b'WCA EDUCATION19,400 REASONS CONSTRUCTION NEEDS BETTER COMMUNICATORSBy Jaime MannBuildForce Manitoba recently released aAnd in a tight labour market, it is also a statistic that should stop every contractorretention strategy. STRENGTHEN YOUR mid-scroll: our industry will need to hire 19,400 workers over the next decade.OUR CURRENT WORKFORCE NEEDSLEADERSHIP THROUGH Nearly 10,000 experienced workers areMORE THAN TECHNICAL TRAINING BETTER COMMUNICATIONset to retire, and even with new entrants,With thousands of new or transitioning were still looking at a 7,900-person gapworkers coming into construction, weReady to sharpen your that has to be filled with workers fromcant afford an environment wherecommunication skills and level up outside our current labour force. communication feels like guesswork. your people leadership?We need people who can: Register for one of Jaimes Translation? We dont have a lineup ofupcoming WCA training sessions:perfectly trained, ready-to-go people Have an actual conversationnotwaiting to walk onto our sites. This meansjust fire off texts. BST: Great Communicatorsthat wed better be training the people Know when a face-to-face talkMake Great Supervisors we already haveAND we have toApril 8, 2026create workplaces they actually want toprevents a week of rework.stay in.Understand how much information isBST: Conflict & Nothing influences that more thantoo much (or too little). People Management communication. Not wages, not perks, Communicate expectations clearly. May 19, 2026 not pizza dayscommunication.Check for understanding withoutRegister at winnipegconstruction.ca. Because heres the uncomfortable truth:micromanaging.construction is physically demanding, Understand their own biases and mentally draining and emotionallymistakes, improves culture and helps stressfuland poor communicationpreferences so they can adapt keep people from walking off the job multiplies that stress. their approach. because no one told me. Manage conflict early instead of WE DONT MAGICALLY BECOMETHE BOTTOM LINEBETTER COMMUNICATORS silently letting resentment boil. With the labour shortages ahead, WITH AGE This isnt extra; this is the job. we cant afford to lose good people Having more birthday candles on yourIf supervisors and team leads arentbecause communication is unclear, cake does not equal more effectiveeffective communicators, theyre notinconsistent or chaotic. Effective communication. Most people believeeffective leadersno matter how skilledcommunication creates safer sites, theyre good communicatorsrightthey are with tools or specs. stronger teams and workplaces up until the moment someone doesntpeople want to stay in. And in todays understand them. THIS IS WHERE TRAINING ACTUALLYconstruction landscape, thats not just We assume crews just know. WeMOVES THE NEEDLE leadershipits strategy. assume new supervisors will figureThe Great Communicators Make GreatJaime Mann is a leadership strategist and it out. We assume people can readSupervisors course exists for one reason:keynote speaker who helps construction between the lines. to give leaders the foundation they wereleaders communicate clearly, manage never formally taught. We dive into what And then we act shocked when actually makes conversations effective,conflict early and build teams people things go sideways. Why didnt they how to communicate clearly underactually want to work on. She delivers listen properly?! pressure and how to align teams in fast- practical, real-world training across paced, high-stress environments. Manitoba that strengthens supervisors, The reality is communication is a skillreduces friction and creates safer,a trainable one, a measurable one and This isnt corporate fluff. Its real, practical,more connected workplaces. Visit hera critical one. construction-proof training that reducesat jaimemann.com.Issue 4 | Winter Edition | 2025 BUILD MANITOBA 21'