GOVERNANCE

SAFEGUARDING FAIRNESS

The Important Role of Fairness Oversight in Canada's Professional Regulatory Sector

Dean Benard, President and CEO Benard + Associates

In Canada, Fairness Commissioners and similar entities (we’ll call them Fairness Commissioners for this article) play a crucial role in overseeing the registration practices of regulatory bodies. Each year, we have seen more provinces, through new or amended legislation, create fairness commissioners with mandates to ensure the registration processes of professional regulatory bodies are equitable, transparent, and just. But what do these overseers do precisely, and why is their presence significant in safeguarding the public?

In the broadest sense, they serve as an impartial overseer in the regulatory sector, ensuring that professional certification and licensure processes adhere to principles that allow for the smooth integration of internationally trained professionals. Their goal is to aid in cultivating a diverse and inclusive professional environment.

These “overseers of fairness” operate to ensure the following principles are the foundation of regulatory decision-making: Transparency

These “overseers of fairness” operate to ensure the following principles are the foundation of regulatory decision-making: Transparency

Transparency and clarity around rules and process is critical. It isn’t good enough to have procedures; they must be easily understood and accessible. Each component of the application and registration process must be explicit. Regardless of their background, applicants should have access to complete, accurate, and easily understood information. This fosters a level playing field where every potential professional knows the steps, requirements, and expectations ahead.

Objectivity

Objectivity is critical to consistent decision-making. Regulatory bodies must eliminate arbitrary decisions through appropriate training, criteria, and procedures. Applicants should be evaluated with the same measure of scrutiny, ensuring decisions aren’t influenced by who makes them or when they are made. This creates a valid and reliable assessment of all applicants’ qualifications.

Impartiality

Decisions should be devoid of preconceived notions, conflicts of interest, or limited understanding of diversity and equality issues. Strategies, including specific training and procedural guidelines, are instituted to ensure that every assessment is unbiased, fostering an environment where applicants are judged on merit and qualifications.

Fairness is the goal, and it is achieved by implementing the above principles to create rational assessments, equal opportunity, expedient processing, and the provision for review in case of disagreements. Regulatory bodies are mandated to ensure that the assessment doesn’t create unnecessary obstacles for applicants; instead, it must ensure every applicant has equal opportunity regardless of their origin or background.

Fairness Commissioners are about more than just oversight. Their work within various jurisdictions often extends to actively collaborating with regulatory bodies, advising on policy, and recommending modifications to practices that might inadvertently be unfair or discriminatory. In provinces such as Ontario, fairness commissioners undertake a rigorous assessment of regulatory bodies, publishing reports highlighting areas of excellence and those requiring improvement.

Certainly, Fairness Commissioners have had significant impacts on the professional regulatory landscape in various provinces of Canada. Some examples across various jurisdictions include:

• Reforms to streamline the licensure process for international graduates.

• The introduction of provisional licencing for some professions so internationally trained professionals gain work experience under the supervision of a licensed professional

• Some jurisdictions or professions that did not previously recognize foreign credentials now do

• Reduction in the time required to assess foreign credentials.

In these various capacities, fairness commissioners have influenced the growth of a more inclusive professional landscape and directly impacted consumer welfare. By facilitating the integration of internationally trained professionals into the Canadian workforce, these commissioners have helped to ensure Canadians have access to a broader base of skilled professionals, promoting innovation and enhancing service delivery in various sectors.

However, while Fairness Commissioners have played a pivotal role in promoting inclusivity and equality in professional regulatory practices, they face challenges and criticisms from some who express concerns such as:

• The taxpayer-funded cost of their operations must provide an adequate return on investment.

• Fairness Commissioners can sometimes increase the bureaucracy, and the added layer of oversight slows down the decision-making process.

• They might overstep their bounds, interfering excessively and impacting the autonomy of the regulatory bodies.

• Fairness Commissioners are more symbolic, and their impact and effectiveness are limited.

The evidence demonstrates that Fairness Commissioners have made a clear and positive impact by fostering a transition to a more equitable, transparent, and just professional regulatory environment. While the criticisms and concerns cannot be ignored, they can be quickly addressed by ensuring regular reviews and necessary adjustments to their mandate and operations.

There is a myriad of reasons why Fairness Commissioners play a crucial role in Canada in ensuring that internationally trained professionals receive fair treatment and opportunities to practice their professions. Here are just a few:

1. Promoting fairness through equitable and consistent assessment

2. Creating applicant accessibility and understanding through transparent processes

3. Enhancing diversity within various professional fields, thereby creating opportunities for new perspectives

4. Promoting inclusion to integrate internationally trained professionals into the Canadian workforce

5. Contributing to economic growth through the utilization of skilled, internationally trained professionals who help address labour market needs and skill shortages

6. Access to and attracting global talent to Canada by ensuring that foreign credentials are recognized fairly

7. Strengthening international partnerships through mutual recognition of qualifications.

Fairness Commissioners help balance the need to maintain professional standards with the need to integrate internationally trained professionals.

They review and work with regulatory bodies to ensure their registration practices are transparent, objective, impartial, and fair. This, in turn, aids in reducing barriers for those professionals and enhances their contributions to Canadian society and the economy.