RBQ glossary: letter C

Call for tenders (appel d’offres)

The process of inviting businesses to submit a tender for a contract, so that the best offer can be chosen. The tender documents (plans, specifications, addenda, tender form, instructions to bidders) set the conditions that make the tenders comparable. For public bodies, the procedure is governed by the Act respecting contracting by public bodies and its regulations.

See also: Tender (soumission), Addendum (addenda), Bid depository (BSDQ), Tender security (garantie de soumission)

Project and site management examSource: RBQ, Project and site management competency profile, element 10 (French)

Carnet référence construction (labour-referral service)

The CCQ’s online platform that serves as the construction industry labour-referral service. An employer that needs employees must declare that need there before hiring, then receives lists of candidates, and only associations holding a permit may propose referrals through it (ss. 107.7 to 107.9 of the R-20 Act). The employer remains free to choose the candidate.

See also: Hiring and mobility of employees (embauche et mobilité), Commission de la construction du Québec (CCQ), Representative association (association représentative)

Administration examSource: LégisQuébec, R-20, art. 107.9

CCDC (Canadian Construction Documents Committee)

A national committee formed in 1974 that drafts and reviews the standard construction contracts, forms and guides used in Canada. It brings together public and private owner representatives and four national organizations, including the Canadian Construction Association and the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada. Its documents include CCDC 2 (stipulated price), CCDC 3 (cost plus), CCDC 4 (unit price) and the CCDC 220 to 222 bond forms.

See also: Stipulated price contract (contrat à forfait), Cost plus contract (contrat à prix coûtant majoré), Unit price contract (contrat à prix unitaires), Performance bond (cautionnement d’exécution)

Project and site management examSource: Construction Specifications Canada, CCDC page

Certificate of compliance (attestation de conformité)

A CNESST document that releases the party who gives out the work from possible liability for the assessment owed by the contractor it hired. The Act allows the CNESST to claim that assessment from the client who retains the contractor’s services (LATMP, s. 316). The certificate is requested at the end of each contract. The CNESST also offers a compliance check before the contract and follow-up during it.

See also: CNESST assessment (cotisation), Subcontractor (sous-traitant), Contractor (entrepreneur)

Safety management examSource: CNESST, compliance verification services (French)

Change order (ordre de changement)

A written document, signed by the owner, that approves a change to the contract during the work, such as added or deleted work, with its effect on the price or the time. The Office québécois de la langue française prefers the French term ordre de modification. A site instruction (directive de chantier) must be carried out on site, but if it changes the contract, a change order must follow. Under a stipulated price contract, the price changes only if the parties agree (Civil Code, art. 2109).

See also: Stipulated price contract (contrat à forfait), Addendum (addenda), Plans and specifications (plans et devis)

Project and site management examSource: OQLF, Grand dictionnaire terminologique, ordre de modification (French)

Charter of human rights and freedoms (Charte des droits et libertés de la personne)

The Québec statute (C-12) that protects, among other things, the right to equality without discrimination based on grounds such as sex, pregnancy, ethnic origin, religion or disability (s. 10). It bans discrimination in hiring, apprenticeship, training, conditions of employment and dismissal (s. 16). It also gives every person who works the right to fair and reasonable conditions that respect their health and safety (s. 46).

See also: Psychological harassment (harcèlement psychologique), Act respecting labour standards (Loi sur les normes du travail), PAEF (Programme d’accès à l’égalité des femmes dans l’industrie de la construction)

Administration examSource: LégisQuébec, C-12, art. 16

Claim to the CNESST (réclamation)

A worker who suffers an employment injury notifies his or her supervisor before leaving the establishment, if able to (LATMP, s. 265). If unable to work for more than 14 full days, or left with a permanent impairment, the worker files a claim with the CNESST on the prescribed form within 6 months of the injury (s. 270). The time limit is 2 years for an injury resulting from sexual violence, and the employer must help the worker prepare the claim.

See also: Employment injury (lésion professionnelle), Industrial accident (accident du travail), Health professional in charge (professionnel de la santé qui a charge)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, A-3.001, art. 270

Classification by major occupancy (classement selon l’usage principal)

The NBC classifies each building, or part of a building, by its major occupancy into six groups lettered A to F, some split into divisions. Group A covers assembly occupancies, B care, treatment or detention, C residential, D business and personal services, E mercantile, and F industrial occupancies, divided by level of hazard. This classification drives many of the requirements, including access to Part 9.

See also: National Building Code of Canada (Code national du bâtiment, CNB), Part 9 of the NBC (partie 9 du CNB), Architects Act (Loi sur les architectes)

Project and site management examRBQ licence 1.2 vs 1.3Source: RBQ, project and site management competency profile, element 6 (French)

CMEQ and CMMTQ

The Québec corporations of master electricians and of master pipe-mechanics. For contractors, subclass 16 goes through the CMEQ and subclasses 15.1 to 15.5 through the CMMTQ. Subclasses 15.6 to 15.10 stay with the RBQ.

Source: LégisQuébec, B-1.1, r. 5

CNESST (Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail)

The body established by section 137 of the Act respecting occupational health and safety. It brings together the former labour standards commission, pay equity commission and occupational health and safety commission (CSST), under the Act that also created the Administrative Labour Tribunal (T-15.1, s. 237). Among other things, the CNESST administers the LSST and the LATMP: prevention and inspection, compensation of workers and employer assessments.

See also: Act respecting occupational health and safety (LSST), Act respecting industrial accidents and occupational diseases (LATMP), CNESST inspector (inspecteur), CNESST assessment (cotisation)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, S-2.1, art. 137

CNESST assessment (cotisation)

The insurance premium an employer pays to fund the occupational health and safety system. Each year the CNESST assesses the employer at the rate of its unit of classification or, where applicable, at its personalized rate (LATMP, s. 305), based on the gross wages the employer declares (s. 291). An employer required to make source deductions pays periodic instalments to the Minister of Revenue on the same schedule (s. 315.1).

See also: Unit of classification (unité de classification), Personalized rate (taux personnalisé), Certificate of compliance (attestation de conformité), Source deductions (retenues à la source)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, A-3.001, art. 305

CNESST inspector (inspecteur)

A CNESST officer who enforces the LSST and its regulations (s. 177). The inspector may enter a workplace at any reasonable hour, issue a remedial order setting a time to comply (s. 182), and order the suspension of work or the shutdown of a workplace if he or she considers workers to be in danger (s. 186). A person who believes he or she has been wronged by an order or decision may apply to the CNESST for review within 10 days (s. 191.1).

See also: CNESST (Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail), Right to refuse (droit de refus), Review of a CNESST decision (révision administrative)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, S-2.1, art. 182

Commission de la construction du Québec (CCQ)

The body established by the R-20 Act to administer it. It oversees the application of collective agreements, ensures workforce competency and issues competency certificates, monitors hiring and mobility, and administers the benefit plans and the labour-referral service. Not to be confused with the Civil Code of Québec, often abbreviated C.C.Q.

See also: R-20 Act (Loi R-20), Competency certificate (certificat de compétence), Carnet référence construction (labour-referral service), Monthly report to the CCQ (rapport mensuel)

Administration examSource: LégisQuébec, R-20, art. 4

Compensation for bodily injury (indemnité pour préjudice corporel)

Compensation owed to a worker who sustains a permanent physical or mental impairment as a result of an employment injury (LATMP, s. 83). It takes into account the anatomicophysiological deficit, disfigurement, and the resulting suffering and loss of enjoyment of life. It is separate from the income replacement indemnity, which compensates for lost income.

See also: Rehabilitation (réadaptation), Income replacement indemnity (indemnité de remplacement du revenu), Employment injury (lésion professionnelle)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, A-3.001, art. 83

Competency certificate (certificat de compétence)

A document issued by the CCQ that allows a person to perform construction work covered by the R-20 Act. There are three kinds: journeyman (for holders of a qualification certificate in a trade), apprentice and occupation. Each requires the safety course set by the Safety Code and expires one year after issue or renewal. An employer who assigns work to someone without a valid certificate commits an offence (s. 119.1 of the R-20 Act).

See also: Apprentice (apprenti), Trade and occupation (métier et occupation), Commission de la construction du Québec (CCQ)

Administration examDocuments provided at the RBQ examsSource: LégisQuébec, R-20, r. 5, art. 1

Competency element (élément)

A unit of an RBQ competency profile, grouped into modules. The administration exam has 24 elements in 4 modules, the safety management exam 33 elements in 4 modules and the project and site management exam 26 elements in 5 modules. Our element titles are paraphrases.

RBQ examsSource: RBQ, exam preparation (French)

Competency profile (profil de compétences)

The RBQ document that describes, by module and element, what an exam assesses. The profiles publish no weighting. Reproducing them requires the RBQ’s written consent: we cite and paraphrase them, never copy them.

Source: RBQ, exam preparation (French)

Construction Code, chapter I (Building)

Chapter I of the Québec Construction Code has used the NBC 2020 as amended for Québec since 17 April 2025. The printed exam information sheets still list the NBC 2015 as amended as the document provided. A transition period allows the previous text for work that began before 17 October 2027.

Source: RBQ, Building chapter including the NBC 2020 (French)

Construction management (gérance de construction)

A delivery method in which the owner hires a firm, the construction manager, to manage the work on the owner’s behalf. Under CCDC 5A the manager provides services only and the trade contractors sign their contracts with the owner, while under CCDC 5B the manager also provides the construction. The Office québécois de la langue française recommends the French term gestion de construction.

See also: Design-build (conception-construction), CCDC (Canadian Construction Documents Committee), Cost plus contract (contrat à prix coûtant majoré)

Project and site management examSource: RBQ, Project and site management competency profile, element 12 (French)

Construction sectors (secteurs de la construction)

The R-20 Act divides the industry into four sectors: residential, institutional and commercial, industrial, and civil engineering and roads (s. 1). Each sector has its own collective agreement. The residential sector covers buildings with at least 85% of their area, parking excluded, used for housing, up to six storeys for a new building or eight otherwise. The institutional and commercial sector takes whatever fits none of the other three.

See also: Sector collective agreement (convention collective sectorielle), R-20 Act (Loi R-20), Association of Building Contractors of Québec (AECQ)

Administration examSource: LégisQuébec, R-20, art. 1

Construction site (chantier de construction)

Under the LSST (s. 1), a place where construction, maintenance, renovation, repair, alteration or demolition work on a building or civil engineering works is carried out on site. It also covers preparatory land work and the lodging, meal or recreation premises the employer provides to construction workers. The rules on the principal contractor and the site prevention mechanisms apply on a construction site.

See also: Principal contractor (maître d’œuvre), Notice of opening of a construction site (avis d’ouverture de chantier), Prevention mechanisms specific to construction sites (mécanismes de prévention)

Safety management examSource: LégisQuébec, S-2.1, art. 1

Contract of enterprise (contrat d’entreprise)

An agreement under which a contractor carries out a work for a client in exchange for a price (art. 2098 of the Civil Code). It is the legal framework of nearly every construction contract, from a small renovation job to a stipulated-price contract on a large project. The Civil Code attaches to it, among other things, liability for loss of the work and the warranty against poor workmanship.

See also: Liability for loss of the work (perte de l’ouvrage), Warranty against poor workmanship (garantie contre les malfaçons), Legal construction hypothec (hypothèque légale de la construction), Stipulated price contract (contrat à forfait)

Administration examSource: LégisQuébec, C.C.Q., art. 2098

Contractor (entrepreneur)

Under the Building Act (s. 7), a person who carries out or has construction work carried out for someone else, for profit. Drawing up or submitting a tender for such work also counts, even through an intermediary. Someone who builds for their own account is an owner-builder instead. The work covered includes foundation, erection, renovation, repair, maintenance, alteration and demolition work (s. 9).

See also: Owner-builder (constructeur-propriétaire), Contractor’s licence (licence RBQ), General contractor (entrepreneur général), Specialized contractor (entrepreneur spécialisé)

General contractor licenceSpecialized contractor licenceSource: LégisQuébec, B-1.1, art. 7

Contractor’s licence (licence RBQ)

The authorization without which no one may act as a building contractor, hold themselves out as one or give cause to believe they are one (s. 46 of the Building Act). A contractor also may not use the services of another contractor who has no licence. The licence shows, among other things, the authorized subclasses, the names of the guarantors and the annual maintenance payment date (r. 9, s. 16). An owner-builder also needs a licence (s. 48).

See also: Contractor (entrepreneur), Subclass (sous-catégorie), Guarantor (répondant), Licence maintenance (maintien de licence)

How to get an RBQ licenceLicence fee calculatorSource: LégisQuébec, B-1.1, art. 46

Convocation notice

The RBQ’s letter or email with the date, time and office of your exam. There is no self-serve calendar: the RBQ writes to the guarantor after reviewing the licence application. To sit the exam in English, the exam titles must appear in English on the notice; otherwise, tell the RBQ at least 7 days before the exam.

Taking the RBQ exam in EnglishSource: RBQ, examinations: instructions and results

Cost estimate (estimation des coûts)

A detailed calculation of what the work will cost, based on the plans and specifications: quantities, materials, labour, equipment, overhead and target profit. It sets the price of a tender and, once the contract is won, becomes the basis of the site budget. The estimate file brings together the quantity takeoff, the prices received from subcontractors and suppliers, and the calculations behind the price.

See also: Quantity takeoff (métré), Overhead (frais généraux), Tender (soumission)

Project and site management examSource: RBQ, Project and site management competency profile, element 13 (French)

Cost plus contract (contrat à prix coûtant majoré)

A contract in which the client reimburses the contractor’s actual costs for the work, plus a fee for overhead and profit, either fixed or calculated as a percentage of those costs. The client therefore bears the risk of rising costs, unlike in a stipulated price contract. CCDC 3 is the Canadian standard form for this kind of contract.

See also: Stipulated price contract (contrat à forfait), Overhead (frais généraux), CCDC (Canadian Construction Documents Committee)

Project and site management examSource: RBQ, Project and site management competency profile, element 12 (French)

Critical path (chemin critique)

The chain of activities that sets a project’s total duration: a delay on any of them delays completion. It is found by linking activities by their dependencies and durations, then finding the longest sequence. Activities off the critical path have float, time they can slip without moving the finish date.

See also: Schedule (échéancier), Gantt chart (diagramme de Gantt)

Project and site management examSource: RBQ, Project and site management competency profile, element 18 (French)

Cultural Heritage Act (Loi sur le patrimoine culturel)

The Québec statute (P-9.002) that promotes the knowledge, protection, enhancement and transmission of cultural heritage, including heritage immovables, sites and objects. Two rules matter on a site: no one may alter, restore or demolish classified heritage property without the Minister’s authorization (s. 48), and anyone who discovers an archaeological property or site must inform the Minister without delay (s. 74).

See also: Sustainable development, 3RV (reduction, re-use, recycling, reclamation)

Project and site management examSustainable development in the RBQ examsSource: LégisQuébec, P-9.002, art. 74

Definitions written by RBQexam from the statutes and the RBQ’s pages, without reproducing their text. If in doubt, the official source prevails.