Canada’s economic prosperity and global competitiveness depend on one critical factor: a highly skilled and resilient workforce.

The national unemployment rate rose to 7.1 per cent in August, the highest since 2016. We face an urgent and growing need to strengthen workforce participation, especially in the skilled trades.

Without immediate and co-ordinated actions of academia, industry and government, Canada risks falling short on its priorities and undermining both economic growth and social progress.

The shortage of trades professionals is now impossible to ignore. The alarming decline in shop classes across Canada, and the shortage of shop teachers, limit opportunities for young people to discover and pursue trades careers.

In concert, nearly 700,000 skilled trades workers are expected to retire between 2019 and 2028 — creating additional urgency to develop accessible and inclusive pathways that welcome the next generation of tradespeople.

Canada’s future prosperity is being shaped by large-scale priorities that rely heavily on a strong trades workforce. Whether it be building affordable and climate-resilient housing or infrastructure to strengthen national security, these national priorities all require a job-ready and adaptable trades workforce.

For decades, Canadian polytechnics have powered this progress — producing job-ready graduates and bridging academia, industry and government. When we work together, we don’t just respond to change, we drive it.

The federal government’s renewed focus on the skilled trades is an encouraging step. Yet the scale of demand remains significant. Over the next four years, Canada will need to train more than 222,000 Red Seal journeypersons.

In B.C. alone, WorkBC predicts 1.12 million job openings over the next decade (2024 to 2034) and nearly 10 per cent of those openings will be in the construction industry. Meeting this need requires more than awareness. It demands decisive action.

Polytechnic institutes like the B.C. Institute of Technology (BCIT) are uniquely positioned to answer this call and have been doing it for decades. As the largest trades training provider in Western Canada, BCIT trains more than 40,000 students each year with job-ready skills across six sectors, and apprenticeship graduates achieve a remarkable 97 per cent employment rate.

About 39 per cent of the skills that workers rely on today will either transform or become outdated between 2025 and 2030. This requires post-secondary institutions to rethink traditional education models and create flexible, accessible learning pathways. BCIT leads in this space by offering accessible opportunities for students, awarding credit for non-traditional learning and tailoring programs to meet students where they are in their careers and lives.

One example is the trades discovery for women program that allows students to explore as many as 15 different trades disciplines in 16 weeks. Throughout the program, students also spend two weeks gaining hands-on experience directly with industry.

This initiative not only helps build a strong skilled trades workforce but, more importantly, also creates an accessible pathway that encourages participation from under-represented groups. In turn, industry gets early access to an emerging and diverse skilled talent pool.

Investing in trades training and polytechnic education lays the foundation for Canada’s future workforce. The upcoming $220 million Trades and Technology Complex on the BCIT Burnaby Campus will enhance training capacity — alleviating industry challenges and expanding Canada’s overall productivity. Once complete, this multi-building expansion will increase trades training capacity by 700 full-time seats each year.

Having built my career leading polytechnics in Canada and abroad, I can attest to the value of a practical, industry-focused approach to teaching and learning, supported by strong partnerships. Applied education not only equips individuals with technical skills, but also nurtures problem-solving, critical thinking, adaptability and resilience — all essential qualities for success in today’s world.

As Canada works diligently to drive growth and secure long-term prosperity, we must continue to invest in people through purposeful and co-ordinated partnerships. Strengthening our workforce, especially in the skilled trades, is critical to our economic future and global competitiveness.

Polytechnics like BCIT are ready to lead this effort by bringing together academia, industry and government to build a resilient, adaptable and highly skilled workforce that will sustain Canada’s economic growth and social progress for generations to come.