Alberta's economic diversification plan wins praise from trades industry

Alberta's new economic diversification plancould provide much-needed apprenticeship opportunities for the province'stradespeople, according to one organization thatrepresents75,000 construction, maintenance and fabrication workers.

WalterFraleigh, executive director of the Building Trades of Alberta,believes the government will jumpstartemployment and training opportunities forconstruction workers with its $500-million royalty credit program for new petrochemical plants.

• Alberta announces $500M royalty credit program to build petrochemical plants
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"This announcement by thegovernmenttoday, it's good timing. It's the right announcement at theright timefor us," he said.

The government saidthe program has the potential to seetwo or three new facilities built in Alberta, with shovels in the ground as early as the end of this year.

Future of skilled trades uncertain

Fraleighsaid tradespeople from across the country havetraditionallycome to Alberta to find jobs, butwith the economic downturn, many have returned home tootherprovinces.

• Alberta to lose 31,000 construction jobs, saysBuildForceCanada labour forecast
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"It's probably one of my most difficult challenges that I think we see in regards to our industry, is how we're going to keep the current cohort of apprentices that we've been cultivating over the last couple years and ensure that they've got jobs so that they can finish their apprenticeshipsand be the skilled trades people that we need going forward," he said.

"We had a big gap in the '80s when we lost our economy back then, and we certainly wouldn't want to see a repeat of that," he said.

"This cyclical, volatile price of oil has always given us grief, no matter what," he said.

"I think this is one of those times where we see that there's certainly an aging demographic in our workforce, and we need to be prepared for when the price of oil will recover, eventually. We'll be back in the thick of things."

A political move, says economist

University of Calgary economics professor Trevor Tombe, however,was critical of the new plan's ability to bringwidespread benefits.

Hesaid the government could have done more to encourage investment by reducingthe deficit or by altering its fiscal policy.

"A lot of research shows that lower income taxes, and lower corporate income taxes in particular, does have a very positive effect on investment in a province. They could've done that," Tombe said.

"The benefits would have been more widely dispersed across the economy, not as visible, and so perhaps not as politically sellable, but far better."