Brynn Bourke is the new executive director of BC Building Trades

NEW WESTMINSTER, B.C. – BC Building Trades (BCBT) announced Brynn Bourke is the organization’s new executive director.

Bourke was named interim executive director in the fall of 2020, replacing Andrew Mercier, who was elected NDP MLA for Langley in the 2020 provincial election.

“After an exhaustive executive search, it became more than apparent that the best person for the job, the person who will do the highest level of work and the person who has earned respect from every corner of our industry is Brynn Bourke. She is the right person for the job by every account,” BCBT president Al Phillips said.

Bourke’s appointment as interim executive director coincided with the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and Phillips praised her for her leadership during that time.

“As challenging as that was, she nonetheless affirmed herself to be an instinctive, assertive and accountable leader,” he said.

Bourke said she is “ecstatic to continue advancing the interesting of construction workers.”

“Our members are some of the hardest working people in B.C. Every day, our members are out there, working in all sorts of weather, in all sorts of locations and conditions, building the monuments and skylines that make up our province. I’m proud that I get to represent these workers and do everything I can to make their lives better and safer,” Bourke said.

Under Bourke’s leadership, the organization has fought for improved safety for construction workers amid COVID-19 and a thoughtful economic recovery plan that leaves no worker behind, a BCBT release stated.

Bourke added she is also interested in equity and diversity in the trades and skilled trades certification. Previous to her appointment Bourke spent ten years as the BCBT’s apprenticeship specialist.

Before joining the BCBT in 2012 Bourke held outreach, engagement and communications portfolios for progressive leaders in the provincial and federal governments, the release said.

Bourke has a bachelor’s degree in political science and women’s studies from Simon Fraser University and a master’s degree in legal studies from the department of law at Carleton University.