OTTAWA, ONTARIO, April 1, 2009 – The Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, after meeting today in Brussels with her ministerial counterparts, announced the signing of three new agreements that will help facilitate international labour mobility between Canada and the EU.
"During uncertain economic times, ensuring that all Canadians are fully participating in the labour force is critical to the country's long-term economic success and resiliency," said Minister Finley. "The government also recognizes that more needs to be done to ensure that newcomers have the opportunity to use their skills, knowledge and talents to the fullest. The work announced today will start to build the foundation on which mutual understanding about credential recognition and international mobility can be achieved between our countries."
Progress towards enhancing mobility between Canada and the EU will be complemented by the agreements announced today:
- The Environmental Career Organization of Canada will explore the development of a mutual certification framework for environmental workers in Canada and the EU;
- Engineers Canada will compare regulation and registration practices in the engineering field in Canada and the EU to identify opportunities for the alignment of practices and areas for future collaboration; and,
- The Public Policy Forum will help organize and host two reciprocal Roundtables in Europe (2009) and Canada (2010) on foreign credential recognition (FCR) and labour mobility where experts will discuss effective ways to facilitate mobility and better align FCR practices in key occupations of mutual interest in the regulated sector.
The signing of these agreements demonstrates Canada's commitment to achieving progress on foreign credential recognition, facilitating international labour mobility and strengthening the Canada-EU partnership.
"The Government of Canada, through HRSDC, is again demonstrating leadership by investigating mechanisms to allow the Canadian environment sector to reach its full economic and employment potential in the global economy by funding a scoping project to document reciprocal mobility of competent workers between Canada and the European Union. Assisting Canadian companies with information to access new European markets and new sources of human resources will benefit all stakeholders, both in Canada and the European Union," said Mr. Grant Trump, President and CEO of Environmental Career Organization of Canada.
Recent announcements have highlighted other actions taken by the federal government to improve credential recognition. Through Canada's Economic Action Plan, the federal government is investing $50 million over two years to develop a common approach to foreign credential recognition with the ultimate objective of speeding up the process of assessing and recognizing foreign qualifications.
"HRSDC has had a strong and longstanding relationship with Engineers Canada in the past, pushing forward the agenda of foreign credential recognition. This initiative is again demonstrating leadership by helping the Canadian engineering sector to reach its full economic and employment potential in the global economy by funding a project to investigate the regulatory frameworks of the European Union member countries with a view toward potential mobility of qualified engineers between Canada and the EU. This will ease the exchange of expertise and innovation in the engineering field and increase Canada's contribution," said Marie Carter, Chief Operating Officer for Engineers Canada.
For additional information on the three new agreements, please refer to the backgrounder. For more information on HRSDC programs and initiatives please visit http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca.
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This news release is available in alternative formats upon request.
For further information (media only):
Michelle Bakos
Press Secretary
Office of Minister Finley
819-994-2482
Media Relations Office
Human Resources and Skills Development
819-994-5559
New Agreements funded under Foreign Credential Recognition Program (FCRP)
These agreements provide an opportunity to highlight the federal government's continued dedication to working with the European Union (EU) on issues of international labour mobility and Foreign Credential Recognition (FCR).
- An initiative with the Environmental Sector Council will launch a scoping exercise, in collaboration with Environmental Careers Organization (ECO) of Canada, which explores the development of a mutual certification framework for environmental workers in Canada and the EU. This contribution agreement of $135,000 will be funded through HRSDC's FCRP;
- An initiative with Engineers Canada will conduct a mapping exercise of the regulation and registration practices in the engineering field that exist in Canada and the EU. The work is intended to examine commonalities and opportunities for future joint collaboration to align practices. This contribution agreement of $130,200 will be funded through HRSDC's FCRP; and,
- The Public Policy Forum will help organize and host two reciprocal Roundtables in Europe (2009) and Canada (2010) on FCR and labour mobility issues. The roundtables will provide an opportunity for experts to discuss approaches and effective interventions to facilitate mobility and better align FCR practices in key occupations of mutual interest in the regulated sector. This contribution agreement of $130,843 will be funded through HRSDC's FCRP.
