Canadian Occupational Safety

19 2019 FEBRUARY/MARCH Associations are seeking to establish professional regulation for all those who are practising in the field of health and safety (including professionals, practitioners, hygienists and auditors) in all the sub-disciplines of the profession. It's important to note that there are two ways to go about regulation. The first is full licensure, like doctors and lawyers, where an individual cannot practise without receiving a specific license. What safety professionals would most likely achieve is similar to accountants: Only Chartered Profes- sional Accountants are subject to the requirements laid out in the statue and it does not interfere with the right of any individual who is not a member of the regulatory body to practise as an accountant. Many professions are self-regulated in this manner. Regulation also provides scope of practice pro- tection, meaning only registered members in good standing are able to perform certain types of work as outlined in legislation. For the safety profession, the regulator y body in each province would be responsible for determining what that scope of practice entails. The ASHSP is currently coming up with a list, but it will likely protect occupational exposure and chemical exposure work for occupational hygienist and high-risk work, such as confined space entry, hot work and working at heights, for health and safety professionals. Ultimately, protecting both title and scope of prac- tice will help protect the public from incompetent, incapable and unethical safety professionals — a current problem within the profession, according to 69 per cent of COS survey respondents. "This is something that we see often in the health and safety profes- sion," says Fedun. "I can go out there and I can see people provid- ing health and safet y advice, pe ople bu i ld i ng health and safety pro- g rams, people prov iding on-site advice and also strategic advice that don't necessarily have the education and the background. And right now, unfortunately, there's nothing that can be done." A key element in becoming regulated is to estab- lish a consensus on the competency, educational and experiential requirements required to join the regulatory body. In terms of competency, the International Network of Safety and Health Practitioner Organi- sations (INSHPO) released a document a few years ago that provides clarity on the role of the safety professional. The Global Capability Framework for Occupational Health and Safety Professionals is the result of three years of consultations across 11 coun- tries — including Canada — with occupational health and safety professionals, OHS educators and certifying bodies. In 2017, the Singapore Accord was signed, which signalled a commitment from organizations around the globe to adopt the framework. To test the competency of individuals, many pro- fessional regulators require prospective members to pass an entrance exam. This helps ensure all mem- bers have the same minimum level of competency and acts as a gatekeeper to keep out unqualified individuals. For example, engineers are required to complete the National Professional Practice Exam and achieve a score of at least 65 per cent. In order for the safety profession to be regulated, it needs to have clear educational prerequisites to obtaining professional member status. These requirements are determined by the regulatory body. Of tentimes, t he reg ulator will require post-secondar y education be completed at an accredited institution. These institutions have been vetted to ensure their program matches the require- ments of the regulated profession. "It's developing a process whereby the various col- leges have standardization and a certain accepted level for what people need to know if they go to college and do a two-year diploma in occupational health and safety. What does that mean? What are the competency outcomes? What's the knowledge transfer you require?" says Dawson. But don't worry if you're a seasoned health and safety professional who went to school many moons ago. There is usually a phase-in period and there may be a special process to demonstrate equivalency or customized upgrading programs. The BCRSP has been working with OHS edu- cational institutions for the last several years on accreditation, and it hosts a national education symposium that brings together OHS educators. At the next symposium in May, the BCRSP is aiming to present a proposed framework for accreditation, Dawson says. Professions also must have an experiential requirement for their members. Prospective mem- bers may be required to complete a mentorship, sponsorship or apprenticeship activity. Some professions simply require experience within the particular profession. For example, Management Consultants are required to have 600 hours of con- sulting experience within the past 24 months as well as five years of experience. With professional regulation comes increased public scrutiny. Members must conduct themselves in a manner that is becoming to the profession. "There's an expectation that you conduct yourself as a professional all the time," says Taylor. "That means you have to change what things you say on social media, the way that you carry yourself, the way you speak. Now you are being held to a higher standard." The COS survey revealed 55 per cent of respondents have no problem with this increased scrutiny, while 20 per cent feel pretty good about it, but are a bit nervous. Many professions have a general statement in their statute around a good character requirement. Professionals in good standing should actually welcome this because it helps prevent individuals from tarnishing and dragging down the profession, says Taylor. "Weeding out the bad seeds, that's kind of part of it." If a member of the public has an issue with a member of a profession, there must be a process in place for them to lodge a complaint. This com- plaint will be reviewed and investigated by the regulatory body and any malicious or vexatious profession regulated." Recently, paramedics in Ontario made the case for self- regulation, but the government did not grant it, explaining "the application did not meet our primar y criterion threshold for risk of harm and because self-regulation of paramedics is not in the public interest." It went on to say that the existing mechanisms were adequate for public protection. Becoming a regulated profession would pro- vide title protection for safety professionals. This means that only registered members in good stand- ing would be able to use certain professional titles that the regulatory body deems to be protected. For example, Safety and Health Professional or Indus- trial Hygienist could be protected titles. "Under the current state, really anybody can call themselves a health and safety professional," says Mike Fedun, president of the ASHSP and an OHS advisor to the Alberta government's wildfire management branch. "People can claim to have a designation that they don't, people can make up a designation, people can say, 'I am a health and safety professional' even though they have no formal training, not a lot of experience." The ASHSP is currently in the process of determin- ing what titles would be protected when they apply for self-regulation, which could include something like Alberta Health and Safety Professional. Unauthorized use of the titles would have legal consequences under the professional regulation, such as fines or jail time. "In those cases where a person will not cease using that protected title, then we can go to the courts and get an injunction. The registrar will deal with the court system because there is a statute — it's a title protected under law," says Fedun. MYTH: MYTH: Regulation is being sought solely to benefit one safety designation and exclude another. TRUTH: If professional regulation is to occur, then all jurisdictions must go through the process at the same time. There is no requirement for all jurisdictions to seek professional regulation at the same time. Each province has the autonomy to decide if and when they are ready for regulation and how it should proceed. TRUTH: MYTH: Businesses and government will be against this. So far, there has been no resistance by government, employers or employer associations. The prevailing feeling is one of, "It's about time." TRUTH:

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