Advocacy

On your behalf, CANS builds and maintains strong relationships with municipal, provincial and federal governments to ensure the construction industry’s voice is heard. By securing a seat at the table, we help shape the policies, regulations and decisions that affect your business, workforce and projects.

For decades, CANS has worked collaboratively with government departments, elected officials and industry stakeholders on issues critical to Nova Scotia’s construction sector. These partnerships allow us to provide informed industry expertise, advocate for practical solutions and ensure members’ priorities are reflected in public policy discussions.

Government and Industry Relations is a central pillar of our current Strategic Plan. As such, CANS considers itself successful in this space when:

CANS, building on its success, continues to be recognized as the key advocacy and lobbying group for the industry.
Our influence is felt at all levels of government.
Lines of communications between government and industry are fluid, open and consistent.

CANS will achieve this goal by:

Identifying and advocating on issues faced by the sector.
Ensuring our members are engaged in our government relations activities through participation and priority setting.
Continuing to build collaborative partnerships to ensure success.

Explore the issues, initiatives and advocacy efforts CANS has championed on behalf of the industry below.

Apprenticeship Ratios

In December 2021, CANS submitted a formal response to the Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency outlining concerns with proposed amendments to the General Regulations under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualification Act.

As a result, effective Oct. 19, 2023, the standard journeyperson-to-apprentice ratio was increased from 1:2 to 1:3 in most trades. The province also removed final-level apprentices from ratio requirements across all trades.

Learn more about CANS’ submission, including why we advocated for these important changes to apprenticeship ratios.

Recruitment and Training of Skilled Tradespeople

Addressing labour shortages and building a sustainable skilled trades workforce remains a central advocacy priority for CANS.

CANS works with industry partners, governments, and training organizations to strengthen recruitment pipelines, expand training opportunities, and improve pathways into the skilled trades.

Persistent labour shortages—driven by population growth, increased construction demand, and a wave of retirements—highlighted the urgency of coordinated action. Industry forecasts indicated that thousands of additional workers would be needed to meet demand and replace retiring tradespeople across Nova Scotia.

CANS supported and contributed to a range of initiatives focused on recruitment, retention, and training. These included expanded apprenticeship pathways, enhanced direct-entry training programs, and measures to reduce barriers to certification.

CANS also advocated for practical measures to improve workforce participation, including increasing apprenticeship ratios, removing barriers for experienced workers and newcomers, and supporting awareness initiatives to promote careers in the trades.

Through its ongoing advocacy, partnerships, and leadership, CANS has help advance solutions aimed at strengthening the talent pipeline, supporting employers, and ensuring the construction industry had the skilled workforce required to meet Nova Scotia’s growing needs.

Building Code Adaptation

CANS advocated for updates to the Building Code and for the timely adoption of those changes by industry. With funding support from government, CANS and Canadian Home Builders Nova Scotia delivered targeted education and training to more than 900 industry participants, helping contractors, builders and associated professionals understand and comply with new regulatory requirements.

In parallel, CANS played a key role in engaging with provincial and municipal governments to help ensure Building Code updates were practical, achievable and reflective of real-world construction conditions. This collaborative approach supported effective implementation while minimizing unintended impacts on project delivery and productivity.

Climate Action

In partnership with Dalhousie University, the provincial government and other key stakeholders, CANS is advancing efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the construction sector. We are committed to driving practical sustainability initiatives that support industry transformation while helping Nova Scotia achieve its environmental and climate objectives.

CANS is also a founding member of the Building to Zero Exchange (BTZx), a centre of excellence focused on accelerating Nova Scotia’s transition to net-zero buildings. BTZx brings together industry, government and community partners to foster collaboration and advance the innovation, policies and regulatory actions necessary to deliver a sustainable, net-zero future.

Gradual Onset Stress Policies

CANS successfully lobbied the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia on its gradual onset stress policies, advocating for changes that better reflect the realities faced by workers in the construction industry.

These changes represent meaningful progress in recognizing and addressing mental health challenges in a sector where work-related stressors are often compounded by physically demanding environments, tight project timelines and labour market pressures. By advancing more responsive and practical policies, CANS has taken an important step toward strengthening mental health supports for construction workers and promoting safer, healthier workplaces across the industry.

Immigration

CANS continues to advocate for policies that prioritize skilled immigration, recognizing it as a critical solution to addressing labour shortages and supporting the long-term growth and sustainability of Nova Scotia’s construction industry.

As part of this work, CANS actively participates in domestic and international recruitment efforts to connect employers with experienced tradespeople. In 2023-2024, CANS took part in multiple recruitment missions across five cities in three countries. Domestically, these missions included outreach in London and Toronto. Internationally, CANS participated in recruitment initiatives in Birmingham and Dublin, as well as in Mexico, expanding the reach of Nova Scotia’s construction industry to new and emerging talent markets.

In 2025, CANS participated in an additional international recruitment mission to Mexico City, where representatives met with more than 600 highly qualified construction professionals. Many participants expressed strong interest in relocating to Canada and pursuing careers within Nova Scotia’s construction sector.

These recruitment missions complement CANS’ ongoing advocacy for immigration programs that align with industry needs, streamline pathways for skilled workers and help employers access the talent required to deliver critical infrastructure and housing projects across the province.

Prompt Payment

For more than a decade, CANS has advocated to the province for prompt payment legislation, during which time hundreds of construction-related companies have gone bankrupt and thousands of workers have lost their jobs as a result of delayed and delinquent payments.

Following a widespread media campaign in 2021—led by the Nova Scotia Prompt Payment Coalition—the provincial government committed to developing a regulatory and adjudication framework. During consultations, three potential adjudication models were presented. CANS advocated for a short-form adjudication model based on Saskatchewan’s framework, with the expectation of alignment with a future national model.

In October 2022, legislation was introduced granting the province authority to appoint an external body to adjudicate payment disputes between developers and their contractors or subcontractors.

Throughout the winter of 2022–23, the provincial government, CANS and the Nova Scotia Prompt Payment Coalition worked collaboratively to draft regulations establishing prompt payment and adjudication processes for the construction industry.

As of summer 2023, the final draft of regulations are with the Office of the Registrar of Regulations before they go to Executive Council. CANS has expressed interest in submitting a proposal to the government to establish an entity that will act as the third-party adjudication authority.

Read the Coalitions submission to government here.

Archived Government & Industry Relations Issues

Questions?

Taylor Shaw
Research, Program & Policy Lead
tshaw@cans.ns.ca
902-210-1720