Crime adds built-in costs for Winnipeg’s construction industry

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Add the construction industry to the list of those irked by a recent rise in brazen thievery.

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In the wake of concerns expressed by 7-Eleven representatives and other retail outlets, along with the restaurant industry all the way down to residential property owners, those who build have had to put up with an increase in their things being taken.

“It’s extremely frustrating for the business owners, and it’s frustrating for the construction (company) owners, so the people trying to get these buildings built,” Darryl Harrison, director of stakeholder engagement and advocacy for the Manitoba Construction Association said Monday.

“What is does is it delays the construction process when there’s a setback like this specific to a construction site, and it also makes it harder for the contractors and subcontractors to have a profitable business if they have to replace their property frequently.”

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The Winnipeg Police Service said it doesn’t break commercial theft down into specific categories.

Harrison said he has been hearing more about it from some of its 750 members across institutional, industrial, and commercial construction than in recent years.

“I’m not sure what the police can do. I think this is a symptom of all of the additional new crime that we’re starting to see in Winnipeg, and it’s a concern. It’s just an example of when there’s more crime, more theft, more property damage, it affects all sectors of Manitoba’s economy,” Harrison said.

For a time, copper was the big target at construction sites, he noted. Now, metals of any value are targeted and have to be securely stored. Tools aren’t left out at worksites.

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One business owner told media the issue has cost him $15,000 this year, with thefts taking place even when employees are around.

There’s also property damage to contend with, both at worksites and at construction headquarters. And extra time spent to properly secure job sites. That means incurring extra costs for security systems or personnel that are eventually passed on to the customer.

“When property owners know they’re doing a building and theft or damage is a risk, then they have to spend more money on security and then that’s a direct cost for the actual building process. So it makes building more expensive,” Harrison said.

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