1. [Presenter and presentation information to go here]
Is this person really a professional engineer? The role of enforcement in protecting the public
[Presenter and presentation information to go here]
Someone performing a medical act must be licensed to practise medicine. Someone auditing a public company must be licensed to practise public accounting. Similarly, someone performing professional engineering work must be licensed to practise professional engineering.
Once you issue a licence to do something, you must also put in place a way of checking that only licence-holders are performing the licensed task. For example, whenever a driver is stopped by the police, the first thing they do is check the driver’s licence. Driving without a licence is an offence and will be prosecuted.
This presentation describes the process of licence checking in the engineering field.

2. What does it take to become a professional engineer?
Education
Engineering degree from accredited engineering school, or equivalent education acceptable to PEO
Experience
Four years acceptable, verifiable experience, one year of which is working in a Canadian jurisdiction under supervision of a P.Eng.;
Examination
Passing Professional Practice Examination in law and ethics
The road to an engineering licence is a long one. Professional engineers are highly qualified, with a combination of education and experience plus a final examination to ensure that prospective professional engineers understand their obligation to put public health and safety first.

3. Why are these qualifications needed?
Professional engineering involves work that can affect public health and safety
Technical ability alone is not enough
Users of engineering services need assurance that suppliers of engineering services can meet the standard
Many people who do not have these qualifications wonder why they are needed. They see professional engineering as just a matter of being able to perform calculations and produce working drawings. The responsibility of a professional engineer is far higher than mere accuracy—it involves being able to assess all of the impacts that the work will have, and being able to propose alternatives if necessary. In fact, the calculations and working drawings are often produced by technical staff working under the direction of a professional engineer.
If you need a surgeon, you want assurance that your surgeon has all of the requisite qualifications and is licensed to practise in Ontario. If you need a professional engineer, you want the same assurance. Users of engineering services are relying on the providers of those services to tell them that processes or structures are safe, or that materials used will behave in a certain way. You cannot risk getting substandard advice because your liability can be enterprise-threatening. Therefore, knowing that the person in charge of your professional engineering project has a Code of Ethics and is responsible to a professional organization to uphold that Code of Ethics is a way to manage the risk of doing business.

4. What denotes a professional engineer?
P.Eng. after the person’s name
A licence to practise engineering
In Ontario, issued by Professional Engineers Ontario
Even those licensed to practise in other provinces must become licensed in Ontario to practise here
A Certificate of Authorization (C of A)
If offering or providing engineering services to the public, a company must have a C of A
It’s easy to find out if you are dealing with a professional engineer. The person will have the letters P.Eng. after his or her name. If you check with Professional Engineers Ontario, they should have that person on their list of licensed engineers. If they do not, there’s a problem that must be investigated.
If you are dealing with a company that is providing professional engineering services directly to the public, that company is required by law to have a Certificate of Authorization from Professional Engineers Ontario. This means that the company is responsible to PEO for maintaining the standards required, and can be disciplined if it does not maintain the standards.

5. What if unlicensed people do engineering work?
If under the supervision of a licensed engineer, no problem
If not professional engineering as defined in the Professional Engineers Act, no problem
If the work falls under any other exception to the Act, no problem
All other practice is illegal
As previously mentioned, certain portions of professional engineering work are performed by technical staff. However, the professional engineer supervising the work is the one who will bear the responsibility if work done under his or her supervision proves to be inadequate.
The Professional Engineers Act is the provincial legislation that delegates authority to PEO to license professional engineers and regulate engineering practice in the public interest. The Act specifies in a general way what is and what is not professional engineering. Occasionally, it is debatable whether a certain type of work is professional engineering. If it proves not to be professional engineering, it does not have to be performed by a licensed engineer.
The Act also specifies certain exceptions, of which working under the supervision of a professional engineer is one. If the work in question falls under one of the exceptions to the Act, it does not have to be performed by a licensed engineer.
All other professional engineering work must, by law, be performed by or under the supervision of a professional engineer.

6. What is illegal practice?
Use of title without having licence (“professional engineer”, “P.Eng.”, “engineer”, or variations)
Offering engineering services to the public without C of A;
Practising professional engineering without licence
Using engineering seal without licence
It is illegal for any unlicensed person to pretend to be a professional engineer, to perform engineering work without being licensed or under the supervision of a P.Eng., to offer engineering services to the public without a C of A, or to use a professional engineer’s seal.
Most of the complaints received by PEO relate to misuse of the title, which is illegal, even if it does not involve the practice of engineering. For example, PEO prosecuted a real estate appraiser who used the letters P.Eng. after his name to build confidence in his services.
Actual practice of engineering without a licence can result in jail terms. For example, PEO repeatedly prosecuted a bogus engineer who misrepresented himself to building owners who wanted their buildings renovated. The offender not only went to jail, paid fines and PEO’s legal costs, but was also ordered to make restitution to his clients. In another case, a company copied the seal of a professional engineer who used to work for it and was fined $25,000.

7. Does illegal practice occur?
PEO receives approx. 400 inquiries/year
About 50% are from members
About 70% relate to wrongful use of title
Most cases result in voluntary compliance
4-5 cases per year result in prosecution
The inquiries PEO receives range from simple requests for information about the title “engineer” to notification of situations that, on investigation, turn out to be cases of fraud. PEO also searches classified and Yellow Pages advertisements for situations where the title is being misused. These situations are usually quickly resolved, but some have to be taken to a higher level if, for example, a company insists on calling technical personnel “engineers”. A few of these cases are outright fraud, where someone is pretending to be a professional engineer because it is good for business. These cases result in legal action, often with substantial fines or even jail terms.

8. How do you check an engineering licence?
Call PEO records department , ext. 456; , ext. 456
If there is no record of the person, your call will be transferred to the legal department
Anyone who is responsible for receiving engineering work should check the credentials of the professional engineer with Professional Engineers Ontario. Have the person’s full name and company name handy. The legal department will investigate any case where the person appears to have been claiming to be a professional engineer without being licensed by PEO.

9. What will PEO do? Investigate
On finding an infraction, PEO notifies person/organization, instructs on compliance
If evidence of offence, further investigation leading to charges
All inquiries are investigated. You will be asked to provide whatever led you to believe that you were dealing with a professional engineer, such as a business card or drawings. In most cases, the person will comply voluntarily with PEO’s instructions. If this is not the case, PEO will prepare a case against the alleged offender, which can result in court action.

10. How can I help?
If you’re a professional engineer, report illegal practice
If you’re an employer of engineers, check your use of engineering titles
If you’re a user of engineering services, check supplier’s licence status with PEO
PEO’s enforcement of the Professional Engineers Act relies greatly on the vigilance of its members, advertisers of engineering positions, and users of engineering services. Professional engineers have a duty to report any practice not in keeping with the standards of the profession. Publishers of the Yellow Pages have agreed to notify advertisers that they can only be listed under “Engineers” if they are licensed. Many of the cases reported to PEO come from building inspectors and permit officials, who check credentials with PEO when they are not familiar with the engineer in question. These actions are a public service that helps PEO protect public health and safety.

11. Who to call to report? 1-800-339-3716, ext. 444
PEO enforcement hotline: , ext. 444;
, ext. 444
PEO has instituted a hotline for inquiries about illegal practice, bypassing the PEO switchboard and going straight to the legal department. During normal business hours, this line will be answered by an investigator or an assistant. After hours, a private message can be left that will be picked up by an investigator.