Evolution of the Trades
The world of work is rapidly changing, and that includes the construction industry. Gone are the days of wearing shorts and sneakers on site or nailing your buddy’s lunch to a board. Today, the industry’s focus is safety, production, and professionalism
We often think of massive workplace shifts taking place in the technology sector, but if you could step back onto a construction job site even just 20 years ago, you might be surprised to see how different it was from today.
I spoke with two members and one representative who have worked in the industry for decades and have seen seismic shifts in technology, tools, safety standards, and work-site culture and attitudes. Most of these shifts have been positive and have led to increased safety, productivity, and professionalism. Yet, as with all changes, some things have been lost that perhaps we would do well to reclaim.
Gary Star
Labourer, equipment operator, equipment hauler - 1987 to 2012
CLAC representative - 2012 to present
“In 1987, I had graduated from a social work program in college. But starting wages were so low. I wanted to earn more. My sister knew someone who worked in construction, and the next thing I knew, I was a general labourer.”
Manley Cox
Locals 63, 151, 68
Kiewit Energy Construction Co. ULC
Foreman, chief steward - 1991 to present
“I got started in construction 30 years ago, and 14 years ago, I joined Kiewit. I’ve been all over with them—northern BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, everywhere.”
Brad Mead
Local 53
Pro Electric Inc.
Plumber - 1981 to present
“I started my apprenticeship in 1981, right out of high school, at a small company. I apprenticed for five years and was licensed in 1986. I started working for Pro Electric in 2004.”
How has the construction sector changed since you started?
Gary
When I first started, people rarely worked in the winter. It was too hard on the equipment, and so you almost always had winters off. It was part of the culture.
Because of the advancement of equipment and concrete additives, they can work all year-round now. That can be a plus or a negative, as most guys enjoyed having winters off.
The amount of manual labour has also changed. In the mid-’80s, they started using more equipment—backhoes and excavators and conveyors on gravel spreaders. You don’t need to fill a wheelbarrow with a shovel and wheel it to where it needs to be—the machines do it.
You also have a lot more precast. Walls used to be built by brick and block layers. But the concrete panels we use now eliminate that work. They also use precast concrete slabs for the floors. Instead of pouring the concrete and waiting for it to cure, you can go a lot faster. Projects that took two years now take nine months.
Even things like having heated washrooms with running water on site—those never used to exist. Now, there is such a demand for them that there’s a shortage.
Manley
The technology is super advanced, especially in terms of concrete. We can do things in half the time that we used to. We can even pour when it’s -30°C—we never used to be able to do that.
We also do things like switch out the hoses on machines to double-braided stainless so they don’t crack. We can keep working even when it’s -50°C.
At Kiewit, we have an app that tells us exactly who is qualified to operate what. We also have GPS codes on all our equipment—even the hand tools—so we can figure out exactly where everything is on a project. It saves a lot of time finding stuff. We even sign out our personal protective equipment (PPE) by scanning a sticker.
The PPE is more efficient. The colours are brighter and you can see people miles away.
And footwear is so much better. We have lightweight boots good for -50°C and proper rain gear. We have a glove matrix for our project so we know which type of gloves we should wear for which tasks.
Even the job-site lighting is so much better. No more bulky halogen lighting powered by diesel generators. We’ve got solar-powered LEDs.
But the biggest change in the last five year’s I’d say is mental health awareness. In the past, we used to shun it, push it aside, and pretend it didn’t happen. The reality is, it is happening. And COVID hasn’t helped.
I’ve referred a lot of people to the EFAP program with CLAC. I’ve also helped people get the help they need to conquer substance use. Programs that cost thousands are fully covered through CLAC.
Brad
The tools themselves and the technology, definitely. New products are coming out every day. Pro Electric is constantly buying new stuff to help us do our jobs more efficiently and safely. When we started, you used a screwdriver and maybe a drill. Now, we have impacts and all sorts of tools.
I find that because things have gotten faster, timelines are compressed. Back in the day, you would go to work, do your hours, and there wasn’t a lot of stress. Now, it’s all about timelines, production, and output in a day. My stress level is definitely elevated. Just when I think I’m getting a bit of breathing room, I get another job on my phone.
The constant communication is something I’ve had to adapt to. Getting jobs, quotes, and job details on my phone or iPad is definitely a big change from just writing it down on a scrap of paper or drywall and away you go.
What was the safety culture like back when you started versus today?
Gary
Back then you were told don’t fall. Don’t get in an accident. Do your best and be fast.
Now, it’s completely reversed. Not only is everyone trained, but they have safety officers making sure that things are safe. Every week—or in some places every day—there are toolbox talks at the beginning of a shift to remind people to be safe.
Manley
Kiewit is number one in North America, bar none. We have a really good program. Some companies are all talk, but we have protocols and programs and plans in place, and we follow them.
Brad
Back in the day, I didn’t even have a hard hat in my vehicle—rarely wore one. Now, it’s a requirement. Pro Electric is very much aware about safety and provides us with all the tools we need.
The emphasis on safety is something that has changed, because public emphasis on safety has increased, so it funnels down to the job sites. Pro is constantly training us through CLAC Training and monitoring if we need anything that needs to be renewed, so we are always current.
Everyone wears long pants and safety boots now. But in the past, people would show up in shorts and sneakers.
How has the makeup of the workforce changed?
Gary
The first time I saw a female carpenter was in the early ’90s. I’d never seen women in the trades before. They are still not as prevalent as we’d like them to be, but there are more women working in construction today.
Most of the workers were also from eastern and western Europe. But now we have new immigrants from all over the world on sites, so it’s a lot more diverse.
Manley
The workforce is aging. We are in dire need of tradespeople, and we just don’t have them. We need to be talking to people in grade 10 already to encourage them to join the trades.
We also need to take our older workers and have them act as mentors to the younger generation.
How has the work-site culture changed?
Gary
There used to be a lot more fun and games on job sites—people clowning around to take the edge off the hard work. You don’t see that anymore. People aren’t nailing lunch bags to the board you’re sitting on. It’s a lot more serious. Part of it is because there is a lot more emphasis on keeping the client happy, and clients don’t like clowning around.
There are also terms and things said that of course aren’t acceptable anymore. Though it can still be rough for new people coming into the trades, people are more careful about what they say and how they act. There’s not as much yelling and screaming and derogatory terms, so that’s gotten better.
Manley
When people buy into the group, the morale can be amazing because everyone is helping each other. Your brother’s your brother and your sister’s your sister, and we all take care of each other. The key is good leadership.
Brad
In the past, there was no organization. No computers. The information wasn’t there. All you got was a drawing, but those weren’t as detailed as they are now.
We have a lot more job meetings and conversations. People share ideas and concerns, and we talk about what we’re doing down the road. It’s cooperative because of more communication.
What makes CLAC different than other unions?
Gary
With CLAC, wherever a company finds work, the members can work. There are no restricted board areas. With other unions, if there’s no work in Hamilton, but there is in Oakville, they have to ask permission from that local if they can work there, and they are at the bottom of the list.
We also don’t charge dues to members who aren’t working, unlike other unions.
And if a member of one of those unions is laid off and finds work on his or her own with a nonunion company, they get blacklisted and fined. They aren’t allowed to find work on their own, so they are prevented from putting food on their table. We try to find laid-off members work with a CLAC contractor, but if they end up going somewhere else, that’s fine too.
We’re also wall-to-wall, so you can grow in your career and change roles. I came to CLAC as a general labourer, not knowing how to rake stone, and I finished at the first company knowing how to operate rubber tire backhoes and excavators. My second employer paid for my A license, and I became their float driver and machine operator. With the other single-trade unions, a labourer can only do labourer work. A carpenter can only do carpenter work. And God forbid if a labourer puts on a tool pouch, making him look like a carpenter, or a carpenter uses a pick and a shovel.
Manley
I’ll go against any union out there to show and prove to them why we’re better. I’m not saying we’re done growing—we’ve just started. But I’ll go toe-to-toe with anybody. Other unions make you sit in the hall. How is that fair to the individual trying to feed a family?
CLAC’s motto is we’re better together. There’s no I in team. What CLAC’s been doing over the past five years has been amazing—the training courses, how they work with their people, RSPs and pensions—we’re number one.
Brad
I’ve been involved in the union for eight or ten years. I was on the bargaining committee, and it went really well. CLAC’s approach, and Pro’s approach, is that they work together. Things aren’t delivered in a negative, aggressive way. Some of these hardcore trade union boys are verbally abusive to CLAC members on site, but we just ignore them for the most part. Sometimes, I say, “I’m not laid off—but you just got your layoff notices.”
What keeps you in this industry?
Manley
I thoroughly enjoy what I do. I like to be challenged. I like variety, and there’s lots of change every day.
I wear different hats. I’m a foreman. I’m just a regular worker on the ground. I also look after members as a steward. The more hats I wear, the better I feel.
I like to think that the more pressure I’m under, the better I handle it. I’m not afraid to make decisions. I’m not saying they’re all going to be right, but I hope most of them are.
You need to learn from the ones you make mistakes on—you won’t be walking around long if you don’t.
Brad
I enjoy my work environment. My employer has trust in me. They give me jobs, we run through the expectations and what the client wants, and I run with it at that point.
I have a safe, clean work site. I don’t like working on crappy toilets or stinky urinals—I’d rather do new installs, which is what I get to do.
And the rate of pay is very good, plus we have a benefits package and pension. That’s huge. I tell my kids get a pension, because the government isn’t going to take care of you.
Gary, what made you shift from working on the tools to working as a construction representative?
Gary
I was 50 and I liked what I was doing, but there was a shift in management and I was looking to move on. I had volunteered for the Local 6 board for 15 years and on the National Board for 4 years, so I asked a rep if he thought I could do this kind of work. He said yes. I thought I should make the change now, because if I waited until I was much older, it would be harder to make a shift.
What makes your new role rewarding, and what do you miss about being on the tools?
Gary
Well, during the past two years of COVID, I really wanted to go back to the tools. I missed operating equipment and the hands-on work. Because of the pandemic, I wasn’t able to visit our members for long stretches, and that was really hard on me.
The part of my work that is rewarding is welcoming new members and new hires and explaining how things work and the services we have. It’s also rewarding when I can help people dealing with substance use through CLAC programs. It’s incredibly rewarding when they can overcome things that have been controlling them for so long, and they are now living in victory over them.
What would you like to see change in the industry?
Manley
We need to start talking to kids in high school to get them into the trades. Bring the kids from grade 10 out to a workplace and let them try different things to see what they like and what they are good at. We’ve got to set our people up for more success.
Brad
I find our days are sometimes stressful, and we aren’t always given enough time to do things. If they would extend the construction schedule by two weeks, that would help all of us, but that’s two more weeks that they need to pay their workers and management, two more weeks that they can’t have tenants, so I don’t think it will ever happen.
What would you say to encourage a young person to enter the trades?
Brad
Find a company where you have someone who can help steer you as to who you should be seeing and what questions you should be asking. And be motivated. Nothing worse than being late on site. And make sure you listen. As long as it’s safe, go ahead and do it.
Deadly Job
Safety in the construction industry has come a long way, even in the space of the last few decades. It’s rare for there to be a large number of catastrophic injuries and deaths on one job site today. But during the construction of the World Trade Centre in 1973, 60 workers were killed (or 17 per 1,000 workers). This was a surprisingly large number for such a modern project.