🤬 Talent Thursdays: Harassed

Good morning! ⚒️ Six figure salaries alone aren’t enough to get young people into the trades. Ford Motor Company is having trouble filling 5,000 mechanic jobs despite offering $120,000USD, twice the median U.S. income. Experts say it’s part of a broader trend across many other blue collar jobs. 

“We are in trouble in our country,” said Ford CEO Jim Farley. “We are not talking about this enough.”

📈 BY THE NUMBERS

The Canadian Infrastructure Council’s first National Infrastructure Assessment found that more than $126 billion worth of infrastructure is rated “poor or very poor.” The study examined three key sectors—water and wastewater, solid waste management, and public transit and active transportation—and revealed that 11% of water and wastewater assets and more than 13% of public transit assets fall into this critical condition.

👷‍♀️ PEOPLE MOVES

Colin Olfert has been promoted to President & CEO at Westridge Construction, adding the President role to his existing CEO position held since 2022. Leon Friesen has retired as President but will remain involved as a Director on the Board.

Anthony Costa has been appointed Senior Manager, Renewables & Electrification, Western Canada at CIMA+. Based in Kelowna, BC, Anthony brings over 20 years of experience in the energy and utilities sector, including leadership roles at Primary Engineering and Construction Corporation and BC Hydro.

Marcus Gillam has been appointed to the board of directors of Urban Infrastructure Group Inc. Gillam is the CEO of Gillam Group Inc., a construction company, and brings over 30 years of project management experience in complex construction projects across Ontario and internationally.

Joel Melanson has been appointed Director of Engineering, Design and Construction for Water Services at Metro Vancouver.

Brandon Deeves has joined Emil Anderson Construction as Manager of Strategic Partnerships.

Val Vanderwyk has been appointed to the Board of Directors at Canadian Apprenticeship Forum (CAF-FCA), a national non-profit dedicated to driving apprenticeship excellence across Canada.

Gordon Wadley has been appointed Chief Operating Officer of Dream Industrial REIT, effective January 1, 2026. Wadley previously served as Chief Operating Officer at Dream Office REIT since joining the organization in 2011.

🗞 HEADLINES

⚒️ Exempt: Ontario has passed labour legislation that exempts worker training centres funded through its $2.5-billion Skills Development Fund capital stream from the Planning Act, allowing unions and companies to build or expand facilities without going through normal municipal planning approvals. 

🤬 Anti-harassment: Advocates in Ontario’s construction sector, led by Ontario Building & Construction Tradeswomen, are calling for anti-discrimination and anti-harassment training to be mandatory for anyone working on construction sites, arguing that “optional” culture change has failed to create safe, respectful workplaces. 

🚧 Deep cuts: Algoma Steel has issued about 1,000 layoff notices—roughly one-third of its Sault Ste. Marie workforce. The company, which recently received $500 million in federal and provincial loans intended to help it weather the trade dispute and protect jobs, says the cuts are necessary to secure its long-term viability. 

🏠 Shortfall: A new report from the parliamentary budget officer says federal spending on housing programs will drop by 56% between 2025-26 and 2028-29. It finds that Build Canada Homes, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s $13-billion flagship housing agency, is expected to generate only about 26,000 new units by 2029-30. The PBO says 690,000 homes are needed by 2035.

🧠 INSIGHTS AND LEADERSHIP

Resources for professional development

• Master tradesperson: Do this and AI will never replace you

• Let the wrong clients weed themselves out

• This hiring advice is so simple you’ll get mad

• Is being hot becoming a job requirement?

• Catch up on construction news in just 10 minutes

💬 QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“Apprentices come in ready to learn their trade, but if they’re met with discrimination or harassment, many don’t stay long enough to become the skilled workers our industry needs.” - Nicole Lavoie, Ontario Building and Construction Tradeswomen co-chair

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