Ontario College of Trades will be “transformed” by Dalton McGuinty’s “ultimate public servant”

By Alec Caldwell

Are things really going to change for the OCOT, the heavily union-based ship that’s currently “under review” by bureaucrat/consultant Tony Dean? Dean is currently conducting an investigation into specific issues related to the College’s “scopes of practice” and the process for determining whether certification should be compulsory or voluntary. (In other words, whether other trades in our industry will be forced to join OCOT.  Currently, plumbers, electricians, HVAC technicians and sheet metal workers are compulsory.) Dean’s recommendations on OCOT reform are due in the fall of this year.

In the meantime there has been some news of OCOT changes already, such the departure from the OCOT of chair Ron Johnson on Feb. 24. Replacing Mr. Johnson will be vice chair Pat Blackwood – that is, until January of next year, when an election will be called for the next chair. Blackwood is former National Director of Skilled Trades for CAW National Union. (Editor’s Note: Shocked, aren’t we?)

Back to Dean. He is supposed to act impartial and independently from the Ontario government and the College. It’s said he will bring openness and transparency and clarity (and all those other feel-good words) to the how the OCOT makes decisions. This openness and transparency will, we are told, include a review of the process and criteria for the classification or reclassification of trades as compulsory or voluntary.

In the area of reclassification, let’s look at the OCOT’s track record as regards openness and transparency. Last summer, just prior to the Ontario election, the College issued notice with words to the effect that all those doing woodworking in Ontario, including home renovations, would become compulsory trades. The OCOT backed off (we at CARAHS held a mass protest at Queen’s Park) but there is no guarantee the OCOT won’t proceed with this draconian decision in due course. Imagine: Being an illegal operator if you, as a home renovator, do you own carpentry and aren’t certified as a carpenter by the union!

What was the process for the College to come to that original decision on carpentry? What consultation with our industry was done, other than with the carpenters’ union? Is this the kind of area that Tony Dean will be looking into? We sure hope so.

Will Tony Dean be independent and impartial, in the sense that he will represent the non-union, independently owned-and-operated firms in our industry? Well, you can judge the likely perceived biases of this longstanding civil servant for yourself, based on his CV, as posted on Wikipedia.

A former Ontario civil servant.

Secretary of the Cabinet.

Deputy Minister of Labour.

Deputy Minister and Associate Secretary of Cabinet, Policy.

Secretary of the Cabinet and Clerk of the Executive Council.

And if you want to look at who he comes recommended by, look at Dalton McGuinty’s praise for Mr. Dean:

“The ultimate public servant,” McGuinty said. “He transformed the Ontario Public Service.”

So, do you think Dean is going to be fully up-to-speed on family businesses, independent operators, non-union operators, and so forth? Or do you think he is going to view the world from an ivory tower? Let us know what you think.

Thank you.

By providing education and training, CARAHS reduces your risk of fines, job site closures and prosecution under the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act. We are independent of unions and governments.

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