From out-of-reach real estate prices to urban highways gorged with vehicles, it’s clear that Canada is outgrowing its infrastructure faster than we can update it. Forty-one million people now call Canada home, and there is a need to address challenges that have arisen as a result of a population that was increasing at its fastest rate in 65 years.

For anyone planning their next chapter, whether that’s a high school student choosing a post-grad path or a person looking for a new career, the need for infrastructure presents an opportunity to land a well-paying job and play a role in building the country for the next generation.

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s recent budget, dubbed Canada Strong, commits $51 billion over 10 years for local infrastructure projects including housing, roads, wastewater management and health facilities. It’s estimated Canada is on track to build 2.5 million new homes by 2035—and will need to build another 700,000 to meet its housing demand. Canada desperately needs a new wave of workers with certified, hands-on skills like carpentry, welding, plumbing or any of the other of the 300 professions the federal government has designated as a skilled trade. In Ontario, about one in eight job openings are forecast to be in skilled trades-related occupations by 2029.

It’s not just the push to build infrastructure that’s creating jobs: many workers are also aging out of the profession. Approximately 20 per cent of construction workers plan to retire over the next 10 years and that could translate to a shortage of 60,000 workers by 2032, according to BuildForce Canada, a market research firm that serves the construction industry. Meanwhile, job vacancies for certified tradespeople almost doubled between the third quarter of 2019 and the third quarter of 2023.

To Shaun Thorson, CEO of Skills/Compétences Canada, a non-profit that promotes careers in the trades and technologies, those numbers are alarming and........

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