Entrepreneurs are tired of so much paperwork!

Construction contractors are exhausted by state red tape, which has exploded for five years, a groundbreaking industry survey reveals.

More than 90% of construction contractors believe that the bureaucracy has grown heavier over the past five years, reveals a survey by the Association of Construction and Housing Professionals of Quebec.

The findings are unequivocal: entrepreneurs waste too much time filling out forms, they have to disclose a lot of information about their subcontractors, there is a lack of entrepreneurial sensitivity on the part of the State, the fines are staggering and the municipal level is a veritable maze for advancing projects.

Entrepreneurs estimate between 10% and 25% the time allotted in a week to respond to administrative and regulatory formalities. In addition, for an industry that is made up overwhelmingly of small businesses, the administrative burden is all the heavier to bear.

small construction companies make up 85% of the industry and their reality is to devote  30% to 50% of an employee’s time to interact with different levels of government.

It is a heavy burden for these small businesses to bear!

The interaction of a contractor with the municipal level can be complicated. Complexity occurs when monitoring a project, where the different departments do not communicate with each other.

And it becomes more complicated when the contractor does business with more than one municipality. The procedures from one municipality to another are different: the filing of a project, the number of stakeholders involved and even the applicable construction code.

According to the APCHQ, the uniformity of the construction code could make a big difference on the total volume of administrative and regulatory formalities for businesses.