Millwright Regional Council and Sisters And Miles White Senior Policy Advisor and Eric Gallo-Miscevich Policy Advisor to Peter Bethlenfalvy, MPP and Minister of Finance for the Province of Ontario
Toronto, ON. – The Millwright Regional Council met with Policy Advisors for MPP Peter Bethlenfalvy to Miles White and Eric Gallo-Miscevich on Friday, April 22, 2022, to discuss tax fraud and the underground economy in Ontario’s construction industry, and ways to partner together on this issue.
The underground economy in Ontario’s construction industry undermines the province’s fiscal position and hurts legitimate contractors. A study commissioned by the Ontario Construction Secretariat, estimates that annual revenue losses due to underground activity have increased by 30% over the past decade.
According to Heather Ferguson, MRCO Business Representative Millwright Local 1410, Kingston,
“The underground economy in Ontario’s construction industry undermines the province’s fiscal position and hurts legitimate contractors. The primary driver of the underground economy is employers improperly classifying their workers as ‘Independent Operators’ rather than employees.”
A study commissioned in 2019 by the Ontario Construction Secretariat estimates that annual revenue losses due to underground activity have increased by 30% over the past decade. Between 2013 and 2017, the Province of Ontario and Federal Government lost between $1.8 billion and $3.1 billion annually as a result of contractors operating in the underground economy.
Underground economic activity negatively affects economic growth in Canada. It also reduces tax revenues for all levels of government, putting pressure on the government’s ability to provide the services and benefits that Canadians enjoy and expect. Moreover, these illegal activities continue to erode Canadian’s faith in the integrity and fairness of Canada’s tax system, undermine the competitiveness of honest businesses, as well as cause honest taxpayers to bear the tax load of those who cheat.
According to Chris Sutton, MRCO Director of Political Affairs “Contractors that achieve a competitive advantage by styling their employees as independent operators enjoy an unfair advantage over contractors that comply with their WSIB and tax obligations.”
We are encouraged by Mr. White’s and Mr. Gallo-Miscevich’s support to end construction industry tax fraud and working together towards solutions that reign in the underground economy.
The UBC Tax Fraud Days of Action is taking place across Canada and the United States April 11-16, 2022, to bring awareness to the issues of tax fraud and the underground economy.
Safety is our Highest Priority. Learn more at www.stoptaxfraud.ca
About The Millwright Regional Council (MRC)
The Millwright Regional Council (MRC) is composed of eight affiliated Local Unions of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America (UBC) across the Province of Ontario. We represent thousands of women and men working as progressive cross-trained construction and maintenance professionals with exceptional skills to install, maintain, diagnose, and repair precision machinery, UBC millwrights are vital partners in industries as diverse as energy, automotive, aerospace, food processing, pharmaceuticals and more.
