On Thursday, 08 October 2009, Bill 9 – The Social Work Profession Act was granted Royal Assent in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. The legislation had been in development for many years and will now result in the formation of the Manitoba College of Social Workers, which will assume responsibilities for regulation of the profession of Social Work in accordance with the terms specified in the Act. Although granted Royal Assent, a coming into force date has not yet been specified and will be determined in the days ahead as consultations with the Manitoba Government occur.

The primary purpose of the legislation and the regulatory College will be to regulate use of the title of Social Worker and ensure that the best interests of the public and the profession are served through the application and promotion of high standards for education, training, competency in practice, and ethics.

Under this legislation all individuals who represent themselves as Social Workers will be required to meet specific qualifications as set out by the Act and the College regulations. In accordance with the terms of the Act, qualifications for registration will be:

 A Social Work degree from an accredited post-secondary faculty or school, or
 Completion of another educational program of study approved by the College, or
 A combination of education or training, and work or volunteer experience considered to be substantially equivalent and approved by the College

Accountability for practice and conduct will be assured through a public complaints and review process. As well, the College will maintain a Register of all regulated Social Workers that will be accessible for members of the public to verify registration and any conditions on the certificate of registration.

Section 4(1) of the Act specifies that the Manitoba Institute of Registered Social Workers (MIRSW) will continue as the Manitoba College of Social Workers.

In the development process for the emerging College of Social Workers, MIRSW will be continuing to lead in the development of the College model and will continue to facilitate stakeholder consultations with the many sectors of practice in the Social Work community as regulations, bylaws and procedures are developed to meet the requirements of the legislation. As development progresses we hope that all Social Workers and other stakeholders will actively participate in providing positive contributions and that the process of building a College will bring strong collaboration and greater integration within the Social Work profession.

To view other pages with information pertaining to the College development process please choose one of the links shown below.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

THE SOCIAL WORK PROFESSION ACT

OVERVIEW OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COLLEGE

THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

KEY ISSUES OVERVIEW

THE JUNE 2010 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING & PANEL PRESENTATION

BOARD MEMBERS

COMMENTS