Job prospects Building Carpenter in Ontario

Explore current and future job prospects for people working as a "building carpenter" in Ontario or across Canada.

Job opportunities in Ontario

These outlooks were updated on November 29, 2023.

Moderate

The employment outlook will be moderate for Carpenters (NOC 72310) in Ontario for the 2023-2025 period.

The following factors contributed to this outlook:

What Types of Employers Are Out There?

Most work in the construction industry, with a large number in residential building construction and as specialty trade contractors

What are the Main Trends Affecting Employment?

Construction activity is expected to be favourable across Ontario over the forecast period, supporting work for carpenters
Steady demand for new housing to meet population growth
Residential and non-residential renovation projects
Large infrastructure investments in transit, health care, utilities and bridges

What Skills Do I Need to Succeed?

There is one voluntary skilled trade associated with this occupation in Ontario, named, General Carpenter
Completion of a working at heights and confined space awareness training program for some positions

What Other Information Will I Find Helpful?

There may be more work during the spring and summer months because of greater construction activity
Self-employment is common.

Here are some key facts about Carpenters in Ontario:

Approximately 36,250 people work in this occupation.
Carpenters mainly work in the following sectors:
- Construction (NAICS 23): 85%
The distribution of full-time and part-time workers in this occupation is:
- Full-time workers: 91% compared to 81% for all occupations
- Part-time workers: 9% compared to 19% for all occupations
50% of carpenters work all year, while 50% work only part of the year, compared to 63% and 37% respectively among all occupations. Those who worked only part of the year did so for an average of 41 weeks compared to 43 weeks for all occupations.
35% of carpenters are self-employed compared to an average of 15% for all occupations.
The gender distribution of people in this occupation is:
- Men: more than 95% compared to 52% for all occupations
- Women: less than 5% compared to 48% for all occupations
The educational attainment of workers in this occupation is:
- no high school diploma: 17% compared to 9% for all occupations
- high school diploma or equivalent: 33% compared to 25% for all occupations
- apprenticeship or trades certificate or diploma: 26% compared to 8% for all occupations
- college certificate or diploma or university certificate below bachelor's: 18% compared to 22% for all occupations
- bachelor's degree: less than 5% compared to 24% for all occupations
- university certificate, degree or diploma above bachelor level: less than 5% compared to 13% for all occupations

Explore job prospects in Ontario by economic region.

Location	Job prospects
Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula Region	Moderate
Kingston–Pembroke Region	Moderate
Kitchener–Waterloo–Barrie Region	Moderate
London Region	Moderate
Muskoka–Kawarthas Region	Moderate
Northeast Region	Good
Northwest Region	Good
Ottawa Region	Moderate
Stratford–Bruce Peninsula Region	Moderate
Toronto Region	Moderate
Windsor-Sarnia Region	Moderate