“Engineering is a regulated profession for a reason,” the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA) said in a statement late Friday. The group said software engineers handle sensitive products and should be accredited accordingly: “you do not want someone designing your pacemaker or self-driving car if they are not a licensed engineer,” APEGA’s CEO Jay Nagendran said. (The Logic)

Talking point: The statement comes after Jobber CEO Sam Pillar told The Logic that his company could be forced to relocate amid an ongoing legal dispute with APEGA, which has sought to restrict the tech sector’s use of “software engineer” and similar terms in job searches. APEGA regulates the engineering profession in Alberta under provincial legislation. On Friday, the Council of Canadian Innovators and 32 tech executives sent a letter to Alberta Premier Danielle Smith decrying APEGA’s “overreach,” saying the association is wrongly claiming regulatory rights over a generally accepted term and could hinder hiring plans in the sector. Smith spokesperson Rebecca Polak did not respond to The Logic’s request for comment.