IN COUNCIL
An amount of $275,000 has been budgeted for capital improvements that are part of common area maintenance (CAM) costs, which are recoverable from tenants and recommended by Avison & Young, PEO’s property manager. Planned improvements in 2025 include: • $165,000 for a new access card system; and • $110,000 for replacing heat pumps.
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The expenditures for 2025 consist of $50,000 for replacing old office furniture and for miscellaneous contingencies. The spend on a proposed renovation project is not included as part of these materials and will be presented to the Audit and Finance Committee and Council as a separate item when further information is available.
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BORROWING RESOLUTION Council passed a motion to renew PEO’s existing operating line of credit with Scotiabank until January 31, 2026, in compliance with PEO’s Internal Control Banking Policy. This includes an operating overdraft up to an amount not to exceed $250,000, and the use of corporate credit cards with an aggregate limit not to exceed $120,000. SAFE DISCLOSURE POLICY At its November meeting, Council approved a revised Safe Disclosure (Whistleblower) Policy. It aims to ensure staff members, volunteers and councillors can safely report misconduct or suspected misconduct, without retaliation. The motion background notes that a strong whistleblower program can support corporate accountability, result in the preservation or recovery of funds, prevent lawsuits, maintain public trust and minimize reputational damage to the organization and profession. After concerns were raised regarding the previous policy, which was approved by Council in November 2022, external legal counsel provided advice regarding policy revisions. Council considered this advice and passed a motion during the in-camera portion of its February 2024 meeting tasking the Governance and Nominating Committee with considering possible improvements to the policy and returning with recommendations before the end of 2024. The revised policy improves on the previous policy, particularly in terms of clarity of definitions and coherence of process: • The procedures have been simplified, the protection of anonymity in reports to Council has been clarified and the appeal procedure has been removed per the advice of external legal counsel; • The Outcomes section now sets out next steps in the process for each category of workplace participant (staff, CEO/registrar, Council-appointed volunteer, non-Council appointed volunteer, councillor);
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Engineering Dimensions
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Changes have been made to account for the new Councillor Code of Conduct and the new Anti-Workplace Violence, Harassment and Discrimination Policy (AWVHD Policy); The procedures now provide greater clarity regarding who is responsible for reports and complaints, particularly where the CEO/registrar would be in a conflict of interest, as well as their ability to delegate; A definition of “retaliation” has been added in the definition section, along with clarification to what constitutes not “acting in good faith”; The “duty” to report has been replaced with strong encouragement to report in order to ensure consistency with policies such as the AWVHD Policy; and Confidentiality has been highlighted as a key element of the policy.
PEO VISION STATEMENT UPDATE Council defeated a motion asking it to receive four shortlisted vision statements and an interpretive document, have the vision statements presented to members to determine their favourite through a non-binding referendum, and have one vision statement to be brought back to Council at its April 2025 meeting for approval. Because the motion was defeated, it is expected that a new motion will be brought back to Council at its February meeting. A component of PEO’s current strategic plan includes the goal to develop and bring forward a new and revised vision statement(s) for Council’s consideration (see “PEO to Develop a New Vision Statement,” Engineering Dimensions, Fall 2023, p. 15). An initiative led by Past President Roydon Fraser, PhD, P.Eng., FEC, with support from public relations firm Crestview Strategy, the creation of an updated vision statement aims to reflect the long-term aspirations of how PEO will protect and serve the public through its governance of the profession. The draft vision statements and accompanying interpretive document is the result of thorough grassroots engagement with licensees, students and PEO’s stakeholder network over 14 months. Utilizing an interpretive userbased design process, hundreds of possible vision statements were tested through the engagement process, resulting in the four shortlisted vision statements presented to Council. The motion background notes that between 1993 and 2022, PEO’s vision statement changed four times, about every seven years. In 2023, Council decided that no vision statement would be included in PEO’s 2023–2025 Strategic Plan, but instead adopted the strategic goal to develop a 2050oriented vision statement that seeks relevance and value for PEO and the P.Eng. and maximizes longevity. This was the first grassroots development of a PEO vision statement and interpretive document. MINIMUM ACADEMIC REQUIREMENTS Council passed a motion asking that PEO request that the Futures of Engineering Accreditation (FEA) next steps include an explicit commitment to the licensure academic standard of a “minimum academic depth and breadth requirement for individuals.” The motion background expressed the need for minimum academic requirements in order for the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board (CEAB) to maintain its value to PEO and other engineering regulators. The academic standard for licensure is one of the four requirements for licensure specified in the Professional Engineers Act (PEA) and regulations. The motion background also indicated that there is high risk to not including a minimum academic requirement, including that it would affect PEO’s licensure requirements and universities would no longer be willing to engage in CEAB accreditation.
Winter 2025