Canadian Occupational Safety

20 www.cos-mag.com Canadian Occupational Safety In the spirit of uniformity, BCRSP would like to see the regulation of the profession unfold with individual regulatory colleges in each jurisdiction, but with an overarching national framework. One option on the table is for the BCRSP to set up legal entities in each province, says Dawson. "Even though there might be provincial regu- larly bodies or colleges and they would have specific requirements to a particular province, unique to that province, in a general sense, the overall regulatory regime would be common across Canada," he says. The BCRSP regulatory bodies would protect both the CRSP and the new Canadian Registered Safety Technician (CRST) titles as well as other titles affecting health and safety generalists, hygienists and ergonomists. "A lot of thought needs to go into envisioning a national framework that is inclusive of other profes- sions and practitioners within occupational safety and health," Dawson says. However, Carolan is advocating for the CSA to develop a National Standard for OHS Professionals as opposed to professional regulation. He noted governments prefer the "consensus model" of the CSA because not only does it work with industry representatives (which could include the BCRSP and CSSE) but it's also open to the public. "The CSA is accredited, its focus is worker safety when it comes to OHS, it's balanced," he said at the conference. Another concern is inter-provincial mobility. Nearly one-half (48 per cent) of the respondents to the COS survey are in a role that requires them to work in more than one province or territory. "If they are doing work across the country, will the regulated profession prohibit them from prac- tice? Or my company has multiple locations across the country, will that have an impact? We work in Alberta and the Maritimes, now I'm regulated in Alberta, what's the impact going to be for me? These are the issues that need to be addressed," says Sturm. Dawson says it's likely an individual would have to pass a province-specific competency test to work in another province. "Everybody realizes you have to have certain rules around fall protection, but Alberta might want to do it this way and B.C. wants to do it another way," he says. "Every province has its own little set of rules." There is some concern around the costs of becom- ing self-regulated, too. Once the ASHSP becomes a regulatory college, Fedun expects the membership fees will be in the range of $350 to $450. For con- text, the current annual fee for CSSE membership is $205. But in many instances, the employer will pay for the fee. One of the requirements for a regulatory college is that it needs to be funded solely by mem- bership dues — the regulator is not allowed to take money from external sources. The regulatory body needs to charge enough to be in good financial health and this is something the government looks at when an application for self- regulation is made. complaints will be dismissed. A legitimate com- plaint will be cross checked with the profession's code of ethics and standards of practice, and an alternative dispute outcome may be pursued, such as issuing a caution or requiring some remediation. The case may move onwards to a disciplinar y process, which could result in the revocation of professional membership. For professions, disciplinary information needs to be available to the public. "The only way that the public is going to have confidence that the regulatory body is doing what it's supposed to do is if someone has fallen below the standard that the disciplinary proceedings can be seen by the public," says Taylor. "Otherwise it's kind of closed door, secret society stuff." Safety professionals may not be able to share information as openly as they are accustomed to upon regulation. "As a member of CSSE (Canadian Society of Safety Engineering) and a CRSP, I can send out a message to 5,000 people to say, 'This is the problem I have,' and I guarantee you within five minutes you're going to have a response," Sturm says. "When you get to (regulation), once you start to give opinions, is it a professional opinion or you're just giving information? I think there will have to be some clarity on that… because it could become a liability issue." On the flip side, a professional's work is not ques- tioned when provided. The advice they give and the tasks they complete are assumed to be of a high quality due to the requirements of the profession. There is also a certain status that comes with being a regulated profession, and it may translate into better job prospects and higher salaries, says Taylor. "Standards, quality, continual quality improve- ment and upward mobility and growth of a profession is good for the public and good the pro- fession," he says. CONCERNS A current lack of uniformity is one reason why Paul Carolan, a health and safety professional in Nunavut, doesn't think the industry is ready for regulation quite yet. Such inconsistency is seen in the nearly 30 health and safety-related designations and the 14 jurisdictions doing things differently when it comes to OHS legislation. "Despite what might be said, it's a difficult chal- lenge behind the scenes. I don't think people are being truly honest within government because the appetite isn't there. That's a significant problem," he said, speaking at the CSSE's pro- fessional development conference in 2017 in Halifax. "You need a strong contingency fund… because the last thing anybody wants, the government included, is to have a self-regulating organiza- tion go bankrupt because they don't have enough money to weather unforeseen circumstances, such as court costs, regulatory costs, maintaining tech- nology and all that stuff," says Fedun. Lastly, not everyone is keen on life-long learning — a key component often found in self-regulation. Regulatory bodies frequently have standards for continuing education so that members can stay abreast of all the new developments in the field. "There are some people out there in all profes- sions that believe that just their experience is all they need to be considered a professional," says Sturm. "'I have been doing it for 30 years.' Okay, so when's the last time you took a course? 'Well, 1989.' Would I go to a doctor that the last time he or she learned anything about open heart surgery was 1989?" WHY NOW? The time has come for the safety profession to be regulated because it has evolved tremendously over the years, says Dawson. Not all that long ago, safety was shopped around within an organiza- tion, or the individual who sustained a workplace injury became the safety person. Now, specialized training is required in order to be a safety profes- sional due to advanced management systems, auditing protocols and keeping up with changes in legislation. "Canadian workplaces are not the same as they were 40 years ago," he says. Canada is falling behind some other countries that have regulated the profession. In Singapore, Workplace Safety and Health Officers are regulated. In Europe, Health and Safety Officers are regulated in Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal and Slovakia. Fifty-eight per cent of respondents to the COS survey said regulation would be good for the pro- fession long-term, while 21 per cent said it probably would be. Twelve per cent did not feel it would be good for the profession, while another 10 per cent were unsure. In October, the BCRSP met with the Ontario gov- ernment and members of the opposition to explain the importance of regulating the safety profession. It is holding similar meetings in Alberta and British Columbia. Dawson says so far, it has not received any negative feedback from the government per se, but it is a process that takes time. "It's more a question of convincing individuals why is now the time to start looking at this. What would it entail? What would the impact be on vari- ous stakeholder groups?" he says. "There's support there… but there's a learning curve as well." The ASHSP is working hard to develop all the requirements to apply for regulation. Fedun says the group is aiming to apply in the fall, but its goal is to have 1,500 members before it does so. At press time, the society was sitting at 163 members. After application, it can take another one to three years for the government to make a decision. Sturm hopes that regulating the safety profes- sion will help it gain interest among young people. Safety is a great profession, but many individuals fall into it as a second career and a lot of young people are not even aware of it as an option. "I'm hoping that it will evolve so that one day a five-year-old or a 10-year-old will say, 'I want to be a safety professional when I grow up,'" he says. "That's what I see (regulation) doing for the profes- sion: Taking it to a level that it becomes relevant, it becomes understood and the next generations consider that as a calling and a career." COS Health and safety practitioners provide advice and guidance that companies rely on. Uninformed, incorrect or negligent advice jeopardizes lives. Regulation will ensure a health and safety professional is competent, capable, educated, experienced and ethical. TRUTH: Myths and truths provided by Alberta Society of Health and Safety Professionals (ASHSP) MYTH: Health and safety practitioners do not cause the injuries/ losses, so they don't need to be regulated. MYTH: This is just another "cash grab" from yet another safety organization. The Alberta Society of Health and Safety Professionals (ASHSP) is a non-profit organization with all operating costs fully funded by membership dues. It is 100 per cent managed and operated by volunteers. TRUTH:

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