PRESIDENT'S COMMUNIQUE
December 14, 2009
Dear CSLA Members:
RE: LABOUR MOBILITY LEGISLATION AND RECIPROCITY
In the October 'Bulletin', I indicated that periodically over the next year, each CSLA member will be receiving direct e-mail communication from me by means of the "President's Communiqué" which will inform members about current and important matters that directly affect them, the CSLA, and the broader profession of landscape architecture in Canada. This is my first 'Communiqué' to members on reciprocity, labour mobility and foreign-trained qualifications.
Background:
The CSLA has been actively working on various fronts to respond to government legislation on Labour Mobility. Wanting to break down internal trade barriers, the federal government introduced an "Agreement on Internal Trade" that requires anyone certified by one occupational regulatory authority to be certified by another regulatory authority without any requirement for any material additional training, experience, examinations or assessments as part of that certification procedure. Furthermore, occupations are also to take steps to reconcile differences in occupational standards, and to the extent possible, adopt common inter-provincial standards.
The federal government has recently announced another program which is aimed at reducing employment barriers and improving mobility called the "Foreign Credential Recognition Program". The government is hoping to have a system in place by fall 2010 which will recognize the international credentials of foreign-trained professionals in eight occupations, including architecture and engineering, beginning 2011. Within three years, additional occupations will be added.
CSLA's Role in Labour Mobility Compliance:
While the CSLA does not 'regulate' landscape architects, it has a major role in bringing together the Component Associations to build consensus and to collaboratively develop solutions to important issues affecting landscape architects nationwide.
Consequently, the CSLA and the Board of Directors have been working on several fronts to address these legislative requirements:
1. The CSLA has developed a "draft" Reciprocity Agreement between Component Associations to ensure, as well as to seek, compliance, with this new labour mobility legislation. Between British Columbia and Ontario, both of whom have Title Acts and require the LARE examination, there is, and has been, immediate reciprocity and legal compliance with this new legislation. Recognizing that the other Component Associations have differing entrance requirements and are not currently regulated by Title Acts or Practice Acts, the CSLA sees the Reciprocity Agreement as one way to help Component Associations to 'seek compliance' with labour mobility legislation.
2. In the coming weeks, the "draft" Reciprocity Agreement will be circulated to all Component Associations for input and feedback. The intention is that Component Associations will discuss this proposed agreement with their respective Councils and membership and comment back to the CSLA with any desired changes or revisions. Once all comments have been received, and the document revised, the CSLA will redistribute a final version for signing by the Components.
3. Professions, such as Chartered Accountants and others, which have a single national examination standard across Canada, have had unparalleled labour mobility for their members for years, and have been largely unaffected by this new legislation. Similarly, if all Component Associations of the CSLA were able to have standardized entrance and examination requirements nationally, then landscape architects would also have unlimited labour mobility across Canada, and all provincial and territorial regulatory organizations would be fully compliant with Canadian law. Recognizing that there are still significant barriers to achieving this at the present time, the CSLA has none-the-less, begun discussions with CLARB (Council of Landscape Architecture Registration Boards) to better understand the issues and challenges (such as language and cost) that currently prevent the development of a national examination standard.
4. On the matter of foreign-trained workers, and the recognition of their qualifications, the CSLA will work with the federal government and the Component Associations to help insure that any changes that are made are fair, consistent and equitable. As the national voice for landscape architecture in Canada, the CSLA is committed to assisting, where it can, in the articulation of a national vision, guiding principles and/or desired outcomes as it relates to improving the assessment and recognition of the qualifications of foreign-trained landscape architects.
The CSLA and the Board of Directors are committed to working on your behalf to serve and advance the profession of landscape architecture in Canada. I look forward to hearing from you, and to the dialogue and exchange of ideas that will arise.
Sincerely,
CANADIAN SOCIETY OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTS
Linda A. Irvine, OALA, CSLA, ASLA
President, CSLA
