Mandatory construction site monitoring

For over 10 years, the RGCQ has been denouncing the legislative deficit in terms of construction site monitoring. In 2010, a coroner's report already recommended that construction site monitoring be made mandatory for high-rise buildings.

Since then, other events have made the news and reinforce the imperative to act. 

The RGCQ regularly emphasizes the importance of this issue and the urgency of the situation. It is high time that the government takes charge of the issue of construction site monitoring and makes it mandatory, as is already the case elsewhere in Canada.

Public safety and prevention of fatal accidents: Construction site monitoring ensures that safety standards are respected, thereby reducing the risk of serious or even fatal accidents. Tragedies such as the collapse of a garage slab in Ville Saint-Laurent and the detachment of a concrete panel in Montreal, each of which caused one death, illustrate the tragic consequences of insufficient monitoring.

Financial savings: Proper construction site monitoring allows defects to be identified and corrected as soon as they appear, which reduces the cost of subsequent repairs. A study of the residential construction warranty (GCR) estimates that it can be up to 15 times more expensive to redo poorly executed work than to do it right the first time. By avoiding construction defects, disputes and legal proceedings between consumers and contractors are also limited, which represents savings for both individuals and the legal system.

IN SUMMARY, RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION SITE MONITORING IS ESSENTIAL TO ENSURE THE SAFETY, QUALITY, AND SUSTAINABILITY OF HOUSING, WHILE PROTECTING CONSUMERS AND PROMOTING A HEALTHY AND CONFIDENT ECONOMY.

In Quebec, unlike other Canadian provinces, monitoring of residential construction sites is not mandatory.

This means that the mechanisms to ensure the quality of residential construction in Quebec are clearly insufficient.

On the other hand, in other Canadian provinces such as Ontario or British Columbia, this monitoring is mandatory. For example, in Ontario, the Building Code requires regular inspections during the various stages of construction, thus ensuring continuous supervision to guarantee compliance with construction standards. Similarly, in British Columbia, site inspections are carried out by competent authorities to ensure that the work complies with the established standards.