Ottawa, ON — The Mechanical Contractors Association of Canada (MCAC) is trying to raise awareness on the importance of the mechanical contracting sector ahead of the April 28 federal election. The “Build Canada Now” campaign aims to raise industry awareness of how the sector can impact the growth of Canada’s economy and provides numerous calls to action to help support the sector.
The mechanical contracting sector employs more than 227,000 contractors, which contributes more than $30 billion to the Canadian economy and is responsible for $18 billion in wages across the Canadian workforce, reports MCAC on its website.
The campaign’s calls to action include supporting workers in the sector, improving the business environment for mechanical contractors, and providing tariff support.
MCAC is calling on the federal government to support and provide tools to attract, train, and retain talent by:
- Identifying and supporting individuals employed in the “growth-critical” Red Seal trades that work in the mechanical contracting sector.
- Ensure that federal immigration programs target the economic needs of the Canadian economy, specifically the “growth-critical” trades employed by mechanical contractors.
- Introducing a tax credit to help offset the higher cost of women-specific personal protective equipment (PPE).
To help improve the business environment for mechanical contractors, the MCAC is calling for the use of standard-form construction contracts, preference for Canadian contractors and suppliers, and collaboration with the Canadian Infrastructure Council.
Lastly, to help deal with the challenge of tariffs, the MCAC recommends that there should be a reprieve from Canadian countermeasures on construction-related materials/goods and support for businesses impacted by construction activity slowdowns as a result of tariffs and Canadian countermeasures.