International skilled worker: engineers no longer have to obtain Canadian work experience in order to become licensed in Ontario. The provision’s labour minister announced the given statement on 23 May, 2023 It is no longer necessary for international engineers to have Canadian work experience to become licensed in Ontario, as the province\’s labour minister announced on Tuesday. The province passed a new law to remove obstacles that prevent skilled immigrants from practising their prior professions.
The Ontario Minister, Monte McNaughton, announced Tuesday that Professional Engineer Ontario (PEO), with 85,649 members, is the fourth largest regulated profession in the country. They removed the requirement for Canadian work experience from their application requirements as a first step.
According to the minister, eliminating the requirement for Canadian work experience will make it easier for highly qualified people to get employment in their field of education.
Lack of Professionals designations
Skills immigrants who are returning to their fields of work have cited the lack of Canadian work experience as a significant barrier to earning professional designations.
PEO requirements for work experience require candidates applying for a license to demonstrate 48 months of verifiable and acceptable engineering experience after graduation. It is necessary to have a minimum of 12 months of experience under a professional engineer license in a Canadian jurisdiction.
It is estimated that 300,000 jobs in the province are vacant, including thousands in engineering, which can cost the province billions in lost production.
PEO Requirements, Before
A professional engineering license in Ontario must be obtained after four years of engineering work experience.
- A Canadian jurisdiction is required, and you must have at least a year of experience there. By doing this, you can be sure that you have had enough exposure to Canadian engineering laws, rules, and regulations.
- An applicant must show that they have at least 48 months of verifiable, acceptable engineering experience after receiving their undergraduate engineering degree in order to be granted a licence.
Changes follow after
Working for Workers Act of 2021, which introduced the amendment. The Act mandates that regulated professions like engineering must evaluate competency without bias. This is being done to ensure that newcomers may continue their careers in Ontario.
Sixty percent of the license applications submitted each year, according to PEO President Roydon Fraser, are from engineers with foreign training. He contends that eliminating the prerequisite of Canadian work experience will hasten the licensing of skilled foreign engineers.
There were 85,649 licensed engineers in Ontario as of 2019, according to PEO statistics. With a total of 24,258 authorised members, it boasts the second-highest number of members with foreign training. According to the province, the removal of the work experience requirement will allow qualified individuals to pursue their professions while still meeting Ontario\’s licensing and test criteria.
Brief about Professional Engineer Ontario!
Professional Engineer Ontario (PEO) serves as the engineering profession\’s trustee and leader by licensing and developing competent and ethical professional engineers, as well as regulating engineering practice to ensure public safety.
- Legally, no one is authorised to practise as a professional engineer without a licence. To get a license as a professional engineer in Ontario, one must meet the standards established by PEO.
- You are not regarded as a professional engineer if you are an immigrant to Ontario who has an engineering degree and prior experience from another nation. But as of a recent IRCC declaration, any engineer from the nation, regardless of experience level, is qualified to work and Settle in Ontario.
- If you would like to practise as a professional engineer in Ontario, you have to go through the licensing procedures by Ontario.
Other registered professions
Ontario, the province with the largest population in Canada, is experiencing severe labour shortages in a number of industries. Getting newcomers the accreditation needed in regulated professions is one of the biggest obstacles to filling vacant positions.
- Other newcomers to Ontario are finding it simpler to work in regulated fields thanks to the state\’s initiatives.
- For instance, it recently passed legislation that will exempt nurses licensed in other Canadian provinces from the requirement to register with the relevant health regulatory colleges in order to work in the province.
- Additionally, it enables nurses who have received their education abroad to enrol in a temporary class and start working sooner while they pursue full registration.
- Additionally, the College has modified its language proficiency policy and worked with colleges and universities to assist applicants in fulfilling the educational requirement.
- 5,124 of the 12,385 new nurses that the College of Nurses Ontario registered in the previous year received their nursing education abroad, according to the college.