Crane operator rules in Nova Scotia

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. The sources are the Nova Scotia government crane operator page, the Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency's crane operator FAQ and the Crane Operators Regulations made under the Technical Safety Act. The national picture is on the parent page, cranes in tree work.

At a glance

Item	What the sources say
Law	Technical Safety Act and Crane Operators Regulations, N.S. Reg. 13/2011, effective April 1, 2011
What is needed	A Certificate of Competency and a Crane Operator Licence
Cranes covered	Mobile crane, boom truck, overhead travelling crane, tower crane
Certificate term	Issued once, does not expire
Licence term	Renewed each year
Licence fee	CA$145.80, renewal CA$72.90

Who needs what

The government page says a Certificate of Competency and a Crane Operator Licence are needed to operate a mobile crane, boom truck, overhead travelling crane or tower crane. The certification steps are provincial exams, a practical exam, the regulated practical hours set under the Technical Safety Act and the Crane Operators Regulations, and the education requirements: Grade 10 math and either a recognized crane operator training program or a prior learning assessment. Job Bank lists mobile crane operator and tower crane operator trade certification as compulsory in Nova Scotia; see Job Bank on crane operators in Nova Scotia. The Apprenticeship Agency FAQ explains that the Certificate of Competency is granted by the crane operator chief inspector and recognizes the individual's qualifications for the regulated work of that class, while the licence, required by the regulations effective April 1, 2011, allows the operator to perform that work.

The classes

Class	Cranes	Rated lifting capacity
1	Boom truck or mobile crane with a boom and an integral hoisting mechanism	91 tonnes (100 tons) or more
2	Same description	18 tonnes (20 tons) or more, less than 91 tonnes
3	Same description	More than 4.5 tonnes (5 tons), less than 18 tonnes (20 tons)
4	Boom truck with an articulating boom and no winch for lifting the load	More than 4.5 tonnes (5 tons), less than 18 tonnes (20 tons)
Tower	Tower crane	Any
Self-erecting tower	Self-erecting tower crane	Less than 40 metre tonnes
Overhead travelling	Overhead travelling crane	Any tonnage on the government page; more than 9.1 tonnes (10 tons) in the FAQ

Classes 1 to 4 exclude tower cranes, self-erecting tower cranes and overhead travelling cranes. The regulations define a boom truck as a lifting device mounted on a commercial truck chassis with a carrying deck designed to carry a payload, or on a semi tractor trailer truck, with a rated lifting capacity of more than 4.5 tonnes and a telescoping or articulating boom. Class 4 is the class the page names for an articulating boom without a winch. The pages read do not mention tree work. Endorsements for a lattice boom, overhead travelling crane or self-erecting tower crane can be added to a Class 1 or Class 2 certificate with extra regulated hours.

Exams, transfers and review

All applications are assessed for approval to challenge the exams, and late applications are not accepted. Applications go to Technical Safety, while the Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency provides the exam dates. The government page lists reference syllabuses for tower, overhead travelling, and mobile crane and boom truck operators. A certificate from another Canadian jurisdiction can be transferred if it is equivalent to the class sought. Applicants from outside Canada may need a prior learning assessment. The page says Technical Safety should take 10 days to review an application, and up to 30 days for international and transfer applications.

Fees and renewal

The government page lists these fees as dollar amounts for a Nova Scotia licence, shown here with the CA$ code.

Activity	Fee
Exam, per paper	CA$39.80
Re-write exam, per paper	CA$39.80
Certificate of Competency and Crane Operator Licence	CA$145.80
Licence renewal	CA$72.90
Transfer	CA$72.90
Copy of certificate or licence	CA$33.20 each

The Certificate of Competency is issued once and does not expire, and the Crane Operator Licence is renewed each year. An expired licence can be paid for up to 4 years from the expiry date. The Crane Operators Regulations also list a designated rigger, a rule on responsibility for the lift, the operator's ability to refuse a lift, a logbook, a load chart and a crane manual among the duties. See the Crane Operators Regulations.