Compliance Specialist

 Why Guelph?

When you join the City of Guelph, you join a team of over 2000 employees who deliver services the community relies on every day. Together, we are bringing to life Guelph’s vision of an inclusive, connected, and prosperous city where we look after each other and our environment. As a single tier municipality, we offer a variety of occupations and career specialties within our organization. Guided by the goals and objectives of the Future Guelph: Strategic Plan and committed to the Corporate Values of integrity, service, inclusion, wellness and learning, the candidate will aid in the achievement of the Community Vision for an inclusive, connected, prosperous city.

What we offer

We offer competitive wages and comprehensive benefits to meet the needs of our diverse employees. Many of our positions offer:

• Paid vacation days, increasing with years of service
• Paid personal days;
• Hybrid and flexible work arrangements;
• Defined benefit pension plan with OMERS, including 100-per-cent employer matching;
• Extended health and dental benefits, including Health Care Spending Account;
• Employee and Family Assistance Program;
• Parental leave top up program;
• Learning and development opportunities including tuition assistance
• Employee recognition programs.

Position overview

Resumes are being accepted for the position of Compliance Specialist, reporting to the Supervisor, Compliance. The Compliance Specialist is part of the dynamic and collaborative Compliance, Programs & Performance team, and supports the Environmental Services department’s managers, supervisors, project-related and operational staff in compliance excellence. The successful candidate will support and facilitate legislative compliance for the City of Guelph’s water-related divisions (water and wastewater). The successful candidate must have a commitment to continuous improvement, quality assurance, focus on detail, and cross-jurisdictional relationship building.

Key duties and responsibilities

• Lead the monitoring, review, interpretation, and summary of legislative, regulatory, legal, and contractual requirements of the City related to drinking water and wastewater management, such as the Environmental Review Tribunal, Safe Drinking Water Act, Environmental Protection Act, and Ontario Water Resources Act.
• Recommend and develop water-related (water and wastewater) compliance strategies and solutions; provide support to operational staff in executing infrastructure and operational change and upgrades.
• Review legislative compliance risks of proposed Operating Authority water-related (water and wastewater) infrastructure projects and provide guidance and recommendations to mitigate risks through work implementation.
• Develop and review standard operating procedures (SOP), work instructions (WI) and other documents developed by operational leads to ensure alignment with latest regulatory requirements and provide constructive guidance.
• Solicit, coordinate, and/or consolidate staff and peer input on legislative, regulation and certificate changes (i.e., Drinking Water Works Permit, Municipal Drinking Water License and Environmental Compliance Approvals) and other regulatory instruments.
• Facilitate and verify the completion of compliance-related legal reporting for Top Management and the System Owner.
• Ensure accurate and timely response to the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks to meet all regulatory scheduled requirements and inquiries.
• Assist with the collection of operational information required for benchmarking and performance measurement pertaining to compliance objectives.
• Consolidate, analyze, and summarize operational data to demonstrate compliance for internal and/or Ministry inspections and reports; produces required compliance reports and presentations.
• Facilitate continuous improvement and lead root cause analysis to ensure corrective actions, recommendations are recorded and implemented.
• Liaise as the City’s first contact for the Ministry inquiries, inspections (planned and unannounced) and compliance-related meetings; report non-compliant incidents to governing bodies on behalf of Environmental Services’ management team.
• Liaise with peers and technical groups in creation of industry-leading water and wastewater compliance/operational precedents and solutions to compliance-related operational programs.
• Assist in implementation of the City’s Drinking Water Quality Management System, Wastewater management system (CSA-217-2025), Operational and Emergency Response Plans.
• Develop and/or project manage regulatory and environmental monitoring programs, studies or similar initiatives, as required.
• Provide backup support to other team members, including QMS Specialist, EMS Specialists and Training & Licensing Specialist, as needed.
• Performs other duties as assigned.
• Other duties as assigned

Qualifications and requirements

• Completion of a degree or diploma in Environmental Science or a related discipline. Candidates with equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.
• Considerable experience in developing and managing compliance systems for water and/or wastewater operations, preferably in municipal environment.
• Advanced skills in Microsoft Excel or database management software – demonstrated ability to quality assure/quality control (QA/QC) operational data, mine for inconsistencies and resolve to ensure compliance; Intermediate skills in other Microsoft Office Suite tools (i.e., Word, Teams, Power Point and Outlook).
• Proven ability to serve as an effective liaison, skillfully navigating negotiations and resolving complex issues while fostering productive relationships across all organizational levels.
• Experience in coordinating and communicating with management, operational and technical staff, provincial regulatory and legislative bodies, consultants, contractors, suppliers, peers, and the public to ensure alignment and collaboration.
• Expert knowledge of applicable Provincial acts, regulations, policies and procedures of the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks.
• Ability to interpret and apply environmental legislation and knowledge of policies, procedures and guidelines to plan and deliver compliance systems and to ensure that regulatory considerations are incorporated into all phases of program development.
• Excellent customer service and communication skills with the ability to respond effectively to regulatory and customer issues.
• Change management principles and methodologies to plan, lead and manage compliance system development and operational projects to meet changing business needs.
• Excellent project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities.
• Knowledge of water industry-related regulations, legislation, guidelines, standards, procedures, inspections, and the Drinking Water Quality Management System as they relate to operations of a drinking water system.
• Knowledge of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
• QMS Auditor Certificate and or Project Management certificates would be an asset.
• Class I Water Treatment or Water Distribution or Water Supply and Distribution License or Water Quality Analyst Certificate would be an asset.
• Class 1 Wastewater Treatment or Wastewater Collection Certification would be an asset.

Hours of work

35 hours per week, Monday to Friday, between the hours of 8:30 a.m and 4:30 p.m. This position is eligible for hybrid and flexible work arrangement options (as per current corporate policy).

Pay/Salary

Non-Union Grade 5: $83,938.40- $104,923.00

How to apply

Qualified applicants are invited to apply using our online application system by Wednesday, June 11, 2025. Please note all applicants must complete the online questionnaire specific to this position at the time they submit their resume and cover letter in order to be considered.

Please visit the job posting listed on our City of Guelph careers page and click on the “Apply for this job” button. Instructions will follow.

The City of Guelph is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where employees feel welcome, valued and engaged. Our employment policies strictly prohibit all forms of discrimination on any of the grounds in relevant laws. All employment practices are solely based on individual merit, qualifications, and organization’s needs at the time. In keeping with the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, we are committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals in our job application procedures. If you need an accommodation in order to participate in the hiring process, you may contact us to make your needs known in advance.

Personal information collected through the recruitment process will be used solely to determine eligibility for employment. We thank all candidates in advance; however, only those being considered for an interview will be contacted.