OACETT PPE cheat sheet

A code of ethics binds certificated members to public safety, competence limits, honesty, confidentiality, and fair dealing with colleagues and clients.

Core ethical tests: protect life, health, and property first; practice only within demonstrated competence; disclose conflicts of interest before accepting work.

A conflict of interest exists when personal, financial, or family interest could reasonably be seen to bias professional judgment; written disclosure and client consent are the standard remedy.

Confidentiality covers client data, drawings, reports, and proprietary methods; exceptions arise from legal compulsion, court order, or clear danger to public safety.

Signing and sealing a document certifies that the work was done by the member or under direct supervision, and that the member reviewed and accepts responsibility for it.

Whistleblower duty: where a member's employer or client endangers public safety, the member must report to the appropriate authority rather than remain silent.

Accepting gifts, hospitality, or referral fees that could influence technical decisions is improper; nominal courtesy items are acceptable only where they cannot affect judgment.

Ethical decision model: identify the facts, identify affected parties, check statutes and codes, weigh alternatives, choose the option protecting the public, then document the reasoning.

Statutes such as the provincial professional engineers act create the regulator, define scope of practice, and set penalties for unlicensed practice or misuse of titles.

Regulations and by-laws made under a statute carry binding force; they set admission requirements, fees, discipline procedure, and continuing competence rules.

A contract needs offer, acceptance, consideration, and intention to create legal relations; ambiguity is construed against the party that drafted it.

Negligence requires a duty of care, breach of the standard of a reasonable practitioner, causation, and actual loss; the standard is ordinary competence, not perfection.

Liability is limited by clauses that exclude or cap damages where the law permits; a client cannot contract out of the regulator's public-protection role.

Statutes of limitations bar claims after a set period from the act or from discovery; limitation periods differ from the life of a professional seal.

Copyright in drawings and reports generally belongs to the author or the author's employer; the client receives a licence unless assignment is in writing.

Occupational health and safety legislation imposes duties on employers and workers; a professional who designs work systems must apply the hierarchy of controls.

The duty of care runs to clients, employers, third parties relying on the work, and the public; it is not discharged by following instructions alone.

A member must keep records adequate to allow another competent practitioner to review, reproduce, or audit the work later.

Peer review and checking of designs by a qualified second party is a standard control against error in high-consequence work.

A member must not undertake work outside competence without supervision, mentorship, or referral to a qualified specialist.

Continuing professional development is a condition of certification; members must record and report verifiable learning activities as the regulator requires.

Advertising must be truthful, not misleading, and must not claim superiority or guarantee outcomes; use of the protected title is restricted to registrants.

When a member changes employment, client files, drawings, and data created for the former employer remain with that employer unless agreed otherwise.

Reporting obligations include self-reporting of convictions, discipline findings, or licence actions to the regulator within the prescribed time.

The regulator is a self-governing body established by statute; its mandate is public protection, not promotion of member interests.

Certification typically requires accredited education, verified work experience, a professional practice examination, and good character.

Titles such as Certified Engineering Technologist are protected; using a protected title without registration is an offence.

The regulator's council or board is composed of elected registrants and public appointees; public members ensure the public interest is represented.

Complaints proceed through intake, investigation, and either dismissal or a hearing before a discipline panel with powers to suspend, revoke, fine, or impose conditions.

A certificate may be suspended for non-payment of fees, failure to meet continuing competence, or misconduct; practising while suspended is an offence.

Registration categories may include certified technician, certified engineering technologist, and limited or provisional status, each with defined scope.

Appeals of registration or discipline decisions go to a statutory appeal body or the courts on a defined standard of review, not to the regulator itself.