Beyond the staggering numbers that build British Columbia, from its $28.5 billion in annual investment to the 275,000 workers projected to power its future, lies a dynamic human story of growth, challenge, and transformation shaping every corner of the province.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, British Columbia's construction industry employed 248,700 workers, representing 9.2% of total provincial employment
- The average hourly wage for construction workers in BC was $32.47 in 2022, up 5.8% from 2021
- Women accounted for 12.4% of the construction workforce in BC in 2021, with 28,500 female workers
- BC construction GDP contribution was $17.4 billion in 2022, or 7.8% of provincial GDP
- Construction investment in BC reached $28.5 billion in 2022, up 12.3% from 2021
- Residential construction accounted for 48% of BC's construction GDP in 2022, totaling $8.35 billion
- Total value of construction put-in-place in BC was $25.6 billion in 2022
- Residential construction starts in BC totaled 45,200 units in 2022
- Multi-family housing starts in BC reached 32,100 units in 2022, up 10% YoY
- BC experienced 4.2 serious injuries per 100 full-time workers in construction in 2022
- There were 28 fatal injuries in BC construction in 2022, rate of 11.3 per 100,000 workers
- Time-loss claims frequency rate was 2.1 per 100 workers in BC construction 2022
- Securing the future workforce, BC construction labour demand projected to grow 12% to 275,000 by 2032
- Housing starts forecast: 38,000 units annually average 2023-2032 in BC
- Non-residential construction growth: 2.5% annually projected to 2030 in BC
British Columbia's construction industry is robust, growing, and hiring diverse workers across many skilled trades.
Construction Projects and Volumes
- Total value of construction put-in-place in BC was $25.6 billion in 2022
- Residential construction starts in BC totaled 45,200 units in 2022
- Multi-family housing starts in BC reached 32,100 units in 2022, up 10% YoY
- Single-detached home starts in BC were 13,100 units in 2022
- Metro Vancouver saw 28,400 housing starts in 2022
- Victoria CMA had 4,200 residential starts in 2022
- Kelowna had 2,800 housing starts in 2022
- Non-residential building starts valued $8.7 billion in BC 2022
- Road and highway construction contracts awarded: $2.4 billion in BC 2022
- Transit infrastructure projects under construction: 12 major ones valued at $15 billion in BC 2022
- Hospital construction spending: $1.8 billion in BC 2022
- School construction projects: 45 new builds/renos totaling $900 million in BC 2022-23
- Industrial building permits: $4.1 billion in BC 2022
- Commercial office construction: 1.2 million sqm under construction in BC 2022
- Retail construction starts: $1.3 billion value in BC 2022
- Port expansion projects: $3.2 billion invested in BC ports 2022
- LNG Canada project construction progress: 85% complete by end-2022, value $36 billion total
- Site C Dam construction: 92% complete in 2022, total cost $12.1 billion
- Coastal GasLink pipeline: 75% complete in 2022, 670km laid
- Vancouver Broadway Subway: tunneling 60% done in 2022, $2.8 billion project
- Surrey Langley SkyTrain: trackwork advanced to 40% in 2022, $1.95 billion
- Pattullo Bridge replacement: 95% complete in 2022, opened early 2024, $800 million
- Massey Tunnel replacement planning advanced, $4.15 billion budgeted 2022
- Affordable housing units under construction: 12,500 in BC 2022-23
- Renovation spending in residential sector: $4.2 billion in BC 2022
- Engineering construction put-in-place: $6.8 billion in BC 2022
Construction Projects and Volumes Interpretation
British Columbia spent 2022 furiously building everything from apartments to pipelines at a whopping $25.6 billion pace, proving we're in a construction sprint so epic it makes our housing shortage look like a mere side quest.
Economic Contribution
- BC construction GDP contribution was $17.4 billion in 2022, or 7.8% of provincial GDP
- Construction investment in BC reached $28.5 billion in 2022, up 12.3% from 2021
- Residential construction accounted for 48% of BC's construction GDP in 2022, totaling $8.35 billion
- Non-residential construction GDP in BC was $6.2 billion in 2022
- Engineering construction contributed $2.85 billion to BC GDP in 2022
- The multiplier effect of BC construction spending generated $42.1 billion in total economic output in 2022
- Construction firms in BC generated $45.2 billion in revenue in 2021
- Average profit margin for BC construction companies was 4.7% in 2022
- Exports from BC construction-related manufacturing totaled $1.2 billion in 2022
- Tax revenues from BC construction industry reached $3.8 billion in provincial and federal taxes in 2022
- BC construction sector supported 1 in 8 jobs province-wide in 2022
- Capital expenditures by BC construction firms were $2.1 billion in 2022
- Residential building permits in BC valued $15.7 billion in 2022
- Institutional construction spending in BC was $4.3 billion in 2022
- Industrial construction investment in BC totaled $3.9 billion in 2022
- BC construction industry paid $8.9 billion in wages and salaries in 2022
- The sector's labour income multiplier was 2.4 in BC for 2022
- Construction represented 13.2% of BC's business counts in 2022, with 28,400 firms
- Average firm size in BC construction was 8.8 employees per firm in 2022
- Small firms (<20 employees) made up 85% of BC construction businesses in 2022
- BC construction R&D spending was $450 million in 2022
- Sector's share of provincial merchandise trade was 2.1% in 2022
- Construction bankruptcies in BC fell 15% to 320 in 2022
- BC construction GDP per worker was $69,900 in 2022
- Total assets of BC construction firms were $32.4 billion in 2021
- Residential construction permits averaged $1.31 billion monthly in BC 2022
- Value of building permits in Greater Vancouver was $9.2 billion in 2022
- BC's construction sector contributed $1.5 billion to merchandise exports in 2022
- Non-residential permits valued $12.8 billion province-wide in 2022
Economic Contribution Interpretation
British Columbia’s construction industry is the province's not-so-silent backbone, accounting for nearly one in eight jobs and quietly proving that while it may seem like we're always just waiting in traffic, we're actually building—and banking—the place we're stuck in.
Employment and Labour
- In 2022, British Columbia's construction industry employed 248,700 workers, representing 9.2% of total provincial employment
- The average hourly wage for construction workers in BC was $32.47 in 2022, up 5.8% from 2021
- Women accounted for 12.4% of the construction workforce in BC in 2021, with 28,500 female workers
- Indigenous workers made up 5.1% of BC's construction employees in 2022, totaling approximately 12,700 individuals
- There were 14,200 construction apprentices in BC as of 2023, comprising 5.7% of the total workforce
- Youth aged 15-24 represented 18.3% of new hires in BC construction in 2022
- The construction sector in BC experienced a 4.2% employment growth from 2021 to 2022, adding 10,100 jobs
- Self-employed construction workers in BC numbered 45,600 in 2022, or 18.3% of the sector's workforce
- Unionized workers constituted 32.1% of BC construction employees in 2021
- Immigrants comprised 28.7% of the BC construction labour force in 2021
- BC construction unemployment rate was 6.8% in Q4 2022, below the national average of 7.2%
- There were 7,900 job vacancies in BC construction in November 2022, a vacancy rate of 3.2%
- Construction managers in BC earned a median annual salary of $98,500 in 2022
- Carpenters in BC had an average hourly wage of $31.85 in 2022
- Electrical trades workers in BC construction numbered 22,400 in 2022
- Labourers and helpers made up 15.6% of BC construction workforce, or 38,800 workers in 2022
- The construction industry in BC had 1,200 new business establishments in 2022
- Full-time construction employment in BC averaged 235,400 hours per worker annually in 2022
- Older workers aged 55+ represented 24.7% of BC construction workforce in 2021
- BC construction sector had a net employment increase of 9,500 from pandemic lows by mid-2022
- Heavy equipment operators in BC construction totaled 12,100 in 2023
- Plumbers and pipefitters numbered 9,800 in BC construction in 2022
- Construction estimators and project officers: 8,200 employed in BC 2022
- Bricklayers, tilesetters: 4,500 workers in BC construction 2022
- Painters and decorators: 11,300 in BC construction workforce 2022
- Roofers and shinglers: 3,200 employed in BC 2022
- Insulators: 2,100 in BC construction 2022
- Sheet metal workers: 4,900 in BC 2022 construction
- Welders: 15,700 in BC construction industry 2022
- Ironworkers: 3,800 employed in BC construction 2022
Employment and Labour Interpretation
While building nearly a tenth of BC's economy on its shoulders, the industry showcases a promising but still exclusive scaffold of opportunity, paying decently and adding jobs at a healthy clip, yet stubbornly propped up by men and still not quite finished with the essential renovations needed to build a workforce as diverse as the projects it constructs.
Industry Trends and Outlook
- Securing the future workforce, BC construction labour demand projected to grow 12% to 275,000 by 2032
- Housing starts forecast: 38,000 units annually average 2023-2032 in BC
- Non-residential construction growth: 2.5% annually projected to 2030 in BC
- Infrastructure spending to average $10 billion yearly in BC 2023-32
- Skilled trades shortage: 25,000 workers needed by 2030 in BC construction
- Modular construction share to rise from 5% to 15% by 2030 in BC
- Green building certifications: 20% increase annually projected for BC to 2030
- Digital tech adoption: 45% of BC firms by 2025, BIM usage up 30%
- Prefab and offsite construction market to grow 8% CAGR to $2B by 2028 in BC
- Electrification projects: $5B in EV charging and grid upgrades by 2030 BC
- Net-zero buildings: 10% of new construction by 2032 target in BC
- Labour productivity growth forecast: 1.8% annually to 2032 in BC construction
- Immigration to fill 40% of new construction jobs in BC by 2030
- Retirements to create 85,000 openings in BC construction 2023-32
- Women in trades to double to 25,000 by 2030 in BC
- Indigenous participation target: 10% of workforce by 2030 in BC construction
- Cost inflation for materials: 4-6% annually projected 2023-25 in BC
- Residential investment growth: 3.1% CAGR to 2032 in BC
- Engineering construction outlook: +15% growth by 2027 driven by energy in BC
- Automation robotics market in BC construction: $500M by 2030
- Climate-resilient infrastructure spend: $20B additional by 2050 in BC
- 3D printing in construction pilots: 50 projects by 2025 in BC
- Supply chain disruptions to ease, delays down 20% by 2024 in BC
- Affordable housing pipeline: 100,000 units by 2030 in BC
Industry Trends and Outlook Interpretation
British Columbia's construction industry is heroically trying to build a green, high-tech future while simultaneously solving a housing crisis, chasing runaway costs, and desperately trying to replace nearly half its workforce before they retire.
Safety and Health
- BC experienced 4.2 serious injuries per 100 full-time workers in construction in 2022
- There were 28 fatal injuries in BC construction in 2022, rate of 11.3 per 100,000 workers
- Time-loss claims frequency rate was 2.1 per 100 workers in BC construction 2022
- Total accepted claims in construction: 12,400 in 2022, costing $285 million in assessments
- Musculoskeletal injuries accounted for 38% of construction claims in BC 2022
- Falls from heights caused 22% of serious injuries in BC construction 2022
- 1,850 hearing loss claims from construction noise in BC over past 5 years to 2022
- Asbestos exposure claims: 450 in construction sector BC 2022
- Safety training hours logged: 2.1 million by WorkSafeBC in construction 2022
- Compliance blitzes resulted in 1,200 orders to construction sites in BC 2022
- Crane-related incidents: 15 reported in BC construction 2022
- Trenching collapses: 8 incidents causing injuries in BC construction 2022
- Electrical incidents: 320 claims in construction BC 2022
- Heat-related claims rose 25% to 180 in BC construction summer 2022
- Mental health claims in construction: up 15% to 650 in BC 2022
- Safety violation fines totaled $4.2 million in BC construction 2022
- COR certified firms: 2,800 in BC construction representing 65% of workforce 2022
- Near-miss reporting: 45,000 incidents logged in BC construction 2022
- Silica exposure prevention inspections: 900 sites in BC construction 2022
- Ladder safety violations: top issue in 1,200 inspections BC construction 2022
- Fatigue management training reached 15,000 workers in BC construction 2022
- Lockout/tagout incidents: 210 claims in BC construction 2022
- Traffic control violations on sites: 750 orders in BC 2022
- Respiratory protection non-compliance: 420 cases in BC construction 2022
- Emergency preparedness plans reviewed for 2,500 sites in BC construction 2022
- Pandemic-related safety audits: 5,200 on BC construction sites in 2022
Safety and Health Interpretation
Despite millions of hours of safety training and thousands of inspections, British Columbia's construction industry remains a perilous workplace, where the persistent, grim math of injury and fatality proves that vigilance must continually outpace complacency.
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