Canada/Training municipal inspectors: "a national priority

Qualified municipal inspection personnel are in demand throughout the province. Yet only the Cégep de Matane offers an Attestation of Collegial Studies (AEC) in the field. The Ministry of Higher Education recently recognized this program as a national priority.

Karine-Julie Guénard is a building and environment inspector with the MRC de La Matapédia. With her binder of legislation, she grants building permits and verifies the compliance of various installations with municipal regulations.

What she loves most about her job is giving the green light, before the first shovelful of earth.

I love saying 'yes' to their project, and seeing their eyes light up," says the municipal inspector of her profession.

She has a DEC in urban planning, but the AEC in municipal inspection offered by the Cégep de Matane is a useful way of qualifying municipal workers.

Recognized training

Cégep de Matane's AEC program has been accepted as a "national priority" by the Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur.

Christine Dugas, Director of Continuing Education at Cégep de Matane, explains that if the training had not been recognized, the program's survival would have been at stake. The program had 180 registrations by fall 2024.

She explains that this recognition from Quebec City will ensure the program's funding, and that it will be able to continue welcoming new students.

However, the director would not comment on the amount of financial assistance granted.

The program had been revised in 2023 to meet the labour needs of municipalities for building inspector functions.

Christine Dugas adds that this is the only college-level municipal inspection program in Quebec. Its stability plays a role in municipal recruitment.

Sustained demand

Chantale Lavoie, Prefect of the MRC de La Matapédia, testifies to the labour challenges in municipal inspection that have been overcome in the past.

We put out calls for tenders and applications, and we didn't have anyone who responded or had the required qualifications.

A quote from Chantale Lavoie, Prefect of the MRC de La Matapédia

She adds that every municipality has a document with rules, plans and urban planning bylaws that the inspector must enforce.

The request for recognition of the AEC by the Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur was supported by several MRCs in Eastern Quebec, as well as by the Ministère des Affaires municipales et de l'Habitation.

Relieved by this recognition, the Director of Continuing Education at Cégep de Matane now says she wants to expand the training on offer. Christine Dugas is referring to the DEC in urban planning, suspended for lack of enrolment.

The Diploma in Urban Planning and the AEC in Municipal Inspection are two related programs. We obviously want to work on new formulas for the DEC, so as to succeed in increasing our recruitment in the program," admits the director.

She points out that these are two programs that municipalities are monitoring for recruitment purposes.

Source: ici.radio-canada.ca/