Could a greater emphasis on health and safety cultures be the key to attracting millennials into the construction workforce?

Maybe, said Labour, Training and Skills Development Minister Monte McNaughton.

At a breakfast panel session at the Construct Canada trade show on December 5, the minister revealed the findings of new research conducted by the ministry. It shows that approximately one in two (55 percent) young workers in the construction sector feel safe at their current workplaces, and that 54 percent believe safety is more important than speed or profit. It also shows that young people value independence, and want to have an element of control over their lives.

McNaughton suggested said those data points may offer a clue to how construction companies can retain young talent.

"Through health and safety, employers have an opportunity to show young workers they care," said Minister McNaughton. "If we empower young people to be able to speak up on issues of safety, if we provide them with the right mentorship and we give them all the tools, including new technology, this will go a long way towards meeting their needs."

It’s no secret that the industry has much work to do when it comes to attracting younger workers. While construction in Ontario employs more than half a million people, approximately 13,000 jobs went unfilled across the sector in the first half of this year alone. Over the next 10 years, the industry will need to hire and train more than 100,000 new skilled workers.

"The shortage of skilled workers is a looming problem," said McNaughton. "The solution is clear. We need to end the stigma around the skilled trades, make the apprenticeship system easier to navigate, and find better ways to convince businesses to participate. That is my mission."