Chamber Priorities
The vision of the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce is Stronger Community Through Business Prosperity. As members of our chamber, board of directors and staff are primarily local residents, we recognize the symbiotic relationship that exists between business, the community and the citizenry. Citizens support local business, which creates jobs, grows the economy and provides government with the resources to provide the social programs, recreational activities and infrastructure needed in our communities. Our mission is: Support business prosperity through networking, shared services, advocacy and events. The Fredericton chamber’s vision and mission, along with our close connection to the community, guides every decision we make as an organization, particularly our policy and advocacy work.
Each autumn, our board of directors discusses and updates our policy priorities in draft form. These draft priorities are then put to the membership in our annual member survey for their feedback. Our policy priorities in 2025 are:
2025 Priorities
- Competitive Business Environment
- Workforce Development and Population Growth
- The Knowledge Industry
- Business Enablers
- Health Care
- Housing
- Childcare
- Public Safety
Chamber Priorities
At the end of each year, our board of directors discusses and updates our policy priorities in draft form. These draft priorities are then put to the membership in our annual member survey for their feedback.
Our policy priorities in 2025 are:
Competitive Business Environment
NB businesses have seen increases in minimum wage, property tax, corporate tax, HST, EI rates, carbon tax, CPP increases, land transfer tax and WorkSafeNB premiums (amongst other costs). The business environment also includes the regulatory environment (red tape, roadblocks to development, overlapping jurisdictions, etc.), availability of housing, health care and more.
Workforce Development and Population Growth
New Brunswick faces significant demographic challenges, including an aging population and low birth rate, which impact its future workforce and make it one of the oldest provinces. Educational institutions play a vital role in producing the future workforce, entrepreneurs, and leaders. Improving healthcare and housing access is crucial for attracting potential recruits, while the Fair Registration Practices Act aims to enhance credential recognition processes. Small businesses struggle with hiring new graduates due to their lack of work experience and finding the right skills for the current and future economy is essential. Additionally, integrating underemployed groups like Indigenous people, students, and persons with disabilities into the workforce with appropriate supports is necessary to bolster the economy. Immigration remains a vital part of growing New Brunswick’s population is one of the foundational goals to sustained economic growth moving forward. In 2019, the City of Fredericton five-year immigration strategy was launched. The three pillar organizations of the strategy are the chamber (responsible for advocacy), Ignite Fredericton (programming) and the Multicultural Association of Fredericton (settlement).
Knowledge Industry
What is commonly identified as the knowledge economy represents a foundational element of our society as it is the industry of all other industries. Fredericton as a city, and region, fosters education and innovation as we possess a valuable base of infrastructure, resources and stakeholders.
Fredericton is a center of higher education and is home to four universities, University of New Brunswick, St. Thomas University, University of Fredericton and Yorkville University. The city also has numerous training colleges and institutes including New Brunswick Community College, the NB College of Craft and Design, Eastern College and Atlantic Business College. This translates to high value jobs and a steady talent supply chain to fuel business growth and investment attraction not only to Fredericton but to all industries of New Brunswick. The key of our future innovation and a core resource impacting all issue areas of our day is provided through the numerous research & development centers present in our community.
Access to Primary Health Care
Primary health care, and increasingly our health care system in general, continues to be an issue for our members, particularly in relation to attracting skilled employees. That is why we established a Physician Recruitment & Retention Committee in 2009 and are still actively assisting efforts of Horizon Health and the NB Medical Society to attract and welcome physicians to our community, while seeking other ways to expand easy and efficient access to primary care. More recently, we’ve engaged with a broader group of local stakeholders to identify gaps in the system and where we might have an impact.
*many issues arise during the course of a year that affect chamber members that may not fit neatly into one of these five priorities.