More than one million workers in Canada were in skilled trades in 2007, with the vast majority of these workers being tradesmen (97% in 2007). A study by Statistics Canada showed that employment growth in skilled trades has been a steady 2.2 percent a year on average since the early 1990s. Skilled trades includes occupations such as plumbers, electricians, masons, carpenters, mechanics and crane operators where a license or certificate may be a required for work.

Average hourly earnings in 2007 were higher in the skilled trades ($22.36) than in other occupations ($21.02), reflecting in part the predominance of full-time jobs and the relatively high rate of unionisation. The highest earners were electricians ($25.26), crane operators ($24.61) and plumbers ($24.10).

Self-employment is a growing trend among the skilled trades. In 1987, 9 percent of those working in the trades were self-employed; by 2007, this had increased to 15 percent. Some trades experienced even higher growth rates, although their self-employment rates had not caught up to the non-trades.

Overall, 17 percent of workers in the trades were immigrants, lower than the 21 percent in the non-trades occupations combined. None of the trades had a higher proportion of immigrants than the non-trades. In 2007, 10 percent of plumbers were immigrants, the lowest proportion.

3 Nov 2008