OTTAWA — The federal government is poised to spend millions to bolster Canada’s skilled trades in the wake of turmoil sparked by American trade disruptions.
In a statement Monday, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu announced a slate of new measures expected to appear in next month’s federal budget — including millions to boost apprenticeships, tax credits for some workers, and restricting non-compete clauses in employment contracts for federally regulated businesses.
“We are building the future together by protecting our communities, empowering our families and investing in Canada,” Hajdu said.
“ We’re standing up for Canada’s future and for the workers who are building it every day.”
Expansions for training and credential recognition
Budget 2025, which the government will table Nov. 4, will include expansions of the Union Training and Innovation program , which supports both training for apprentices and partnerships with red seal trades across the country.
Currently, the program provides $25 million to invest in equipment training and apprenticeship innovations.
The budget will also introduce a tax credit for personal support workers — a temporary measure to allow PSWs to claim refundable tax credits worth 5% of eligible earnings, up to $1,100 annually.
As well, the budget will set aside $97 million over five years to work with province and territories to improve fairness on recognizing credentials for foreign-trained professionals, specifically for in-demand fields like construction and health care.
After Prime Minister Mark Carney met with opposition leaders last week to discuss the budget, the Tories called on Carney to walk back promises of a bitter austerity budget in favour of one that makes life more affordable for Canadians, including young Canadians .
Province demand more control over immigration, credentials
Getting duly-qualified foreign professionals to work in high turnover, high-demand professions is something many were asking for, including many premiers — but experts agree that such a drastic change of culture needs to start at the federal level.
During their July meeting in Huntsville, premiers called on Ottawa to boost economic immigration levels to fill these labour gaps, threatening to use constitutional powers to bolster their ability to issue work permits and exercise more oversight on immigration — much like how Quebec has special permissions to control immigration into the province.
Over the summer, Saskatchewan Immigration Minister Jim Reiter told the Canadian Press that he and the other subnational immigration ministers have told Ottawa they want to be seen more as partners in immigration, not stakeholders.
“We need more influence in the decision-making of this because so much of the economic stream needs to be targeted depending on the specific needs of each province,” Reiter told CP.
The government’s reskilling program to support impacted tradespersons include $50 million over five years to launch new digital job search tools and launch national online training platforms, $570 million over three years to support provincial training and support programs, $370 million over five years to add temporary “flexibilities” for EI claims, and $3.6 billion over three years to enhance EI supports for impacted workers.
