--- canonical_url: "https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/issue-3/productivity-trends-in-the-construction-sector-in-canada-a-case-of-lagging-technical-progress/" title: "Productivity Trends in the Construction Sector in Canada: A Case of Lagging Technical Progress" author: name: "CSLS" url: "https://csls.ca/author/cslc/" date_published: "2026-07-13T05:42:42+00:00" date_modified: "2026-07-13T06:38:13+00:00" post_type: "ipm" summary: "" ipm_issue_period: - "Fall 2001" ipm_keyword: - "Canada" - "capital intensity" - "construction sector" - "education" - "labour productivity" - "productivity" - "structural characteristics" - "technical progress" ipm_research_theme: - "Sectoral and firm-level dynamics" ipm_country_focus: - "Canada" featured_image: "https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/IPM_50_banner.webp" status: "publish" --- # Productivity Trends in the Construction Sector in Canada: A Case of Lagging Technical Progress Canonical URL: https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/issue-3/productivity-trends-in-the-construction-sector-in-canada-a-case-of-lagging-technical-progress/ # Productivity Trends in the Construction Sector in Canada: A Case of Lagging Technical Progress [Download full PDF article](https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IPM-Issue-3-5-Sharpe.pdf) Cite this article × Cite this article as: Sharpe, Andrew. 2001. “Productivity Trends in the Construction Sector in Canada: A Case of Lagging Technical Progress.” International Productivity Monitor, No. 3 (Fall 2001): 52–68. https://www.csls.ca/ipm-archive/issue-3/productivity-trends-in-the-construction-sector-in-canada-a-case-of-lagging-technical-progress/ ## Author: - Andrew Sharpe Centre for the Study of Living Standards (CSLS) ## IPM Issue 3 Fall 2001 pp. 52–68 ## Related IPM articles [The Relationship between Efficiencies Defenses for Mergers and TFP Growth Robin Shaban Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 82–102](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/the-relationship-between-efficiencies-defenses-for-mergers-and-tfp-growth/) [Labour Productivity as a Measure of Technological Change Ulrich Kohli Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 64–81](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/labour-productivity-as-a-measure-of-technological-change/) [Adult Skills and Productivity: New Evidence from PIAAC 2023 Dan Andrews, Balázs Égert, Christine de La Maisonneuve Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 41–63](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/adult-skills-and-productivity-new-evidence-from-piaac-2023/) [Appendix: Variable Definitions and Country/Sector Coverage for Regulatory Reform Analysis Gilbert Cette, Jimmy Lopez, Giuseppe Nicoletti, Océane Vernerey Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 1–18](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/appendix-variable-definitions-and-country-sector-coverage-for-regulatory-reform-analysis/) [The Potential Impact of Pro-competitive Regulatory Reforms on Productivity and Growth in Canada Gilbert Cette, Jimmy Lopez, Giuseppe Nicoletti, Océane Vernerey Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 3–40](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/the-potential-impact-of-pro-competitive-regulatory-reforms-on-productivity-and-growth-in-canada/) [IPM Issue 49 Editors’ Overview Andrew Sharpe, Bart van Ark, Paul Schreyer Fall 2025 | IPM Issue 49 | pp. 1–2](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-49/) [Appendix: UK Productivity Growth Rates Across Data Vintages and Studies Josh Martin Spring 2025 | IPM Issue 48 | pp. 65–73](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-48/appendix-uk-productivity-growth-rates-across-data-vintages-and-studies/) [Opportunities and Risks of Artificial Intelligence for Productivity Francesco Filippucci, Peter Gal, Katharina Laengle, Matthias Schief, Filiz Unsal Spring 2025 | IPM Issue 48 | pp. 1–26](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-48/opportunities-and-risks-of-artificial-intelligence-for-productivity/) [Using Ecosystem Accounting to Integrate the Environment in Measures of Multifactor Productivity Carl Obst Fall 2024 | IPM Issue 47 | pp. 87–108](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-47/using-ecosystem-accounting-to-integrate-the-environment-in-measures-of-multifactor-productivity/) [Eroding Natural Capital: An Alternative Explanation for the Secular Decline in Productivity Growth Christina Caron Fall 2024 | IPM Issue 47 | pp. 109–147](https://csls.ca/ipm-archive/ipm-issue-47/eroding-natural-capital-an-alternative-explanation-for-the-secular-decline-in-productivity-growth/) ## Abstract ## Résumé EN FR Copy link Email LinkedIn This article documents the poor productivity performance of Canada’s construction sector since the early 1980s, with real output per hour in 2000 well below early-1980s levels despite improvements in capital per worker and workforce educational attainment. The sector’s structural characteristics—geographical dispersion, heterogeneous output, on-site construction, high regulation, ease of entry, and cyclical activity—are identified as key explanations for its inability to adopt productivity-enhancing technologies. The article argues that lagging technical progress is the fundamental cause. Cet article documente la piètre performance en matière de productivité du secteur canadien de la construction depuis le début des années 1980, avec une production réelle par heure en 2000 bien inférieure aux niveaux du début des années 1980, malgré des améliorations du capital par travailleur et du niveau de scolarité de la main-d’œuvre. Les caractéristiques structurelles du secteur — dispersion géographique, extrants hétérogènes, construction sur site, réglementation stricte, facilité d’entrée et activité cyclique — sont identifiées comme les principales explications de son incapacité à adopter des technologies améliorant la productivité. L’article soutient que le retard du progrès technique est la cause fondamentale de cette situation. [Download full PDF](https://csls.ca/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/IPM-Issue-3-5-Sharpe.pdf)