Question Period Note: LABOUR MOBILITY

Improved labour mobility will help mitigate the negative effects of tariffs and unlock the full economic potential of free trade within Canada. Actions must be taken by governments to build a more resilient, adaptable, and mobile workforce to support stronger domestic economic growth.

In the context of economic uncertainty, it is crucial to support Canada’s economy by removing interprovincial trade barriers and enabling workers to fill jobs wherever they are available in Canada.

The Government of Canada is urgently addressing the trade crisis that Canada is facing, and many jurisdictions have implemented transformative changes to support their workers and employers.

The Government of Canada is working alongside provincial and territorial labour market ministers to advance an ambitious and comprehensive plan to eliminate barriers to the mobility of workers in all regulated occupations, including the skilled trades.

This plan will make interprovincial and territorial certificate recognition processes more transparent, faster and less complex and will include a service standard for application processing times. The Canadian Free Trade Agreement will be amended to support pan-Canadian consistency.

This plan also includes new tools to make it easier for tradespeople to verify their credentials.

The Government of Canada is working to strengthen our labour market, and support one Canadian economy. 

 IF PRESSED (role of the federal government)

The federal government took a significant step toward enabling free trade in Canada by introducing the One Canadian Economy Act which received Royal Assent on June 26, 2025.  

The Free Trade and Labour Mobility in Canada Act that is part of Bill C-5 aims to promote free trade and enhance labour mobility by removing federal barriers to the interprovincial movement of goods, services, and labour within Canada.  

This Act demonstrates that Canada is committed to removing any potential barriers to labour mobility. 

It complements the work we do in collaboration with provinces and territories to eliminate barriers to interprovincial/territorial labour mobility. 

Provinces and territories have the main instruments and authorities to improve labour mobility. They establish occupational standards and entry-to-practice requirements for regulated occupations, and many provinces have recently introduced new or amended existing legislation to make it easier for out-of-province certified workers to work in their jurisdiction in a timely manner.

Labour mobility refers to the movement of workers in regulated occupations between provinces and territories (P/T) who must have a certificate, license and/or professional registration to work and use a specific job title in a P/T (e.g. doctors, engineers, electricians).  

The Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA), signed by all P/Ts and the federal government, entered into force on July 1, 2017, incorporating all Chapter Seven provisions of the former Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT). 

Chapter Seven includes the certificate-to-certificate recognition principle, which stipulates that any individual certified for an occupation by a regulatory body of one jurisdiction shall be recognized as qualified for that occupation by all other jurisdictions that regulate the occupation without requiring significant additional training, experience, examination or assessment of qualifications. This principle compels regulatory authorities to trust and recognize the due diligence applied by other regulatory authorities in determining that a worker is qualified to practice an occupation 

Chapter Seven of the CFTA also provides for P/Ts to apply legitimate objective claims for regulated occupations that do have a significant difference in occupational standards, and when there is evidence that the public interest is at risk. In these instances, workers may be required to undertake skills assessments or exams, and complete additional education or training.  

Currently, only 14 regulated occupations have approved legitimate objective claims. 

Those occupations with the most claims are lawyers, licensed practical nurses, dental hygienists, social workers, paramedics, and medical radiation technologists. 

There is a strong rationale for these claims in all cases. For example, five provinces hold a legitimate objective for dental hygienists against other jurisdictions, because their standards vary and could pose a threat to public health and safety if workers were to receive full certificate-to-certificate recognition without additional training or assessment. 

Credential and certification recognition are primarily a P/T responsibility often delegated to independent regulatory authorities. Most provinces also have legislation that supports compliance with the CFTA and/or fair registration practices legislation that supports fair, transparent and timely registration processes. 

The lack of harmonization of regulations and practices have created a complex environment for workers in regulated occupations and hinders labour market efficiency and productivity. As such, key barriers to labour mobility remain including: 

Red tape and administrative burden; 

Varying occupational standards; and 

Lack of transparency of labour mobility requirements. 

The lack of quantitative pan-Canadian data on the movement of certified workers in regulated occupations from one P/T to another makes it difficult to clearly identify labour mobility barriers.  

The Forum of Labour Market Ministers (FLMM) is implementing an Action Plan in line with the direction of First Ministers. The Plan includes commitments to address administrative loopholes in the CFTA and to implement innovative solutions building on existing practices. 

About 215,000 working age Canadians move between provinces and territories each year (0.5% of the 2024 population). 

Workers in regulated occupations, such as teachers, lawyers, doctors, and nurses, are required to have their qualifications recognised in other provinces or territories to be able to practice there. 

Labour mobility is primarily a provincial/territorial responsibility. Provinces and territories establish occupational standards and entry-to-practice requirements for most regulated occupations. This responsibility is often delegated through legislation to regulatory authorities.

Labour mobility barriers include red tape, administrative burden and a lack of clear information on labour mobility processes. This can make the labour mobility process expensive, lengthy and complex for workers and employers.

“To build one Canadian economy, we need to make it easier for workers in every province and territory to find good jobs. Canada’s labour market ministers agree. We can do more and faster—and today, we set out to do that together.” 

• The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Federal Minister of Jobs and Families, and Co-Chair of the FLMM (May 2025)