Merit Trades
You need people who can actually do the work.
Merit Trades staffs skilled trades crews, direct hire roles and leadership positions across Canada. We verify the ticket, match the level, call the references and make sure the person fits the work.
Talk to the trades desk
01
12
Trade divisions
02
6
Career rungs
03
5 days
Swap guarantee
Why Merit Trades
Built for crews, not just résumés.
Pillar 01
Ticket-verified, always
Every trade ticket and Red Seal certification is checked against the issuing authority before a name reaches a client.
Pillar 02
The six-rung ladder
From labourer to owner/executive, every placement is mapped to a rung, so employers and candidates share the same language.
Pillar 03
Twelve trade divisions
Electrical to millwright to general labour, one studio, and we check the ticket on every division on the tools.
Pillar 04
Built on Merit's standard
We check the crew and we check the company, the same way Merit does on every other desk, and we say no when either side does not hold up.
The Career Ladder
Six rungs. One shared language.
Every Merit Trades candidate and role is placed on the same ladder, so a client asking for a "level 4" gets exactly the scope of practice they expect.
Labourer
General site labour, entry level, no ticket required.
Apprentice
Indentured trades training on the Red Seal track, 1st to 4th year.
Journeyperson
Certified and ticketed, full scope of practice.
Foreman / Supervisor
Crew leadership and on-site safety authority.
Superintendent / PM
Multi-crew, budget and schedule ownership.
Owner / Executive
GM, VP Operations, Principal.
Trade Divisions
Twelve divisions, one studio.
What we verify
Nothing on a bench profile is taken on faith.
- Trade tickets and Red Seal certification, checked against the issuing authority
- Safety cards, WHMIS, Fall Protection, Confined Space, First Aid, with expiry dates
- Two supervisor references, called live, never emailed forms
- Right to work and, where the role needs it, driver's abstract and licence class
Why it is written down
"We built Merit Trades because a résumé can't tell you if someone shows up on time or holds a scaffold to code."
The Merit Trades team
Both sides
We check the crew. We check the company.
The tradesperson
- Ticket and Red Seal checked with the issuing authority.
- Safety cards confirmed and dated.
- Two former supervisors called, by phone.
- Scope of practice matched to the rung, not the job title.
- Right to work, licence and abstract where the site requires it.
The employer
- What the project is and how long it runs.
- The rate, the shift and how overtime is paid.
- Camp, travel and who covers what.
- Who runs the site and how the crew is treated.
- What the person is expected to do on day one.
If the answers on either side do not hold up, nobody gets sent.
Who does this
Someone actually makes the call.
Every ticket check, reference call and placement decision is handled by a real person here. Merit Trades is run out of our Calgary studio, so when you call you are talking to the people responsible for the search, the verification and the placement. No anonymous desk, no resume dump.
William Toussaint
Founder, Merit Recruitment Studios
The vetting spec
Four checks, written out in full.
This is the whole process, in the order it happens, with the real windows attached. Nothing here is shorthand for a step we have not written down.
5
Working days to swap a placed worker. The client calls or emails the trades desk, Merit replaces the worker, and no fee is charged for the replacement.
V-01
Ticket verification
Trade ticket, apprenticeship level and Red Seal endorsement, plus safety tickets: WHMIS, Fall Protection, Confined Space, First Aid, each with its expiry date.
Checked against the issuing authority, not the candidate's copy. Expired or unverifiable tickets are recorded as unverified and the profile does not go out.
Before any profile is presented
V-02
Reference check, by phone
Two supervisor references who directly ran the candidate's crew, on attendance, tools, safety conduct and scope of practice.
Called live by Merit and written up in the candidate's file. No emailed forms, no reference letters carried over from a previous employer.
Before any profile is presented
V-03
Right to work and licence
Legal right to work in Canada, and where the role requires it, driver's licence class and driver's abstract.
Documents sighted by Merit and logged against the placement record.
Before start date
V-04
Five day swap guarantee
If a placed worker is not the right fit on site, the client says so and Merit replaces them.
One call or one email to the trades desk starts it. No fee is charged for the replacement and the original placement is closed out in the record with the reason.
First 5 working days on site
The board
What is open today.
Checking the board.
Careers at Merit Trades
Ticket checked. Level matched. Real conversation.
We verify your credentials, talk with you about the work you actually want, and only put you forward when the role makes sense.
- 01Send the short form, trade and level, a few details, no resume needed to get started.
- 02We verify your ticket with the issuing authority.
- 03A recruiter calls you and confirms rate, travel and shift.
- 04You go on the bench and we call when the work lines up.
Ready to staff a crew or find work?