​Bruce Power, Ontario Building Trades Council partner on strategy to build skilled workforce

Bruce Power and the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario are forging a strategy to ensure the proposed Bruce "C" nuclear project is supported by a highly-qualified skilled trades workforce that builds the talent pipeline for the future while powering Ontario’s economy today.

Building on a long-standing partnership, Bruce Power and the trades council have a strong history of working together to deliver major nuclear refurbishment and construction projects, safely and successfully, while supporting apprenticeships, workforce development, and long-term careers in the skilled trades.

A unified approach through the Bruce "C" Skilled Trades Workforce Readiness Planning Strategy establishes a long-term partnership focused on strengthening apprenticeship, training, and labour planning to support safe and successful project delivery and long-term economic growth.

The Bruce "C" project would represent one of the largest construction undertakings in Canadian history. Workforce requirements would overlap with major infrastructure, energy, and industrial projects across the province, placing pressure on training pipelines, apprenticeship systems, and regional labour markets.

“The Bruce 'C' project is a generational opportunity for Ontario to power its future and drive the economy,” said Pat Dalzell, Bruce Power vice-president of corporate affairs and market development. “This strategy will help to make sure that we’re able to employ the right people with the right qualifications, at the right time, while supporting apprenticeships, training capacity, and good-paying jobs that power local communities and the provincial economy.”

The strategy includes three core elements:
 

• Joint governance through a steering committee co-chaired by Bruce Power and the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, supported by project-level subcommittees that bring together contractors, training delivery partners, Indigenous partners, municipalities, and provincial ministries
• A skilled trades demand/supply forecasting tool to provide shared visibility into workforce needs by trade, anticipate pressures early, and support timely decisions
• A skilled trades availability mitigation plan that strengthens training capacity, addresses labour gaps, and supports worker mobility and community engagement

With major infrastructure, energy, and industrial projects advancing across the province, partners will use the shared forecasting approach to reduce labour-market volatility, improve project certainty, and help ensure that more workers can build long-term careers in the skilled trades, both close to home and across Ontario.

“A project the size of Bruce 'C' would provide good jobs for construction tradespeople, requiring a great deal of planning and collaboration,” said Marc Arsenault, business manager and secretary-treasurer, of the trades council. “We’re building for the future and making sure that Ontario has the skilled people needed to deliver complex projects safely, on-time, and with lasting economic benefits.”

Over the next 12 months, the partners will finalize governance, develop the forecasting dashboard, and propose mitigation measures, including apprenticeship and training expansion, workforce housing and mobility supports, and continuous monitoring with rapid-response triggers to address emerging shortages.

-- photo by Ryan Bolton