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OntarioDid not become law (session ended)42nd Parliament, 2nd Session

Bill 98 explained in plain English

Fairness for Ontario's Internationally Trained Workers Act, 2022

Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.

At a glance

Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature
Legislature / Parliament
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Session
42nd Parliament, 2nd Session
Bill number
Bill 98
Full title
Fairness for Ontario's Internationally Trained Workers Act, 2022
Current status
Did not become law (session ended)
Latest event
Ordered referred to Standing Committee (Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly)
Last updated
Mar 24, 2022

Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 42nd Parliament, 2nd Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.

Chamber
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Current Stage
Ordered referred to Standing Committee (Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly)
Latest Activity
Mar 24, 2022
Plain-language explanation
In plain English (our explanation)

Our plain-language take, written for civic education.

Source: By PoliticalData.ca

AI-assisted, reviewed before publishing
Short Version

The Fairness for Ontario's Internationally Trained Workers Act, 2022, establishes advisory committees to recommend improvements for recognizing the credentials and facilitating the employment of internationally trained workers, particularly in healthcare.

What It Means

Bill 98, the Fairness for Ontario's Internationally Trained Workers Act, 2022, aims to address challenges faced by internationally trained and educated workers in Ontario. It requires the Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development to establish a Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee to make recommendations on hiring practices and credential recognition for internationally trained workers. It also requires the Minister of Health to establish an Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee to advise on pathways for internationally trained healthcare professionals. Both committees must include diverse representation. The Act mandates that the recommendations of these committees be published on a government website. The relevant Ministers are also required to submit progress reports to the Legislative Assembly within one year of the committees being established.

What This Bill Does
  • Requires the Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development to establish a Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee within 90 days of the Act coming into force.
  • Specifies the composition of the Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee, including representatives from immigrant-serving organizations, language access organizations, and internationally educated non-regulated professionals.
  • Outlines the functions of the Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee, which include making recommendations on pathways for credential certification, fair hiring practices, and employment counselling for immigrants.
  • Requires the Minister of Health to establish an Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee within 90 days of the Act coming into force.
  • Specifies the composition of the Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee, including representatives from regulatory bodies, academic programs, professional associations, and healthcare labour unions.
  • Outlines the functions of the Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee, which include developing practice-ready pathways, clinical experience programs for physicians, and fair hiring practices for internationally trained healthcare professionals.
  • Requires both Ministers to publish the recommendations of their respective advisory committees on a government website in English, French, and potentially other languages.
  • Requires the Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development and the Minister of Health to each submit a progress report to the Legislative Assembly within one year of establishing their respective advisory committees.
Who Is Affected
  • Internationally trained and educated workers in Ontario
  • Internationally trained and educated healthcare professionals in Ontario
  • The Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development
  • The Minister of Health
  • The Lieutenant Governor in Council
  • Representatives from local immigration partnerships and settlement organization non-profits
  • Representatives from language access organizations
  • Internationally educated non-regulated professionals
  • Relevant regulatory, advisory and licensing bodies for regulated healthcare professions
  • Academic programs in Ontario providing continuing education or bridging programs for internationally trained healthcare professionals
  • Associations of internationally trained healthcare professions
  • Healthcare labour unions and associations
  • The Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Rights, Duties, Or Obligations
  • The Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development is obligated to establish the Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee within 90 days of the Act coming into force.
  • The Minister of Health is obligated to establish the Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee within 90 days of the Act coming into force.
  • The Ministers are obligated to ensure specific groups are represented on their respective advisory committees.
  • The Ministers are obligated to publish the recommendations of their advisory committees.
  • The Ministers are obligated to submit progress reports to the Legislative Assembly within one year of establishing the committees.
Important Dates
  • This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent (which was on the date of Royal Assent for Bill 98).
  • The Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development must establish the Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee no more than 90 days after the day this section comes into force.
  • The Minister of Health must establish the Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee no more than 90 days after the day this section comes into force.
  • A progress report from the Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development is due within one year of establishing the Foreign Credential Recognition Advisory Committee.
  • A progress report from the Minister of Health is due within one year of establishing the Internationally Trained and Educated Healthcare Professions Advisory Committee.
Financial Or Tax Impacts
  • The Lieutenant Governor in Council may determine the remuneration and expenses for members appointed to the advisory committees.
  • The payment of remuneration and expenses for committee members is conditional on money being appropriated by the Legislature.
Uncertainties Or Limits
  • The Act does not specify the exact number of members for each advisory committee, only the types of representatives that must be included.
  • The Act does not detail the specific process for selecting members for the advisory committees beyond the Minister's appointment.
  • The Act does not specify the exact format or content of the progress reports to be submitted to the Legislative Assembly.
  • The Act does not define what constitutes 'fair and non-discriminatory hiring practices' beyond noting that applicants should not be singled out for having foreign degrees or credentials.
Laws Or Regulations Affected
Fairness for Ontario's Internationally Trained Workers Act, 2022
enacts

Establishes new advisory committees and reporting requirements related to the recognition and employment of internationally trained workers.

Source: Preamble

Commencement provision
commencement

This Act comes into force on the day it receives Royal Assent.

Source: Section 7

Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.

Official text

Process Snapshot

Step 1
First reading
Mar 9, 2022
Step 2
Second reading
Mar 24, 2022
Step 3
Committee review
Mar 24, 2022
Step 4
Third reading
Not reached yet
Step 5
Royal assent
Not reached yet

Vote Summary

No published recorded division

This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.

Sponsor
Terence Kernaghan
New Democratic Party of Ontario | London North Centre
Jurisdiction
Ontario Legislature

No published representative vote breakdown

This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.

Official sources

Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.

How this data is sourced