CBJ JUNE 2026

29 CLAC JUNE 2026 « The Canadian Business Journal 28 employed longer.” For CLAC, this is not just about efficiency. It is about building resilience in a workforce facing increasing economic uncertainty. “In our efforts to meet the current and future demand for labour, we’re focused on skills development, multi skills development, and eliminating barriers that prevent people from entering and staying in the skilled trades,” Prins says. Indigenous Partnerships and Economic Opportunity CLAC’s collaborative model has also played a growing role in partnerships with Indigenous communities involved in major infrastructure and resource projects. Working alongside the First Nations Natural Gas Alliance and project contractors, CLAC has focused on creating early employment pathways by engaging communities before construction begins. Instead of waiting for hiring phases, the approach involves identifying workforce needs in advance, assessing training requirements, and building targeted programs that connect local workers directly to jobs. “We’re not just training people for the sake of training,” says Mathews. “The goal is to help members of the local community land meaningful and sustainable jobs at the end of a training program.” He points to projects such as Woodfibre LNG and mining developments in Western Canada, where early training programs have been used to prepare Indigenous workers for long term employment on site. CLAC’s flexible structure also allows workers to explore different trades once they enter the workforce, which can be especially valuable in communities where access to diverse training