Trades Labour Corporation

What Trades Labour Corporation does

Trades Labour Corporation (TLC) is a privately-held staffing agency founded in 1999 and headquartered in Vancouver, British Columbia, with corporate registration dating to 2007. The company specializes in temporary, temp-to-perm, contract, and permanent placement of blue-collar workers in the construction, manufacturing, and warehousing industries across Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest of the United States. TLC operates through a direct branch network of 11+ physical offices spanning Vancouver, Victoria, Surrey, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, and Toronto in Canada, alongside Seattle, Tacoma, and Boston in the United States, supplemented by an owner-operated franchise model with 8+ franchisee locations.

TLC's core service is on-demand dispatch of pre-screened blue-collar labor (carpenters, welders, flaggers, concrete placers, drywallers, insulators, forklift operators, warehouse laborers) to employers on a daily or weekly basis. Revenue is generated through an all-inclusive hourly bill rate that bundles wages, advertising, recruiting, employment taxes, and labor-and-industry premiums, with payrolling services and temp-to-perm conversion fees as secondary streams. The company claims a 25-year operating history, over 20,000 permanent placements, OSHA 10 certification (US), COR certification (selected Canadian markets), and ABC of Western Washington Safety Alliance membership. The TLC Group includes two wholly-owned operating subsidiaries: International Skilled Trades (skilled trades employment services) and TLC Aviation (aviation employment services). The company is led by Justin Fraser as Chairman and CEO, is 100% Canadian-owned, has no disclosed institutional or venture backing, and reports a headcount of 11–50.

The technology stack is minimal: a corporate website, downloadable credit and express labor request forms, location-specific landing pages, and a phone-based Express Order system for urgent staffing requests. There is no disclosed proprietary matching platform, no API, no mobile app, and no data products. Customer acquisition is driven primarily by referral networks, community involvement, SEO, and direct branch outreach rather than performance marketing, and TLC's stated differentiator is a more extensive interview and training process combined with safety certifications.

Name

Trades Labour Corporation

Legal name

Trades Labor Corporation

Website

https://tradeslabor.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

North Vancouver

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Temporary Labor Staffing: TLC provides temporary workers to employers, charging an hourly rate that covers wages, advertising, recruiting, employment taxes, and labor and industry premiums. The company pays workers upfront and then invoices clients, enabling deferred payment relief for employers.
2. Temp to Perm Placements: Employers can try temporary workers before committing to permanent hire. TLC helps reduce hiring risk through this program.
3. Payrolling Services: TLC pays the workforce upfront allowing deferred relief from payroll expenses, and can customize payroll solutions for client firms.
4. Franchise Fees: TLC offers franchise opportunities with low franchise fees and vendor financing available, expanding through owner-operated locations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Trades Labour Corporation (TLC) is a privately-held, owner-operated staffing agency that supplies pre-screened blue-collar workers to employers in the construction, manufacturing, and warehousing industries across North America. The company's core offerings include temporary daily/weekly worker placements, temp-to-perm conversions, contract placements, permanent placement services, and payrolling services, all delivered through a network of 11+ branch offices and franchise locations in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest USA. TLC also franchises its operating model to entrepreneurs seeking to own staffing businesses in additional geographies.

Product overview

Trades Labour Corporation operates as a staffing and employment agency providing a unified platform of labor placement services. The core offering is staffing and employment agency services for Construction, Manufacturing, and Warehousing industries, supported by specialized modules including Daily & Weekly Worker Placements, Temp to Perm Placement Program, Contract Placements, and Payrolling Services. The company also offers Permanent Placement Services and Labor and Industry Premium Services as add-on offerings. Franchise Opportunities provide business ownership paths for entrepreneurs. The company operates across North America with multiple office locations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Staffing and Employment Agency Services End-to-end staffing and employment agency service providing temporary and permanent placement of blue-collar workers (carpenters, welders, flaggers, general laborers, forklift operators) to construction, manufacturing, and warehousing employers across North America through a network of owner-operated branch offices.
• Daily & Weekly Worker Placements

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 20,000 permanent positions found for job seekers
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ABC of Western WashingtoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTLC participates in the ABC of Western Washington's Safety Alliance Program, which recognizes companies that take their safety programs to the highest level. Every member is audited by a certified safety consultant. This partnership demonstrates TLC's commitment to industry-leading safety standards.
• Trevor Korol Memorial Fund / Ledcor Korol Cup Hockey TournamentminorOthersTrades Labor Corporation is a regular donor to the Trevor Korol Memorial Fund and participates in the annual Ledcor Korol Cup Hockey Tournament. The fund awards scholarships to students in local colleges enrolled in trades programs.
• United WayminorOthersMany TLC employees donate annually to The United Way, which works to build communities and prevent social problems focusing on poverty, children and seniors.
• American Red CrossminorOthersTLC supports disaster relief and services to communities in the United States through donations to the American Red Cross.
• Pike Market Food BankminorOthersTLC Seattle was a top contributor in a client's Food Bank drive benefitting the Pike Market Food Bank.
• Crohn's and Colitis FoundationminorOthersTLC is proud to support this foundation that invests in cures for Crohn's and Colitis while supporting patients today.
• Save Your Skin FoundationminorOthersSave Your Skin Foundation is a national patient-led not-for-profit group dedicated to the fight against non-melanoma skin cancers, melanoma and ocular melanoma through education, advocacy, and awareness initiatives.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Tradesmen International: US-based staffing firm exclusively focused on placing skilled construction tradespeople. Directly comparable to TLC given the construction-trades vertical focus, temp and temp-to-perm placement model, and similar employer base of contractors and builders.
• PeopleReady: Light-industrial and trades staffing provider and subsidiary of TrueBlue. Highly comparable to TLC in serving construction, manufacturing, and warehousing customers with day-to-day flexible labor placements.
• Labor Finders: Light-industrial and trades staffing firm providing temporary and permanent blue-collar placements across construction, manufacturing, and warehousing — directly overlapping TLC's vertical mix and service model.
• Express Employment Professionals: Privately-held staffing franchise that places commercial and industrial workers. Comparable to TLC as a multi-office franchise-based staffing operator serving trades and industrial customers.
• Aerotek: Staffing firm placing skilled trades, industrial, and manufacturing workers. Comparable to TLC in serving skilled trades and industrial customers with temporary and contract placements.

Broad incumbents

• TrueBlue Inc. Public staffing holding company that owns PeopleReady, Centerline, and other industrial staffing brands. Comparable to TLC as the parent of its closest direct peer (PeopleReady) and a broader incumbent in light-industrial staffing.
• ManpowerGroup: Global staffing giant with a large industrial and trades placement business. Comparable to TLC as a large incumbent that competes for the same construction and manufacturing employer relationships, though with a much broader service portfolio.
• Adecco: Global staffing leader with industrial, construction, and logistics placement offerings. Comparable as a broad-line incumbent whose industrial division competes for the same blue-collar customer base TLC serves.
• Kelly Services: Global staffing provider with industrial, manufacturing, and contact-center offerings. Comparable as a broad-line incumbent that competes for trades and manufacturing labor demand alongside TLC.

Emerging players

• Workrise: Tech-enabled marketplace placing skilled trades and industrial workers, with growing penetration in construction and energy. Comparable to TLC as an emerging competitor in trades staffing that uses a digital platform model rather than TLC's traditional branch-based approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/tlcvancouver
• Facebookfacebook.com/tradeslabourcorp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/trades-labour-corporation

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Trades Labour Corporation