-president at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.,
said. "Labour is one of many. We also need to look into how we can
build differently to build faster."
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Article content
Canada could need more than 500,000 additional construction workers to
build the homes needed between now and 2030, according to a report by
Royal Bank of Canada. "Canada must realign its immigration system by
refocusing on the mismatch of skills and long-term labour market
needs," the report said.
Last year, Canada welcomed some 470,000 new permanent residents, and
2.9 per cent had trade occupations, including carpenters, contractors,
electricians, plumbers and welders, the data showed. The projected
gain would push the share closer to four per cent this year, assuming
the country meets its 485,000 permanent-resident target.
Still, the share is lower than the roughly eight per cent of the
overall employed Canadian population working in construction,
underscoring the ongoing underrepresentation of trade occupations
among newcomers.
That's because Canada's main immigration pathway, a points-based
system, tends to award more scores to university education and higher-
language proficiency, which puts candidates in skilled trades at a
disadvantage. The resulting labour mismatch means the supply of
workers outpaces job creation in some sectors, while failing to catch
up to employer demand in construction and other industries.
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Article content
The most common occupations for successful permanent-resident
applicants include software engineers, information systems
specialists, computer programmers, food service supervisors and
advertising and marketing professionals, according to the latest
government report.
In the first quarter, the number of admissions in 13 of the 61 trade
occupations doubled or more compared to the average quarterly pace
last year. Crane operators, residential and commercial installers,
heating and air conditioning mechanics and machine fitters had the
largest percentage change over that period.
Despite having more immigrant skilled workers and job vacancies
declining, shortages persist in the construction sector, which adds to
a list of housing supply barriers including zoning restrictions,
permitting processes, costs of construction and elevated interest
rates.
Whether the recent increase in newcomers with trades skills can be
considered a success will hinge on the construction outcomes, Bahoz
Dara Aziz, Miller's press secretary, said in an emailed statement. "We
are focused on getting more homes and vital projects built in Canada."
_With assistance from Jay Zhao-Murray._
Bloomberg.com
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