Major reforms in the management of registered safety engineers – a truly groundbreaking move!

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Draft Measures for the Classification of Specialties for Certified Safety Engineers – Forwarded. Measures for the Classification of Specialties for Certified Safety Engineers: These measures are formulated in accordance with the Work Safety Law and relevant provisions on the vocational qualification system, with the aim of improving the certification system for certified safety engineers and enhancing the professionalism and expertise of those working in work safety management and related fields. Article 1 Registered safety engineers shall be managed by specialty and grade. The specialties are divided into seven safety categories: coal mines, metal and non-metal mines, hazardous materials, construction, metal smelting, road transportation, and others (general). Other industry sectors require the establishment of corresponding safety specialty categories, to be determined by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the **General Administration of Work Safety in conjunction with the relevant authorities responsible for work safety supervision and management. The levels are divided into three categories: advanced, intermediate, and beginner. Article 2: The professional qualification examinations for intermediate and junior registered safety engineers are conducted by specialty category, with the examination subjects divided into general subjects and specialty subjects. Those who have obtained the qualification of a junior registered safety engineer and have worked in related fields for at least 3 years can apply for the qualification of an intermediate registered safety engineer. The implementation measures for the professional qualification examinations for intermediate and junior registered safety engineers, as well as the evaluation methods for senior registered safety engineers, shall be stipulated separately. Article 3: The registration of certified safety engineers is managed by professional category, with a validity period of 3 years. Those who already hold the professional qualification certificates for intermediate and junior registered safety engineers can apply to be registered in two professional categories if they pass the examination for the second specialized subject. The registration procedures shall be stipulated separately. Article 4 Coal mines, metal and non-metal mines, metal smelting enterprises, as well as entities that produce and store hazardous materials shall employ registered safety engineers with relevant expertise at the intermediate level or above to handle work related to safety production. The proportion of such registered safety engineers among the safety management personnel shall be no less than 30%, and this proportion shall increase over time. Other production and business units are encouraged to hire registered safety engineers, with the proportion of registered safety engineers at the intermediate level or above among safety management personnel reaching 15%. Article 5: Registered safety engineers shall pursue continuing education according to their registered specialty categories, completing no less than 48 hours of training during each valid registration period, of which no less than 24 hours must be dedicated to specialized training. Continuing education is organized and implemented through online learning*, face-to-face learning*, or a combination of both. Article 6: The practice certificate obtained by a registered safety engineer through registration serves as valid proof of their possession of the professional knowledge and management skills required for this position in terms of work safety. Article 7: After the implementation of these measures, no further evaluations for intermediate and junior professional qualifications in the field of safety engineering will be conducted. Intermediate and junior registered safety engineers employed by production and operation units can be appointed to the professional positions of safety engineer and assistant safety engineer respectively, with corresponding benefits provided. Having the professional qualification of a registered safety engineer at the intermediate level or above is a prerequisite for applying for the evaluation of senior safety engineer professional qualifications. Article 8: The qualification certificates for registered safety engineers and registered assistant safety engineers (practicing) obtained prior to the implementation of these measures shall be regarded respectively as qualification certificates for intermediate registered safety engineers and junior registered safety engineers (practicing). These measures shall be interpreted respectively by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security and the **General Administration of Work Safety in accordance with their respective responsibilities, and shall come into effect as of the date of issuance. To implement the new Safety Law and vigorously promote the \"four-in-one\" work framework for registered safety engineers, the following revision suggestions are put forward regarding the professional qualification system for such engineers. I. Classification and Grading of Registered Safety Engineers (1) Professional Classification 1. Classification Principles: The particularities of industry production processes, safety production risks and their control, the scale of the workforce in the industry, and the entities responsible for industry supervision. 2. Professional classification: Instead of the previous four categories of mine safety, hazardous materials safety, construction safety, and other safety areas, it has been divided into six categories: coal mine safety, non-coal mine safety, hazardous materials safety, metal smelting safety, construction safety, and other safety areas. A classified management system has been established, featuring separate registration for different professions, as well as separate requirements for practice and continuing education within each category. (II) Classification of safety engineers: A senior safety engineer rank is to be introduced, while the existing safety engineers and assistant safety engineers will be renamed as level 1 safety engineers and level 2 safety engineers respectively. Provisions regarding senior safety engineers will be formulated separately when the time is right. II. Registration for Safety Engineer Exams (I) Eligibility Requirements The engineering economics-related majors specified in the original eligibility criteria have been replaced with engineering disciplines ； The minimum educational requirement for application has been raised from a technical secondary school diploma to an associate degree ； Addition: Those who have obtained the qualification as a Level 2 registered safety engineer and have been registered and practicing for at least 3 years are eligible to apply for the Level 1 registered safety engineer exam. (II) Examination subjects: The number of subjects for the Level 1 registered safety engineer exam remains four, with their names being adjusted to “Laws and Regulations Related to Work Safety,” “Work Safety Management,” “General Techniques for Work Safety,” and “Professional Practice in Work Safety.” Among these, “Professional Practice in Work Safety” is assessed through separate examination papers tailored to the six different specialties; the content consists of two main parts: professional techniques specific to that specialty and case study analysis. For example, in the case of coal mine safety, the exam includes questions on coal mine safety professional techniques (single-choice and multiple-choice questions) plus case analyses related to coal mine work safety. Candidates choose one of the categories based on the professional field in which they are engaged when applying for the exam. Note: The examination for \"Professional Practice in Work Safety\" follows the mature model of domestic professional licensing examinations such as those for physicians and construction engineers (the physician licensing examination is divided into four categories: clinical medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, dentistry, and public health) ； The professional examination subject for First-Class Constructor, \"Professional Engineering Management and Practice,\" is divided into 10 specialties: architecture, highways, railways, civil aviation airports, ports and waterways, water resources and hydropower, mining, mechanical and electrical engineering, municipal utilities, and communications and broadcasting. These specialties involve specific aspects related to industry production processes, safety production risks, and the technologies used for their control. Industries with a large number of workers or those whose regulatory bodies are relatively independent, such as coal mines, non-coal mines, industries dealing with hazardous materials, metal smelting, and the construction industry, are classified separately. The number of subjects for the qualification exam for Level 2 Registered Safety Engineers remains unchanged, with two subjects: \"Laws and Regulations Related to Work Safety\" and \"Work Safety Practice and Case Analysis\". It is up to each province to decide whether \"Practical Safety Production and Case Analysis\" is offered by specialty, depending on local circumstances. (III) Additional specialized qualifications: To meet the special needs of safety engineers who wish to work in different specialized fields, they may take the professional practice exam for another specialty on top of the qualification they already hold in one specialty; upon passing this exam, their qualification can be expanded to include that additional specialty. After registering for additional specialties, one can practice in two different professional fields. (IV) Exemption from certain subjects: Those who meet the eligibility requirements for the registration exam for Level 1 Certified Safety Engineers and satisfy one of the following conditions may be exempted from the two subjects of \"Safety Production Management\" and \"General Techniques for Safety Production\"; they only need to take the exams for \"Laws and Regulations Related to Safety Production\" and \"Professional Practices in Safety Production\“. 1. Professionals who were appointed to the position of senior engineer by December 31 of the year prior to the examination year, and who have been engaged in work related to safe production for at least 10 years ； 2. The Safety Engineering program is accredited by the China Engineering Education Accreditation. III. Allocation and Utilization of Registered Safety Engineers (1) Allocation of Safety Engineers Production and storage units of hazardous materials, as well as mining and metal smelting enterprises, shall assign first-level registered safety engineers at a ratio of not less than 30% of their full-time safety management personnel; for centrally managed enterprises, this ratio should be over 50%. The heads of their safety management departments must possess the professional qualification of registered safety engineers ； If there are 7 or fewer safety production management personnel, at least 2 should be assigned. Other production and business entities that are not covered by the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall assign safety engineers or entrust safety production intermediary agencies to assign such engineers to provide safety production services. Safety production intermediary agencies shall employ certified safety engineers at a ratio of no less than 60% of their professional staff specializing in safety production. Note: The requirement for the metal smelting industry is a newly established one, and a transition period is needed. (II) Scope of practice for Level 1 and Level 2 registered safety engineers: Level 1 registered safety engineers working in production and operation units or professional safety services organizations can independently carry out safety-related tasks within their scope of practice. Second-level registered safety engineers working in production and business units with fewer than 100 employees, excluding those from units involved in the production and storage of hazardous materials as well as mining and metal smelting units, can independently carry out safety-related work within the scope of their qualifications. In units that produce and store hazardous materials, as well as in mines, metal smelting facilities, and safety production intermediary agencies, registered safety engineers of level 2 must carry out their professional activities under the supervision of registered safety engineers of level 1. IV. Continuing education for registered safety engineers: The continuing education is organized according to the registration categories. During the registration period, the total duration of continuing education must be no less than 48 class hours, of which at least 24 class hours must be dedicated to specialized courses. Those with additional registrations must also participate in continuing education for the corresponding professional category, for a duration of no less than 24 hours. Registered safety engineers who are involved in the development of examination questions, teach in continuing education programs, or publish papers and works on work safety can have some of their required hours credited or waived. Within each registration period, the cumulative credits earned through such compensation shall not exceed 24 credits. Encourage participation in distance continuing education. V. Others 1. The validity period of the practice certificate has been adjusted from 3 years to 6 years. 2. The validity period for the results of the Level 1 Registered Safety Engineer exam has been changed from 2 years to a rolling cycle of 3 years. 3. The principal persons in charge and safety management personnel of entities that produce or store hazardous materials, as well as those in coal mines, non-coal mines, and metal smelting facilities, who hold professional qualification certificates for registered safety engineers in the fields of coal mine safety, non-coal mine safety, hazardous materials safety, metal smelting safety, and other safety-related areas and are registered as such, shall have their status as registered safety engineers considered equivalent to holding the corresponding safety qualification certificates. 4. The issuance of practice seals has been adjusted to the provision of seal molds, which are then carved by registered safety engineers using those molds.