AIA Canada on Right to Repair Legislation and Workforce Initiatives

Join host, Stacey Miller, VP of Communications, on an enlightening journey as she welcomes JF Champagne, President and CEO of AIA Canada, to Auto Care ON AIR. With recent legislative victories in Canada shaking up the automotive care industry, Champagne shares the groundbreaking implications of Bills C-244 and 294, which now allow breaking software locks for repairs on vehicles, agricultural equipment, and more. Discover how these legal changes are setting the stage for a broader right to repair movement and what this could mean amidst Canada's politically dynamic landscape.

Broadcasting from the global AAPEX Show, we unravel the essential role of international partnerships in tackling industry challenges, with a spotlight on AIA Canada's collaboration with the Auto Care Association. Learn why this milestone is a vital precursor to comprehensive legislation and how it stands to benefit a range of sectors beyond automotive. As the current Canadian government teeters on the edge of change, this conversation couldn't be more timely, offering a unique perspective on the evolving intersection of policy and industry.

To learn more about the Auto Care Association visit autocare.org.

To learn more about our show and suggest future topics and guests, visit autocare.org/podcast

Transcript

Stacey Miller: 0:13

Welcome to Auto Care ON AIR, a candid podcast for a curious industry. I'm Stacey Miller, Vice President of Communications at the Auto Care Association, and this is Traction Control, where we chat about recent news from the global to the local level and what it may mean to the industry, featuring guests on the front lines. Let's roll.

Stacey Miller: 0:34

Well, I would like to welcome to the studio today JF Champagne. He's the President and CEO of AIA Canada, which is a tremendous partner of the Auto Care Association up north in Canada. As you might have predicted, we're so excited to have you today.

JF Champagne: 0:48

Well, thank you very much. I'm glad to be here. Thank you for the invitation.

Stacey Miller: 0:51

Absolutely so. Just to give our listeners a flavor of what you do, tell us a little bit about AIA Canada and what your priorities are, sure so.

JF Champagne: 1:01

AIA Canada, the Automotive Industries Association of Canada, which is an association that represents everyone that plays into the auto care sector in Canada. We very much have a very similar membership mix than Auto Care Association and really advocating on behalf of our members primarily around right to repair, obviously focusing on issues related to labor and very much trying to unite everyone in the aftermarket in Canada and be their voice and their resource.

Stacey Miller: 1:30

Absolutely, and such a critical partner of ours. We're here at Apex, which is a global show, and not many people may know that. We partner with associations globally, such as AIA Canada, on issues such as right to repair, which we're going to talk about very shortly, but we thank you so much for your longstanding partnership and support throughout the issue. But there's some news coming out of Canada that we're following and we want to hear from you about. So there was a bill recently that passed that relates to right to repair.

JF Champagne: 1:59

Tell us about that In fact, two bills were adopted last week. We made the big announcement, so we're very pleased to announce that Bill C-244 and 294 have finally made it through the Senate. It's been three years in the making, lots of effort, and what these two bills do? In fact, they come and amend the Copyright Act, and so very similar to what exists with the Digital Mineral Act in the US and some of the exemptions that have been granted. Well, in Canada we also do have copyright law that protects against breaking software locks on product software, music, vehicles, and so we've been advocating strongly that it needed to have a carve out to ensure that we are able to break software lock for the purpose of diagnostic repair and maintenance of vehicle, and so those two bills would do exactly that. It just finally make it through.

JF Champagne: 3:00

And now with this amendment, it is no longer illegal to break software lock when you're servicing, and again it applies to all goods. It's not just about automotive, farming equipment, electronic equipment, home appliances and so on are all covered with this bill. It again provides the mean for repairers to be able to break software lock for maintenance and repair of products. So we're very keen about that, and while this is one first step in the right direction. This is a very important step for us because, from the federal perspective, this was the necessary precursor to any other comprehensive right to repair legislation. So it was important for us to do this At a time if you follow Canadian politics where the current government is just about to fall it's a monetary government so it was very, very important. It's almost just at the finish line, before we are going to go into elections most likely maybe change government.

Stacey Miller: 3:56

Okay, wow, so that's a big deal. So that does include automotive.

JF Champagne: 4:01

It is. It's not specifying automotive. Interestingly enough, in fact, in their early efforts,