Bruce Power and Ontario Building Trades Council partner on strategy to build skilled workforce needed to power the future

Press Release

Apr 27, 2026

Bruce Power and the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario are forging a strategy to ensure the Bruce C New Nuclear Project is supported by a highly qualified skilled trades workforce that builds the talent pipeline for the future while powering Ontario’s economy today.

Building on a long-standing partnership, Bruce Power and the Building Trades Council have a strong history of working together to deliver major nuclear refurbishment and construction projects safely and successfully, while supporting apprenticeships, workforce development, and long-term careers in the skilled trades.

A unified approach through the Bruce C Skilled Trades Workforce Readiness Planning Strategy establishes a long-term partnership focused on strengthening apprenticeship, training, and labour planning to support safe and successful project delivery and long-term economic growth.

The Bruce C Project would represent one of the largest construction undertakings in Canadian history. Workforce requirements would overlap with major infrastructure, energy, and industrial projects across the province, placing pressure on training pipelines, apprenticeship systems, and regional labour markets.

“The Bruce C Project is a generational opportunity for Ontario to power its future and drive the economy,” said Pat Dalzell, Bruce Power Vice-President, Corporate Affairs and Market Development. “This strategy will help to make sure that we’re able to employ the right people with the right qualifications, at the right time, while supporting apprenticeships, training capacity, and good-paying jobs that power local communities and the provincial economy.”

The strategy includes three core elements:

• Joint governance through a steering committee co-chaired by Bruce Power and the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario, supported by project-level subcommittees that bring together contractors, training delivery partners, Indigenous partners, municipalities, and provincial ministries;

• A skilled trades demand/supply forecasting tool to provide shared visibility into workforce needs by trade, anticipate pressures early, and support timely decisions;

• A skilled trades availability mitigation plan that strengthens training capacity, addresses labour gaps, and supports worker mobility and community engagement.

With major infrastructure, energy, and industrial projects advancing across the province, partners will use the shared forecasting approach to reduce labour-market volatility, improve project certainty, and help ensure that more workers can build long-term careers in the skilled trades, both close to home and across Ontario.

“A project the size of Bruce C would provide good jobs for construction tradespeople, requiring a great deal of planning and collaboration,” said Marc Arsenault, Business Manager and Secretary-Treasurer, Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario. “We’re building for the future and making sure that Ontario has the skilled people needed to deliver complex projects safely, on time, and with lasting economic benefits.”

Over the next 12 months, the partners will finalize governance, develop the forecasting dashboard, and propose mitigation measures, including apprenticeship and training expansion, workforce housing and mobility supports, and continuous monitoring with rapid-response triggers to address emerging shortages.

About the Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario

The Provincial Building and Construction Trades Council of Ontario represents 150,000 skilled trades workers throughout the province belonging to 15 affiliated construction craft unions. The Council’s mission is to give all construction workers a voice in the workplace, to help ensure that workers are well-trained to meet industry needs, and to promote healthy and safe working conditions with fair wages, pensions, and benefits.

About Bruce Power

Bruce Power is an electricity company based in Bruce County, Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territory, Ontario. We are powered by our people. Our 4,200 employees are the foundation of our accomplishments and are proud of the role they play in safely delivering clean, reliable nuclear power to families and businesses across the province and cancer-fighting medical isotopes around the world. Bruce Power has worked hard to build strong roots in Ontario and is committed to protecting the environment and supporting the communities in which we live. Formed in 2001, Bruce Power is a Canadian-owned partnership of TC Energy, OMERS, the Power Workers’ Union and The Society of United Professionals. Learn more at www.brucepower.com and follow us on Facebook, X, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube.

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