A deal that will cost Manitobans dearly

Opinion

Premier Wab Kinew stood at a podium recently and proudly announced his government’s first major construction initiative: four new schools. But instead of celebrating good news for families and for the men and women who will build them. Manitobans should be alarmed.

Buried in the fanfare was a deal that hands monopoly control of these projects to a select group of building trades unions. This is not about better schools or stronger communities — it’s about rewarding political friends with a sweetheart deal that shuts out most of Manitoba’s construction industry.

Premier Kinew has given union leaders exactly what they wanted: guaranteed work and a stranglehold over projects funded by taxpayers. He is favouring 8,000 traditional building trades union workers and shutting out more than 80 per cent of the workers who work for open shop companies and progressive union workers.

The unfair and discriminatory treatment of the vast majority of construction workers in Manitoba who will be denied opportunities to work on government funded infrastructure is shocking. And Manitobans will bear the cost of this backroom deal. When governments restrict competition, taxpayers always pay more and get less.

Manitoba is not the first province to go down this path. In 2018, the B.C. NDP government brought in a similar scheme calling it “Community Benefits Agreements.” They promised local hiring, more training, and that taxpayers would get better value. Instead, they got more red tape on every project tendered under this model, costs exploded, projects were delayed, and people were denied opportunity. Open shop contractors were shut out.

On one B.C. bridge replacement, the government’s own cost estimate included a line for the “Premium for CBA”, coming in at $6.6 million on a $106-million project. That was the third-largest cost on the entire job, behind only steel and excavation. It wasn’t going into concrete, training or safety — it was a political payoff.

On another project, an Indigenous-owned contracting company was denied work on a hospital build on the territory where the owner grew up and started his business, because his company was not certified by a building trades union. So much for creating opportunities for “equity seeking groups.”

B.C.’s experience has shown CBAs can inflate project costs by as much as 30 per cent. The result: taxpayers shell out more while getting fewer bridges, schools, and hospitals built.

Manitoba should heed that cautionary tale. This also reflects past agreements like the Red River Floodway where many were denied work on projects unless they belonged to a Building Trade Union. Supporters of the Manitoba Jobs Agreement want you to believe non-union contractors don’t pay fair wages, don’t follow safety rules, don’t hire apprentices, and don’t train their people. That is simply false. Manitoba already has a Construction Industry Wages Act that sets wage rates. Workplace safety is enforced by law for every employer including the Open Shop contractors that represent the majority of the province’s tradespeople. Merit and their members invest heavily in training and apprenticeships because they know their businesses depend on it.

The truth is straightforward: Manitoba’s construction industry has thousands of highly skilled workers who are diverse, safety-driven, and committed to building the best for Manitoba.

When governments tender projects everyone should get a fair shot at the work, no matter the company they work for, or how the workforce is organized. No special deals, no special favours, just an open invitation to bid in a fair, transparent and competitive process. Taxpayers should get the best possible value, and every qualified contractor — union and open shop — should be able to bid and win based on merit. Any less sets a dangerous precedent, is tainted by favours for insiders, is unfair and costs taxpayers more.

Manitoba’s new agreement will limit competition, discourage innovation, and drive up costs. It discriminates against workers who simply want the freedom to choose where they work and whether to join a union. It punishes Indigenous businesses (most of which are not unionized), progressive unions, and family-owned companies that have built this province’s schools, roads, and hospitals for decades.

We urge Premier Kinew to step back and not repeat the same costly mistake made by B.C. Open tendering is not just fairer — it delivers better outcomes for taxpayers. It ensures every qualified company has a fair shot at the work their own tax dollars help make possible.

Manitobans deserve more from their government. Accountability, fairness, and value for their hard-earned tax dollars.

Yvette Milner is the president of the Merit Contractors Association of Manitoba. Chris Gardner is president and CEO of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association in B.C.