Irish could fill up to 80,000 construction jobs in Canada - The Irish Times - Mon, Feb 27, 2012

FIONA GARTLAND

UP TO 80,000 jobs in British Columbia could be filled by Irish construction workers, according to a delegation from western Canada which is visiting Ireland this week.

Manley MacLachlan, president of the British Columbia Construction Association, which represents over 2,000 companies, said yesterday there was “a world of opportunities” for suitable workers in the western province.

Mr MacLachlan is one of an 11-strong delegation that has travelled to Ireland from British Columbia and Alberta to find skilled labour to help fill thousands of vacancies in the construction and related trades. The British Columbia ministry of jobs, tourism and innovation is also represented.

The delegation will be holding talks with Government departments, Fás, the Construction Industry Federation and other groups in the coming week. They will also attend the Dublin Working Abroad Expo next weekend in the RDS.

About 335,000 job openings are anticipated between 2012 and 2014 in British Columbia, which has a population of 4.5 million and is physically more than 10 times the size of Ireland.

Speaking to The Irish Times yesterday, Mr MacLachlan said the trip had two objectives: to better understand the apprenticeship system in Ireland in order to establish whether there is a close match with the system in Western Canada, and to investigate opportunities to attract skilled construction workers.

“We have a significant amount of work scheduled and a very significant shortfall in skilled workers,” he said.

The economy in British Columbia was “relatively good”, he said, and there were many projects planned, including residential, mining and oil and gas worth 210 billion Canadian dollars (€156 billion) “in the market, under development or being planned”.

Mr MacLachlan said the industry was “under pressure” because 35,000 workers were due to retire shortly and would leave large gaps in senior site management. They were not only looking for qualified tradesmen but would also need experienced managers.

A further 45,000 jobs would need to be filled to complete the major projects already planned.

The delegation was only focused on Ireland at present, he said.

“Quite frankly, we anticipate a real match between the training systems and the cultural similarities between both cultures which is very attractive to us,” he said.

The British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program meant visa applications could be dealt with in a “relatively easy manner”, Mr MacLachlan said, and if put together properly, applications could be processed to allow Irish applicants to begin work in 90 days. Qualified applicants could also bring spouses.

via irishtimes.com

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