A trade organization in Canada\u2019s biggest province is lobbying for immigration reform in an attempt stave off labour shortages due to the pending retirement of huge numbers of men and women working in these good-paying, blue-collar jobs.<\/p>\n
By 2030, now only eight years away, one in five tradespeople in Ontario will have retired.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeginning in the mid-90s, the immigration system changed to value educational attainment and language requirements over specific, practical skill sets,\u201d says Patrick McManus, chair of the Ontario Skilled Trades Alliance (OSTA).<\/p>\n
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Ontario Starts 2022 With More Than 1,000 Employer Job Offer Canada Immigration Invitations<\/a><\/span> <\/span>\u201cAt the time, our economy was in a much different place than it is today, with much higher unemployment in the construction industry and much less public and private investment in infrastructure and land\/commercial development.\u201d<\/p>\n But times have changed. The trades are now screaming for qualified workers already. And the looming exodus of trades workers as they retire promises to make the situation even worse.<\/p>\n \u201cEconomically, we have returned to a place where we are in much greater need of specific skills sets (those particularly that would fall under National Occupational Code (NOC) levels C and D in the immigration system) to fill the demand in our province, particularly for infrastructure and residential construction,\u201d says McManus.<\/p>\n Enter immigration reform.<\/p>\n The OSTA has put forth a working document, a backgrounder with recommendations for changes to Canada\u2019s immigration system to boost the number of tradespeople coming to the country through immigration.<\/p>\n Watch<\/b><\/p>\n
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\nHow You Could Immigrate To Canada Through The Start-Up Visa In 2022<\/span><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n
\nTrades Need To Be Prioritized In Immigration Policies<\/h3>\n
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