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Research

From Newcomers to Game Changers: Immigrant Skill Utilization in the Construction Sector

Statistics Canada reports that since 2016, the Canadian construction sector’s ability to fill vacant positions has deteriorated faster than that of other sectors. In 2025, more construction businesses also cited labour shortages as their primary barrier to growth than businesses in any other sector. Without action, Canada will be short 85,500 construction workers by 2033, forecasts from BuildForce Canada show.

Drawing on Labour Force Survey data from 2022 to 2024, we examined how well immigrants’ skills are utilized in Canada’s construction sector. We also spoke with five construction employers and 20 employment and settlement service providers to learn about the workforce integration barriers that immigrants face and how to address them.

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Key insights

Skill underutilization—being overeducated for one’s job, working in temporary or involuntary part-time roles, or being unemployed—affects immigrants and Canadian-born citizens in construction differently. Involuntary part-time work is the most pronounced form of underutilization for both groups, but immigrants experience this at 1.8 times the rate of Canadian-born citizens.

Overeducation—having more education than needed for a job—is the second most pronounced type of skill underutilization in construction. However, immigrants experience this challenge at 2.6 times the rate seen for Canadian-born citizens.

Language and communication skills are a common employment barrier for immigrant construction workers. Some employers are using language-matching strategies—pairing workers with shared language backgrounds and building crews from the same language communities—to hire immigrant workers while managing construction site safety risks.

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Have questions about our work? Do you need access to a report in English or French? Please contact communications@fsc-ccf.ca.