Stabilizing Interest Rates Fuel Industry Optimism, But Gender Gaps and Talent Shortages Persist, Impact Recruitment’s 2024/25 Salary Guide Reveals

October 21, 2024

Impact Recruitment’s latest salary guide highlights significant trends shaping the construction and trades sectors in 2024, leading into 2025. With rising interest rates finally stabilizing, companies are resuming previously shelved builds, including some major infrastructure projects, and finding and securing skilled talent remains top priority.

In the construction and development sectors, mid-level and senior roles are seeing notable salary growth, while compensation for junior positions has remained mostly unchanged, with slight declines in some cases. In the trades, civil roles have demonstrated the most substantial salary increases, with Senior Civil Estimators seeing up to a 20% rise in compensation compared to last year. Despite this, many junior-level positions have experienced minimal growth, and in some cases, even declines, particularly in the electrical sector, where junior estimator salaries have dropped by 3%.

With stabilizing interest rates and growing optimism around key infrastructure projects, organizations in the construction and trades sectors are poised for growth. However, companies will need to act fast to secure the best talent, particularly in the face of an ongoing skilled labor shortage. Candidates and employers alike are encouraged to remain flexible, leveraging both salary and non-monetary benefits to attract and retain top-tier talent.

The report also highlights the persistence of traditionally male-dominated cultures in the sector, particularly in the skilled trades. The attitude of those in the industry is shifting in the right direction, with some companies proactively bringing in HR directors to improve diversity and workplace culture, but ongoing effort will be necessary to fully support women in the trades and achieve true gender parity in the sector.

About the 2024/25 Salary Guide

This guide was created to serve as a practical resource for employers as well as development, construction management and trade contractor professionals in the BC and Toronto markets.

The salary information displayed is based on a wide variety of placements made by Impact’s building team over a twelve-month period.

This team’s vast knowledge of the local market allows them to share up-to-date information on trends and compensation for development, construction management and trade contractor professionals.

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