Time for a National Association?

Manufacturers have one. So do warehouse/distributors. The Automotive Industries Association (AIA) does an excellent job of representing the interests of the parts side of the automotive aftermarket, through direct involvement of volunteer industry personnel and because of AIA president Ray Datt and his team. Fortunately for the service side of the aftermarket, many issues, like right-to-repair, overlap our interests, so we benefit from their activity. But who represents the service provider on a national scale? The current system of provincial and regional associations was born out of necessity, mainly because of the huge size of this country and the provincial nature of service industry regulation. Times, however, are changing. A/C refrigerant standards are federal. Right-to-repair is also a national issue. And while qualification standards are provincial, “Red Seal” technicians can work anywhere in the country, so licensing is increasingly national in character. Most importantly, though, the major problems facing the industry are common across the country. Labour shortages, profitability, regulation, taxation and the poor image suffered by the service aftermarket are all national issues. Yet the industry works with associations under similar but different mandates chasing similar goals. If ever there were economies of scale, it would have to be here. How would a national association be constituted? Maybe a coalition of provincial and regional groups with an elected national board. Or perhaps an entirely new association that has no regional structure. Maybe the AIA could split off a group to form the nucleus of a new organization. However it’s done, I think it has to built around a few basic principles:

1. It has to be completely controlled by technicians and shop owners. Direct democracy is the only fair way to do this, meaning one person, one vote.

2. It needs simple, clearly defined goals. Whether its ad campaigns to boost the image of technicians, an internal certification program for member shops and techs, right down to golf tournaments, it’s important that the association not spread itself too thinly and focus on core strategies.

3. The structure has to be lean. Too many committees and subcommittees can turn any association into a bureaucracy. No one wants to volunteer their time to debate paperwork like the United Nations. And volunteer participation is crucial to success.

4. It has to be transparent and independently audited. Finances should be open to scrutiny and audited for accuracy like a publicly held corporation. Members deserve to know where the money is going.

5. It needs two key people, hired or from within the industry:

* A media-savvy spokesman (or woman) who looks professional and can clearly articulate our needs to the media, print and broadcast.

* A lobbyist with access to Parliament Hill bureaucrats and politicians to swing the deals necessary to get our issues at least into Question Period, but preferably into legislation.

Can it be done? Probably, but getting it started nationally would be a serious challenge, especially if current provincial and regional associations won’t buy in. The other problem is demographic. How do you prevent Ontario from dominating the association, given the number of shops in this province? And what about Quebec? The AIA makes it work for their members, so we know it’s possible. But is our industry ready to buy into the idea?