Hon. Alice Wong, P.C.

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, December 9, 2009—Today, Ms. Alice Wong, Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism, on behalf of the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, announced help for acupuncturists to increase their labour mobility across Canada.

“Our government has taken action to help make full labour mobility a reality,” said Ms. Wong. “We’re offering workers a wider range of opportunities, and giving employers a larger and richer pool of qualified candidates.”

The Government of Canada is investing $94,005 in the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of British Columbia. This funding will help develop common skill sets, registration exams and educational expectations for acupuncturists. It will also enable freer movement for certified workers between the provinces and territories.

While the main focus of this project is to help Canadian-trained acupuncturists, full labour mobility will also apply to internationally trained workers once they are certified to work in Canada.

The Prime Minister and Canada’s premiers and territorial leaders endorsed revisions to the Agreement on Internal Trade in January 2009 to help facilitate labour mobility. The new provisions eliminate many internal trade barriers and enhance labour mobility in Canada. The Government of Canada is committed to helping Canadians work anywhere in the country without any additional training, examinations or assessments.

For more information on labour mobility, visit the following Web sites: www.hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/workplaceskills/labour_mobility/index.shtml or
www.ait-aci.ca/labour_en/.

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