• 40 homes a year, 40 full-time staff, Arviat housing factory opens to fanfare

  Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
  Date: 2026-10-16 10:00:00.0
  Tags: [National, Housing, Indigenous, Infrastructure, Labour, Economy]

  Sakku Innovative Building Solutions—the development arm of the Kivalliq Inuit Association (KIA)—has officially opened Nunavut's first Inuit-owned modular housing factory in Arviat, following a 40 per cent cost increase to a total project price tag of $70 million. Operating year-round, the facility is designed to produce 40 homes annually specifically for northern climates, beginning with an initial project of nine three-bedroom homes for Arviat by spring. The factory currently employs 15 full-time staff, 14 of whom are Inuit, and will scale up to 40 full-time employees while providing local training in carpentry, plumbing, and electrical work to address severe territorial housing shortages and overcrowding.

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• Saskatchewan Adds 2,600 Jobs in August

  Source: Saskatchewan - Government News
  Date: 2026-09-04 22:15:00.0
  Tags: [Saskatchewan, Economy, Labour, Industry, Housing, Infrastructure]

  In August 2026, Saskatchewan's economy added 2,600 jobs while the national average lost nearly 42,000 jobs, bringing the province's unemployment rate to 6.0 per cent under Immigration and Career Training Minister Eric Schmalz. Private sector growth drove 18,200 new jobs year-over-year (a 4.9 per cent increase), led by gains in construction (up 6,100 jobs or 12.2 per cent), manufacturing (up 4,900 jobs or 18.3 per cent), and finance, insurance, real estate and leasing (up 3,500 jobs or 11.8 per cent). Urban employment also rose year-over-year in Saskatoon by 1,300 jobs (0.6 per cent) and Regina by 5,000 jobs (3.3 per cent), supported by provincial initiatives including Building the Workforce for a Growing Economy: The Saskatchewan Labour Market Strategy and Securing the Next Decade of Growth: Saskatchewan's Investment Attraction Strategy.

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• New trades centre in Fort Good Hope, N.W.T., promises to bring houses, jobs to community

  Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
  Date: 2026-09-02 15:00:00.0
  Tags: [National, Housing, Infrastructure, Labour, Indigenous]

  A new trades centre has opened in Fort Good Hope, Northwest Territories, to support year-round indoor construction of modular housing and address a territorial housing shortage requiring up to 2,700 new homes according to a March 2026 needs analysis. Operating with a crew of about a dozen workers, the facility is currently constructing a duplex destined for Tulita to be delivered early next year. The centre features a built-in classroom designed to help community members pass pre-trades entrance exams, secure Red Seal certification, and build local employment experience that students like Thomas Manuel aim to apply toward future projects such as the proposed 800-kilometre Mackenzie Valley Highway supported by the federal government's Major Projects Office.

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