News Releases

July 13, 2021 OUR HEARTS go out to the workers, their families and all the people of Kelowna whose lives have been forever impacted by the tragic crane collapse at a construction site on Monday. Every worker has the right and the expectation to return home to their...

July 9, 2021 WHERE OUR MEMBERS ARE WORKING Site C The construction of Site C has reached the halfway mark, with work continuing on the powerhouse construction, building up of cofferdams, excavation, drainage features, and other aspects such as highway realignment....

June 30, 2021 SINCE A PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY was declared five years ago, the construction industry has been hit hard by the opioid crisis, which has claimed 7,000 lives. Five years after B.C.’s opioid overdose epidemic was declared a public health emergency, there...

June 28, 2021 Occupational health and safety regulations require flush toilets, but the rules are not enforced PHIL VENOIT HAS BEEN TALKING about the sorry state of portable toilets on construction sites for at least 20 years. And he has the documentation to prove it,...

June 16, 2021 CONSTRUCTION WORKERS are being urged to roll up their sleeves and get vaccinated for COVID-19 as soon as possible. The BC Building Trades supports the Faster, Together campaign, which is promoting acceptance of the COVID-19 vaccine in order to help speed...

June 7, 2021 PANDEMIC? WHAT PANDEMIC? COVID-19 hasn’t stopped the women’s committee of the BC Building Trades from continuing its good work. Build TogetHER awarded two $1,000 scholarships in January, thanks to the generosity of the BC Regional Council of Carpenters....

June 7, 2021 THOSE RESPONSIBLE FOR the death of 24-year-old rock scaler Sam Fitzpatrick should pay with the one thing they took from him: time. And that could happen – maybe soon. “These charges are unprecedented insofar as they are criminally charging a big company...

May 27, 2021 IT'S THE RIGHT thing to do. Period. On the eve of global Menstrual Hygiene Day May 28, BC Infrastructure Benefits (BCIB) announces it will provide free menstrual products to its employees, removing a barrier for people on some of the biggest construction...

May 25, 2021 WANTED: TALENTED TRADESPEOPLE who enjoy fair wages, appreciate great benefits and want to work for reputable contractors. That’s the message from a number of B.C. construction unions as they ramp up for both small and large upcoming projects. “We are...

May 17, 2021 WHEN THE BC LIBERALS DEFEATED THE NDP in May 2001, everyone expected changes to apprenticeship training. But few expected the degree of devastation that followed. The Industry Training and Apprenticeship Commission (ITAC) was dissolved in 2003 and...