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Click here for a listing of trade and occupation certificates recognized in Alberta.
The Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) was signed by the governments of Alberta and British Columbia in 2006. The TILMA eases the movement of goods, services, investment and workers between Alberta and British Columbia. It came into effect on April 1, 2007 and was fully implemented on April 1, 2009, following the conclusion of a two-year transition period.
The TILMA requires individuals who are qualified or certified in an occupation in one province to be recognized by the other province as qualified to practice that occupation in that province without significant additional training, experience, examination or assessment of qualifications.
Letters exchanged by the Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Board and the British Columbia Industry Training Authority list the trades for which certification is available in both or either of the provinces.
The Agreement on Internal Trade (often referred to as AIT) is an agreement signed by the federal, provincial and territorial governments in 1994. Like the TILMA, it is intended to remove barriers and make the movement of goods, services, investment and workers between provinces and territories easier. Chapter Seven, respecting labour mobility, was recently revised.
Chapter Seven requires individuals who hold a certificate or license in a trade or occupation to be recognized by all other provinces and territories that issue a similar certificate or license without significant additional training, experience, examination or assessment of qualifications.
These agreements apply to all Alberta designated trades and occupations but have the greatest impact on Alberta’s compulsory certification trades. For additional information, see Labour Mobility – Questions and Answers.
These agreements mean that a person who holds a recognized certificate – that is, a certificate or license recognized by the Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Board – can work in Alberta without obtaining an Alberta certificate. This includes workers who hold a certificate, either with or without a Red Seal endorsement, issued under the Interprovincial Standards Red Seal Program.
Certificates in a designated trade or occupation issued by a regulatory authority in Canada are recognized in Alberta. This includes certificates in Red Seal trades that do not have a Red Seal endorsement. As well, the Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Board has recognized other certificates, such as some QL5 certificates issued by the Department of National Defence (Canada) and certificates issued under the Canadian Elevator Industry Education Program (CEIEP).
*Note: “Regulatory authority” refers to a government department or agency, or an organization with authority delegated by law, that establishes standards or requirements for certification, assesses workers’ qualifications, or issues certificates or licenses indicating a person met those standards. In most cases, the regulatory authority for the trades is the same authority that issues the Red Seal endorsement.
The Red Seal endorsement is a recognized standard in jurisdictions across Canada, one that employers look for as an indication of skills and competency.
Workers who hold a certificate that bears a Red Seal endorsement can work in Alberta - and anywhere in Canada - without further training or examination.
As of 2009, there are 50 trades for which Red Seal endorsements are available in Canada (see Red Seal Trades).
Introduced in 1958, the Red Seal Program was established to provide mobility for skilled workers across Canada. Apprentices who have completed their apprenticeship program and certified journeypersons can obtain a Red Seal endorsement on their certificates by successfully completing an interprovincial standards examination.
The Red Seal Program encourages standardization of apprenticeship training and certification programs. It is administered under the guidance of the Canadian Council of Directors of Apprenticeship (CCDA) in each province and territory. A national occupational analysis is developed for each Red Seal trade and is used as a base document for the development of interprovincial standards examinations and is encouraged for use in curriculum development.
In Red Seal trades or occupations, completing apprentices and holders of valid trade or occupation credentials may apply to write the Interprovincial Standards Red Seal examination.
If they are successful, they receive a distinctive Red Seal that is attached to their journeyperson level certificate. In some cases, the Red Seal is also attached to wallet identification cards.
In Alberta, to qualify for a Red Seal, you must:
Alberta and all the other provinces and territories continue to support the Red Seal Program. The Red Seal endorsement continues to be widely recognized and respected by industry as a standard of excellence. In certain work environments, it may provide a competitive hiring advantage. Some employers may require workers to have a Red Seal endorsement before they hire them.
Both agreements specifically mention the Red Seal Program and require the parties to the agreements to recognize a worker who holds a certificate bearing the Red Seal endorsement as qualified to practice that trade.
The Agreement on Internal Trade, Chapter 7, contains a commitment of the jurisdictions to the Red Seal Program, including the use of the National Occupational Analyses as a well-accepted means of establishing common interprovincial standards for the trades. In fact, it points to the Red Seal Program as a model of the kind of interprovincial standards that jurisdictions should strive to adopt for other occupations.
