Canadian Occupational Safety

18 www.cos-mag.com Canadian Occupational Safety f an accountant is asked to tamper with a company's finances, they can refuse. If a social worker is asked to hide evidence of abuse, they can point to their profes- sional duty to report. If an architect is asked to sign off on a blueprint that they just don't think is quite right, they can walk away. But if a safety professional were put in a less than desirable situation, what recourse do they have? Regulating the profession would allow safety professionals to fall back on their legally binding professional code of conduct, similar to the afore- mentioned professions, teachers, lawyers, engineers and many others. "It's going to give practitioners a consistent approach and also a reference point," says Peter Sturm, principal of Sturm Consulting in Toronto and occupational health and safety instructor at the University of Toronto's School of Continuing Studies. "If you're an engineer or a nurse, you can say, 'Well my profession requires me to do ABC not XYZ.' It gives the messaging back to whoever you're working for that you have a certain standard to adhere to." Having this backing is just one benefit of becom- ing a regulated profession, something various industry groups are working towards across the country. Being a regulated profession (also referred to as self-regulation) means that an occupational group enters into an agreement with the gov- ernment to formally regulate the activities of its members. A statute is entrenched into law, which outlines various requirements for the profession. Given the nature of the jurisdictional model in Canada, the regulation of a profession takes place separately for each of the 14 jurisdictions — it cannot be done nationally. According to a survey of 409 Canadian Occupational regulation by employers and employers are doing that because they have a legislative obligation to protect their workers, or by definition, the public," he says. "Obviously there's a vested interest to make sure the person who is giving you that advice has a certain level of competency and skills." The Alberta Society of Health and Safety Profes- sionals (ASHSP) was established in November 2017 with the goal of regulating the profession in Alberta. According to the society, public interest includes: worker health and safety; future workers' health and safety; workers' families and loved ones who are also impacted by workplace injuries and illnesses; the societal costs of workplace injuries and illnesses (such as health care, insurance, etc.); and the eco- nomic costs of workplace injuries and illnesses. Nearly two-thirds (65 per cent) of the respon- dents to the COS survey agreed that regulating the safety profession would be in the best interest of the public. However, convincing the government of this fact may not be as easy as it seems. "There's a vetting process and generally there is some criteria that has to be met and then the government decides if it is in the public interest," says Taylor. "And part of making that pitch is making a convincing argument that there is a need for it — that public safety will be enhanced and the public interest will be served by having that The road to Associations across Canada are seeking self-regulation for the profession, but how will this impact OHS professionals themselves? By Amanda Silliker Safety readers conducted in December, 43 per cent said the profession is absolutely ready for regulation, while 33 per cent agreed it should be regulated, but expressed having some questions or concerns. Eight per cent said the safety profession is not quite yet ready for regulation, while another 8 per cent said the profession should not be regulated. The final 8 per cent were neutral. Becoming a regulated profession must be guided by the public interest. "You've got a set of standards — there's a bar that everybody had to meet — so (the public has) con- fidence in that anybody who carries a particular professional title has demonstrated the knowledge and competencies required to provide a certain defined, minimal level of safe, quality, ethical ser- vice," says Kevin Taylor, chair of the Ottawa-based Canadian Network of Agencies for Regulation. When the application is made to the government for becoming a regulated profession, it is going to first and foremost look at if doing so is in the public interest. While you might get there in a roundabout way, the work that safety professionals do certainly protects the public, says Kevin Dawson, Halifax- based chair of the Board of Canadian Registered Safety Professionals (BCRSP). "They tend to deal with the public indirectly in a sense that they are usually working for or consulted MYTH: The national health and safety organizations already regulate the profession, so a provincial body is not needed. The national organizations govern their members, but they don't regulate them. This governance is voluntary, where regulation is backed by law. Additionally, professional regulation cannot be done by a national body. TRUTH:

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