The Energy East Pipeline will provide more than just a short term boom in construction jobs.
That’s the belief of New Brunswick Building Trades Unions President Gary Ritchie.
He says long term jobs will be spread right across province with five pumping stations, as well as the tank farm and the jetty in Saint John.
“But in the long term, we’ll also have a lot of maintenance jobs,” says Ritchie. “We have to upkeep these pumping stations, there has to be maintenance on them, there will be maintenance on the tank farms, there’ll be maintanence on the jetty and there’ll be people employed full time year round.”
Ritchie says they are working with the government to ensure a future with educated, and qualified New Brunswickers to take these long term jobs.
“We’re also working as partnership with Trans Canada and Irving Oil, and all the people involved to make sure we get these jobs and hopefully a contractor in New Brunswick will get the work and that’ll keep dollars in New Brunswick too,” says Ritchie.
He adds “I believe it’s long term for the province, it’s going to create work here that will go on for a long time, and it also fixes a safety issue that everyone worries about railway going through their town.”
Ritchie says there is no shortage of skilled pipeline workers in New Brunswick ready to start work, many of whom are recently returned from out West
