IEEE Canada Policies

Policy Index

Notice to all Volunteers and Members: The new bylaws of IEEE Canada / Region 7 take effect on January 1, 2024. Find them on our Bylaws And Ops Manual pages.

0) e-Notice Policy
1) Recording Policy
2) Social Media Policy
3) Volunteer Contact Information Policy
4) Newsletter Publication Policy
5) Cyber-Security Threats
6) IEEE Canada COVID-19 / Epidemic / Pandemic Policy
7) IEEE Canada Board Meeting and Event Code of Conduct
8) IEEE Canada Board Meeting Registration, Attendance, and Guest Policies
9) Non-Political Non-Religious Affiliation Statement

0) e-Notice Policy

All e-Notices intended for Region 7 members MUST be routed through the IEEE Canada Administrator (admin @ ieee.ca). It is the region’s policy that any communications going out to the members at large are reviewed for content accuracy, clarity, spelling and grammar, and professionalism before they are sent (which the administrator will do) and, if necessary, approved for the target audience by a Region 7 Steering Committee member (which the Administrator will take care of, if necessary).
Thus, if you wish to send an e-notice to the Region 7 membership, or a sub-set, please send all the necessary information to the Region Administrator, who can also share a proof with you before sending if necessary. Thank you.

1) Recording Policy

Adopted February, 2021

SteerCom Meetings

SteerCom Meetings, in full or in part, shall never be recorded as the meetings typically address topics reserved for Executive Session.

ExCom Meetings

ExCom Meetings shall never be recorded in full as many topics are often of a sensitive nature and/or reserved for Executive Session.  Portions thereof, such as a presentation that should be reviewed by all ExCom members, may be recorded upon a successful vote of the ExCom.  Any such recordings shall be deleted after 30 days and shall only be available to ExCom members unless a successful vote to make them more widely available is passed.

Board Meetings

Region 7 Board Meetings, including the Caucus Meeting, including the portions open to the membership, shall never be recorded in full as they are always advertised in advance and all interested parties can attend.
General member and public presentations held as part of the meetings may be recorded for the benefit of the membership upon a 3P designation, and will be available for a minimum of 30 days but not more than one year, as designated by the 3P.
Other parts of the Caucus meeting may be recorded upon a successful vote that will specify the part of the meeting to record, how long to maintain the recording, and who the recording will be made available to.
The business session and executive sessions of the Board meeting shall never be recorded.

Group, Area, and CONAC Meetings

Group, Area and CONAC Meetings that precede the board meetings will be recorded and made available to Region 7 volunteers for 30 days, at which time they shall be deleted, provided those meetings do not cover any topics that should be reserved for an Executive Session (as such discussions cannot be recorded under Region 7 policy).
Groups, Areas, and Conac may choose to record their regular meetings and make them available to their members, Region 7 volunteers, or the membership at large for a duration of their choosing, not to exceed one year without 3P permission, provided those meetings do not cover any topics that should be reserved for an Executive Session (as such discussions cannot be recorded under Region 7 policy).

Group (ERG, ESG, MSG, OSG, PCG) Committee Meetings

Committees in Region 7’s formal groups may record their meetings and make them available to Region 7 volunteers for up to 30 days, at which time they shall be deleted, provided those meetings do not cover any topics that should be reserved for an Executive Session (as such discussions cannot be recorded under Region 7 policy).

Audit, N&A, and Awards Meetings

Audit, N&A, and Awards Committee Meetings, in full or in part, shall never be recorded.

Training Sessions

Training sessions WILL be recorded by default and made available to Region 7 volunteers for one year by default.  Each year, the Training Committee shall review the training videos and decide which to keep for another year and which to delete.

Other Meetings

If you wish to record a meeting not included on this list, please contact the SteerCom for guidance.  This policy will be reviewed annually and updated as required.
Please be sure to respect privacy and get consent for recording from all those present before recording a meeting even after receiving SteerCom approval.
In IEEE Region 7 we encourage open discussion, including discussions of privacy.

2) Social Media Policy

Revised December 2021

Region 7’s Social Media Accounts (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) will be managed by the (Acting) Publicity Chair, the Region Secretary, the Region Administrator, or a Newsletter Editor (Region, YP, WIE, Life or Student). These designated individuals may make a posting about any award, event, or notification that is automatically eligible for inclusion in the Region Newsletter without ExCom Permission. Newsletter Posting Policy. Any other request will require approval by a voting SteerCom member.

• To request a posting to one or more of the Region’s Social Media Accounts (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) that does not automatically qualify under the Newsletter Posting Policy, please send your request to “socialmedia@ieee.ca” with a subject line starting with “Social Media Posting Request” along with the complete content you want posted.
• As soon as a (voting) Steering Committee Member reviews it, s/he will then forward it to the publicity chair and administrator (with corrections) for posting if it is approved, or s/he will return it to you if it is not (with a reason).

3) Volunteer Contact Information Policy

Adopted March 2021
Due to a surge of global regulations around privacy, including PIPEDA and GDPR, we need to be careful with what private information we disclose with regards to our members. As such, we have formulated a policy which is undergoing review by IEEE Compliance.

• No IEEE Member or Volunteer will give out the personal contact information of another IEEE Member who is not an active IEEE Volunteer without the personal consent of the member.
• Furthermore, an IEEE Member or Volunteer may only give out the contact information of an active IEEE Volunteer to another active IEEE Member who needs to contact the active IEEE Volunteer with respect to the position that member holds provided such disclosure is limited to the contact information the active IEEE Volunteer has chosen to share through Collabratec or another IEEE portal.
• In addition, an IEEE Member or Volunteer may always give out the contact information of an active IEEE Volunteer to another active IEEE Member where that contact information corresponds to the information available through the IEEE Rosters, in response to a query pertaining to the position that Volunteer holds as this contact information is available to all active Members.
• Furthermore, in our Region, by default Section, Group, Committee, and Area chairs are to give out their respective Region 7 position aliases as the default, and primary, means of electronic communication.  This will ensure that future inquiries will go to the appropriate Section, Group, Committee, or Area chair as these aliases will be remapped every year to the proper person.

4) Newsletter Publication Policy

Adopted December 2021

The following can be automatically included in the IEEE Canada Newsletter by the IEEE Canada Newsletter team (with appropriate review and editing):

1. Awards: Recognition of Awards given to IEEE Members. See the Awards Policy on which IEEE and non-IEEE Awards can be included.
2. Events: Any event open to all IEEE Canada members that is
   a) co-sponsored by IEEE Canada or any of the sections (and contained sub-units, including chapters, affinity groups, and local groups) of IEEE Canada.
   b) requested for inclusion by any voting member of the ExCom
   (3Ps, Secretary, Treasurer, Group Chairs, or Area Chairs)
   c) requested to be advertised by IEEE Canada by the IEEE President
3. IEEE Notices: IEEE notices about
   a) Member Benefits
   b) Educational Activities
   c) IEEE Training
   d) vTools
   e) IEEE sponsored conferences and events in IEEE Canada
   f) (new) IEEE Initiatives
   g) any other IEEE offering (3Ps, Secretary, Treasurer, Group Chairs, or Area Chairs)
   from any IEEE site or publication can be included if deemed relevant by the Newsletter committee or any member of the ExCom.
4. IEEE Canada requests for notification or information. Any request made by a voting SteerCom member of IEEE Canada (3Ps, Treasurer, Secretary).

All other requests for content inclusion in the IEEE Canada Newsletter must get pre-approval from a voting member of the IEEE Canada Steering Committee.

IEEE CANADA Newsletter Award Publication Policy

Adopted December 2021

This is just for the IEEE Canada Newsletter. A request for publication in the ICR must be made to the ICR and a request for recognition in the IEEE Canada Awards Ceremony must be made to the Awards and Recognition Committee.

IEEE Canada Regional Awards, MGA Recognized IEEE Canada Sectional Awards, IEEE MGA Awards, IEEE TAB Awards, IEEE EAB Awards, and IEEE Awards can be publicized in the Regional newsletter and on our Region Social Media sites.

Awards given to IEEE Canada Members from the EIC and our sister Societies in the EIC can be published in Regional Newsletters and promoted on Regional Social Media. These societies are:

Canadian Dam Association
Canadian Geotechnical Society
Canadian Medical and Biological Engineering Society
Canadian Society for BioEngineering
Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering
Canadian Society for Civil Engineering
Canadian Society for Engineering Management
Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering
Canadian Society of Senior Engineers
Canadian Nuclear Society
Institute of Industrial & Systems Engineers (Canadian Region)
Tunnelling Association of Canada
Union Radio-Scientifique Internationale

Awards given to IEEE Canada Members from any provincial or territorial regulatory engineering body in Canada can be published in Regional Newsletters and promoted on Regional Social Media. These bodies are:

Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta
Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan
Engineers and Geoscientists British Columbia
Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba
Engineers and Geoscientists New Brunswick
Engineers Nova Scotia
Engineers PEI
Engineers Yukon
Northwest Territories and Nunavut Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists
Ordre des ingénieurs du Québec (OIQ)
Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Newfoundland and Labrador (PEGNL)
Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO)

Awards given to IEEE Canada Members that are deemed to be of National or International significance in any area covered by IEEE can be published in Regional Newsletters and promoted on Regional Social Media. Currently, this list includes:

Canadian Academy of Engineering
Exemplary Service Medals (Canada)
Killam Prize
Nobel Prize
Order of Canada
Order of Newfoundland & Labrador
Order of Prince Edward Island
Order of Nova Scotia
Order of New Brunswick
Ordre National du Quebec
Order of Ontario
Order of Manitoba
Saskatchewan Order of Merit
Alberta Order of Excellence
Order of British Columbia
Order of Nunavut
Order of the Northwest Territories
Order of Yukon
Order of Merit (Canada)
Order of the British Empire
Order of the Companions of Honour
Royal Society of Canada
Royal Victorian Order
United Nations Awards & Medals

If the award is not on this list and it appears to be of national or international significance, a request for publication thereof may be made to the IEEE Canada Steering Committee for a decision.

 5) Cyber-Security Threats and Financial Policies

Presented October 22, 2022

Due to the increase in the number of scams our members and volunteers are being confronted with, it was determined that we need formal documentation on this and our rules and policies relating to payments, reimbursements, etc. as part of our expense guidelines and finance rules.

Targeted efforts are being ramped up by scammers against organizations like the IEEE to get people to buy gift cards, e-transfer funds, etc. under the guise of fraudulent “times of need”, usually where the scammer tries to impersonate a member of volunteer of IEEE.  Furthermore, scammers are now using multiple mediums and scam requests are coming
from email, social media, and even SMS.

Our policy is such:

• When you get an unexpected request to transfer personal or IEEE funds, under no circumstances are you to take any action.  IEEE cannot reimburse you for personal transfers that are not previously authorized by an appropriate authority and not made using acceptable methods.
• If you feel that there is any chance the request could be legit, please contact someone on SteerCom immediately to investigate. 
• If you are quite sure it’s a scam, please report all the information you have to steercom@ieee.ca and then do what you can to block the email sender, social media user, or phone number.

6) IEEE Canada COVID-19 / Epidemic / Pandemic Policy

Revised November 1, 2022

Volunteers engaged in IEEE travel voluntarily elect to participate in the activity with knowledge of the dangers involved during times of Covid-19, epidemics, or pandemics. Volunteers should understand that IEEE will not indemnify them for any health risk or economic or other loss resulting from exposure to COVID-19 or any other epidemic / pandemic during travel, whether or not a formal epidemic or pandemic was declared by a recognized health association.

IEEE will not reimburse costs associated with mandatory or self-quarantine or isolation associated with IEEE volunteer travel during times of epidemic/pandemic.

Furthermore, in accordance with the IEEE pandemic policy, any and all board meetings of IEEE Canada will adhere to the regulations and guidance from the cognizant local and provincial public health authorities in the city and province where the Board Meeting is being held and IEEE Canada further expects that all volunteer travel will adhere to federal and provincial regulations and guidance on safe travel.

7) IEEE Canada Board Meeting and Event Code of Conduct

Adopted November 1, 2022

When you attend an IEEE Canada Board Meeting, Conference, Congress, or other IEEE Canada sponsored event as a delegate (primary, secondary or additional), invited guest, or another representative of IEEE Canada, you are expected to attend ALL meetings, sessions and activities scheduled by the event and represent IEEE, and IEEE Canada, in the utmost professional manner at all times in accordance with IEEE (including IEEE Canada) policies, regulations, and the IEEE Code of Ethics.* Failure to do so can result in immediate removal from the IEEE Canada Event, financial penalties (as IEEE Canada will not reimburse you for any costs if you are asked to leave, or removed, from an event for conduct reasons), termination of your volunteer role, or even loss of membership (if a complaint is taken to the IEEE Code of Conduct committee).

* Link: https://www.ieee.org/about/corporate/governance/p7-8.html

8) IEEE Canada Board Meeting Registration, Attendance, and Guest Policies

Adopted November 1, 2022

Primary Delegate / Board Member Registration

The Region publishes registration and additional delegate cut-off dates well in advance of a Board Meeting. If a board member, or their delegate (if allowed), does not register by the registration deadline, the region will not be responsible for organizing local accommodations. (Hotels only hold room blocks for so long.)

Additional Delegates

Sections may send additional delegates at their own expense and effort (which includes handling their own hotel bookings) provided the region is notified by the additional delegate registration cut-off. If the contract allows and the hotel has additional rooms and the section provides sufficient notice, the section may be able to secure the region
room rate (which may or may not be better than direct booking). (Hotels and Caterers only allow attendee numbers to be changed before a given date.)

Delegate Guests

The region follows standard IEEE practice and each primary delegate / board member may be accompanied by ONE guest who can join them at meals. Delegates who wish to bring additional guests and require additional rooms / services will be required to handle their own local arrangements.

9) Non-Political Non-Religious Affiliation Statement

Adopted November 13, 2023

IEEE is a global technical professional organization and thus IEEE does not make any political and/or religious statements of any kind as an organization. IEEE also does not have ties to any political parties/organizations and does not belong to any religious sect anywhere in the world.

As IEEE Canada is a Region (geographic unit) within the IEEE organizational structure, IEEE Canada follows the same principles.

Any member of IEEE can make political and/or religious statements on their own, but they cannot suggest or infer that their opinion represents IEEE, or any of its sub-units, in anyway.

Note that this means that IEEE, and by inclusion, IEEE Canada does not recognize any national or religious holidays. [It would be impossible for an organization that holds up to 3,000 events a year! However, IEEE Canada will make efforts to accommodate member needs to the extent possible when an event falls on a religious holiday they observe. For e.g., we shifted our board meeting schedule so dinner falls after sunset during Ramadan and we ensured our locales could provide affected volunteers breakfast before sunrise.]