OSPE - The Voice - Winter 2021 - 44

COVER STORY
PEO ENFORCEMENT:
Taking action against against individuals or entities
who practice engineering without a licence
This article was prepared by Professional Engineers Ontario's Enforcement and Regulatory Compliance team.
P
icture these stories: A realtor referring to themselves
as a professional engineer or P.Eng to gain some
legitimacy in selling homes regarding the condition
of the house; an individual who does not hold an
engineering licence incorporates a business using
" engineering " in the name; a contractor copies a professional
engineer's seal from one document and places it on another to
get building permits approved; an applicant used a facsimile of the
Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO)-Ontario's engineering
regulator-seal as their Twitter avatar and blogged about their
experience going through the licensing process. What is the
common thread here? These are all people that PEO's enforcement
team has investigated over the years.
Under the authority of the Professional Engineers Act, PEO
governs over 91,000 licence and certificate holders and regulates
professional engineering in Ontario. Professional engineers can
be identified by the P.Eng. after their names. Holders of limited
licences can be identified by LEL or LET after their names.
PEO protects and serves the public by: ensuring all licensed
professional engineers are qualified - and by licensing all who
qualify; investigating and disciplining professional engineers
found guilty of professional misconduct; conducting disputes
resolution and hearings; preparing performance guidelines as
benchmarks for quality of service in the engineering profession;
and preparing performance standards in regulation.
It also protects the public by taking enforcement action
against unlicensed individuals who illegally describe themselves
ON THE WEB
In 2018, PEO published its Guide to Enforcement
Reporting, a helpful guideline for reporting enforcement
concerns. It is on PEO's website, at:
peo.on.ca/sites/default/files/2019-07/
EnfReportingGuide.pdf
as engineers and companies or entities who illegally provide
engineering services to the public.
What exactly is enforcement?
PEO's enforcement team investigates allegations of engineering
performed by unlicensed persons and businesses representing
themselves as professional engineers. This is different from
PEO's complaints and discipline processes, which investigate
allegations of professional misconduct of licence holders
How are engineers impacted when a nonengineer
uses the designation " P.Eng " or title
" Engineer " ?
Think about it. Over 91,000+ licensed professional engineers and
certificate holders in Ontario have completed their engineering
degree and gained significant engineering knowledge through
their education; 48 months of verifiable, acceptable engineering
work experience; completed their National Professional Practice
Exam and met very high standards of professionalism and ethics
to earn a P.Eng. designation. It is a privilege. When unlicensed
people use the designation and/or practise engineering, it is
a very serious matter and is a threat to public safety. Anyone
performing engineering work must be licensed to practise
professional engineering, or work under a licensed engineer
who can take responsibility for their work. This is to protect
the public interest, and is discussed in PEO's practice guideline
Professional Engineering Practice:
" To properly carry out the professional services they
undertake, practitioners are expected to obtain, through
disciplined academic training and experience, and maintain a
level of skill and knowledge consistent with the demands of their
areas of practice. Every profession has well-formulated standards
of admission to ensure practitioners have been properly trained
before entry. "
44
THE VOICE December 2021
http://peo.on.ca/sites/default/files/2019-07/
OSPE - The Voice - Winter 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of OSPE - The Voice - Winter 2021
