Help Wanted

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE WORKFORCE?

Chris Allinotte, WRLA

This is one of the questions that drives the WRLA in their vision to act as an innovative leader and connecting force in the building industry of Western Canada. After spending years building up a business, growing relationships, and establishing a network of suppliers and customers, that question of “what comes next” can be a daunting one to be sure.

WRLA is hoping to address this question head on with an in-depth workforce study in tandem with the government of Alberta. In taking a close look at the workforce in one province, we anticipate learning a great deal that will be both useful to, and practical for, the WRLA membership at large.

This study is coming at a time when various external factors are converging to make labour shortage issues a much more pressing problem than could have been foreseen even five years ago. With an ongoing housing shortage, and the continuing supply chain issues brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important to understand how the building supply industry can play a role in helping the economy recover. When the building supply chain is strong, new housing projects can proceed unhampered by delays, which benefits communities, the provinces, and Canada as a whole. Despite the importance of our industry in providing goods and services to other critical industries, there is no current source of up-to-date information on human resource issues facing the sectors or the overall labour market. With the work done through this study process, we’ll be better equipped to answer these questions. Most importantly, we’ll have identified the skills/training gaps that will allow both our organization and our members to develop targeted training plans to attract and train new talent, especially from equity-seeking groups that are currently underrepresented in the Building Supply Sector (BSS), including newcomers (i.e. immigrants and refugees), youth, Indigenous peoples, women, mature workers, and people living with a disability. The study will also outline strategies to improve employee retention.

A complex challenge requires a measured, in-depth solution, so this Labour Study is taking place over the course of just over seven months and consists of several phases that will allow the final result to be as meaningful and useful as possible. When completed, the reports generated by this study will become reference material available to all members to help formulate their own best practices for recruiting and retaining a robust and resilient work force. We’ll quickly outline some of the methodology here, and then continue to keep our members updated on the progress of this project. In the coming weeks, employers in Alberta will receive communications from WRLA asking for participation in the survey. We are hoping for as high a participation rate as possible, as the more actual data we can collect, the more meaningful our results will be.

Phase One of this project involved the creation of a Steering Committee to guide the project and keep the work focused on our stated goals, and the goals of the Alberta government, who is sponsoring this survey. We are thrilled to have the following

partners working with us on the study: Sexton Group of Companies, Castle Building Centres, Timbermart Buying Group, Brandt Materials Handling, and Prospectus Associates. All these organizations have agreed to donate their time and expertise to work on this project. In addition to having a stake in the outcome of the report, as all these partners are part of the same sector and face the same workforce development challenges, they bring the benefit of their own experiences and research to the table. Prospectus Associates are the one partner in the study not directly engaged in the BSS but have worked directly with the WRLA on the advocacy front and bring a wealth of knowledge in communications that will be extremely valuable to making this project a success.

Before launching the survey that you are being invited to complete, the steering committee partnered with R.A. Malatest & Associates Ltd. (Malatest) to conduct extensive research into the existing literature and data about labour market trends, key issues, and current practices in place to identify existing human resource challenges in the building supply sector. Following that work, the firm began a series of direct interviews with employers and stakeholders in the sector, including representatives from the Steering Committee’s businesses, to arrive at an understanding of what data would be most valuable to them.

From there, Malatest, in tandem with the Steering Committee, was able to set priorities for the next phase of research, including a preliminary survey of 100 to 200 employers. This survey examines various issues, such as hiring needs, current skill gaps, effective (or ineffective) recruitment and retention strategies, and expectations for the sector going forward. As an important part of the phase, the Malatest also recruited for and moderated focus groups with groups of people typically underrepresented in the current workforce, including women, youth, mature workers, Indigenous peoples, immigrants/newcomers, and persons living with disabilities. These sessions, conducted remotely, included participants from both rural, urban, and suburban areas across Alberta to also determine if there were different issues in the labour market at a regional level in the province.

Informed by the results of these initial phases, the Steering Committee and the research firm came together to examine the preliminary data and use these findings to help create the general survey that we are sharing with our members.

Much of the work that been done to date has gone into finding the right questions, including, “Why do BSS workers leave the sector?” and “What are the current perceptions of the building supply sector as a potential career option?”

The survey is designed to be as short as possible, to demand the minimum amount of time investment from the respondents. By making it quick and easy to complete, we’re hoping to achieve at least 200 survey completions among our membership. It is anticipated the majority will come from Albertan BSS employees, though the survey will be open to all members. As such, WRLA members from every region in our organization can expect to hear a lot about the survey in the coming months until it closes at the end of October. At that point, Malatest will step back in and commence with analysis of the survey data and the creation of a final report. That final report will, we anticipate, form the basis of an incredibly useful picture of the labour market for the BSS. It will profile the current market, and clearly outline the skill gaps, and areas of opportunity to grow recruitment and retention. With a clear understanding of the challenges faced by the various segments of the industry, business owners, managers, human resources, and decision makers will have the basis for strategic planning that will meet their specific needs.

The final phase of the project is the sharing and discussion of the results. With oversight by the Steering Committee, the research company will prepare the final analysis report and make a plan to bring together interested members to review the final presentation of the results. In addition to talking about the report on the WRLA media channels, you’ll find further updates in future editions of Yardstick. Additionally, all members will receive a copy of the report along with an email explaining the value of the findings and recommendations on how best to implement these findings into tangible best practices and policies.

With all that in mind—and it’s a lot of information—we’d now like to pass these questions over to you, the members, as we officially begin pre-registration for the Labour Market Survey. The survey, and links to participate, will have a prominent place in most of our electronic communications from now until the end of October, so you will have many opportunities to get in, and help us build this important data tool that is sure to benefit everyone.

What does the future hold for the labour market in the building supplies sector? We’re about to find out, and with your help, the answer will be, “a stronger, more diverse, and more effective work force.”

Thank you all in advance for your participation in this study. It’s only by working together with our members that we’ll achieve great results and increased prosperity for everyone.

For further information, or if you would like to participate in the survey, please email Sheila Harper, Assistant Research Manager at Malatest, at s.harper@malatest.com or by telephone on 780-448-9042 ext. 224.

Labour Market Development Agreement

The Province of Alberta is working in partnership with the Government of Canada to provide employment support programs and services. Les gouvernements de l’Alberta et du Canada travaillent en partenariat et financent conjointement des programmes et des services d’aide à l’emploi.