Professionals in many fields must follow a code of conduct that prescribes moral and ethical behavior as applicable to their job. While each discipline has different professional responsibilities, the guiding principles are similar. Falsifying InformationInformation presented to the public must be truthful and accurate. This includes testimony in a legal case, results of medical studies and financial record-keeping and audits. Conflict of InterestA conflict of interest occurs when an individual, or a member of his family, can gain financially or personally from a decision. Ethical behavior requires avoidance of even the appearance of a conflict; in a legal situation a firm can't represent the two opponents in a case -- unless they create a clear division within the firm known as a "Chinese Fire Wall." A family member of a politician can't be given a contract without an open bidding process that does not involve the politician. ConfidentialityInformation learned in the course of employment cannot be shared with outsiders. For medical professionals this means not sharing information about patients. Sexual MisconductThe American Medical Association defines sexual misconduct as an intimate relationship that occurs concurrently with a physician-patient relationship. They say, "sexual or romantic interactions between physicians and patients detract from the goals of the physician-patient relationship; may exploit the vulnerability of the patient; may obscure the physician's objective judgment concerning the patient's health care; and ultimately may be detrimental to the patient's well-being." CodesMany companies and professional associations have developed an ethics policy or code of conduct that all employees and members must adhere to. These outline the main responsibilities and potential ethical dilemmas that may arise. Some organizations, including many governments, have an ethics adviser to enforce their ethics code. Skip to main content
PRINCIPLES 9 The following principles apply to the handling of breaches of the Code of Conduct in the ABS:
(ii) the parties have the right to know of, and comment on, any information which is damaging to their case or interests; and (iii) there must be facts or information to support adverse findings. c The person who determines whether the employee has breached the Code of Conduct must be independent and unbiased. d An APS employee who does not exercise the opportunity to furnish a statement in relation to the suspected breach shall not, for that reason, be taken to have admitted the suspected breach. e In establishing contested facts, and in reaching a conclusion as to whether a breach of the Code of Conduct has occurred, the standard of proof to apply will be the balance of probabilities. That is, taking account of all available relevant information, an investigator will ask themself what is more likely to have happened in a particular case. f Any investigation will comply with all relevant legislation, e.g. the Privacy Act 1988. PROCEDURES FOR DETERMINING A BREACH OF THE CODE OF CONDUCT 10 Unless otherwise stated, reference to ABS employees includes employees who have separated from the ABS who have been suspected of breaching the Code of Conduct while employed by the ABS. 11 These guidelines apply to all ABS employees, except those on probation. Separate provisions exist for probationers who may have breached the Code of Conduct and these can be found in the Probation guidelines. 12 These guidelines only deal with managing alleged breaches of the Code of Conduct. Underperformance is managed under separate guidelines. Determining the difference between a potential breach of the APS Code of Conduct and a work performance issue is sometimes difficult and each case will be considered on its merits. The Australian Public Service Commission has issued guidance for situations where it is not clear whether conduct should be dealt with under the performance management process or as a possible breach of the APS Code of Conduct. In such cases, managers are encouraged to create an Incident ticket on Services@ABS, under People > People Management to seek early advice from the People Management and Wellbeing Section. 13 The process of handling suspected breaches of the Code of Conduct in the ABS comprises two stages:
b decide what, if any, sanction(s) is appropriate in all the circumstances. CODE OF CONDUCT INVESTIGATIONS AND INTER-AGENCY MOVES 14 Where a decision has been made to move an employee to another agency under section 26 of the Act (including on promotion), and an employee is suspected of breaching the Code of Conduct and has been informed of the suspected breach and the sanctions that may apply, the move will not take effect until the matter is resolved, unless the current Agency Head and new Agency Head agree otherwise. Resolution of the matter is once a determination is made or it has been decided that a determination is not necessary. Further guidance on the release of information relating to Code of Conduct investigations to other agencies can be found at paras 65 - 69. 15 If a determination is made that the employee has breached the Code of Conduct and a move to another agency under Section 26 of the Act then occurs, it is the responsibility of the gaining agency to determine what, if any, sanction should apply. See paragraph 36 for further information.Employee Responsibilities
a ABS Policy and Legislation Manual; b ABS Manual of Personnel Management; and c Chief Executive Instructions.
Line Manager/Director Responsibilities
21 At this early stage, line managers and/or Directors are encouraged to create a new Incident ticket on Services@ABS, under People > People Management, for referral to the People Management and Wellbeing Section for advice and assistance. 22 If a line manager and/or Director believes that an ABS employee(s) may have breached the Code of Conduct, they should ask the employee(s) involved for an explanation. If the explanation is accepted, the matter may go no further if the behaviour is not repeated.23 If the line manager and/or Director is not satisfied with the employee's explanation, they will liaise with the People Management and Wellbeing Section, and discuss the appropriate course of action to take in relation to the potential breach of the Code of Conduct. Where the potential breach is minor, or where there is a pattern of conduct which will need to be treated more seriously unless rectified, the options are:
b more formal counselling, where a written record of the discussion is made and will be provided to the People Management and Wellbeing Section to be retained on a 'Staff in Confidence' file held in that area.
b the Director, People Management and Wellbeing Section; or c the Assistant Statistician, Human Resources Branch; or d the Chief Operating Officer, Strategies, Services & Technology Group. 26 If a line manager and/or Director becomes aware of any criminal offence involving ABS employees, he or she must immediately advise the appropriate Conduct Case Managers (refer paragraphs 47 to 48). Flowchart of Line Manager and/or Director Responsibilities
32 In deciding whether to determine a matter themselves, or to appoint an appropriate investigator, the Conduct Case Manager will consider the following:
b the seriousness and/or sensitivity of the matter; c whether they can be an independent and unbiased decision maker; and d their availability to conduct the investigation in a timely manner. 33 Where a potential breach of the Code of Conduct is to be investigated, the procedure will be as follows:
(ii) where practicable and appropriate, information on how the matter has come to their attention; (iii) the sanctions that may be imposed in the event that a breach is determined to have occurred; (iv) information on the process, including investigation into the potential breach, any subsequent actions that may be taken, and who will be making the respective decisions; (v) a copy of these procedures; and (vi) if applicable, provide the name of the appointed investigator. b The employee will be given an opportunity to make a statement, preferably in writing, within seven days in response to the matters that have been raised. This period may be extended depending on the particular circumstances of the case. c The employee will be encouraged to exercise their right to make a written statement within the specified time. In addition, if the employee makes a written statement, they will also be given the opportunity to make an oral statement in relation to the suspected breach. Where the employee chooses to make an oral statement in addition to a written statement, it is envisaged that the oral statement would be for the purpose of expanding on or clarifying matters raised in the employee's written statement, but not limited to that purpose. Notes should be taken, agreed upon by both parties and form part of the supporting document for the investigation report. d The Conduct Case Manager or investigator will undertake whatever inquiries they consider necessary in order to come to a conclusion, with as little formality, and as much expedition, as a proper consideration of the matter allows. Beyond ensuring that the employee is given every reasonable opportunity to be heard, the steps to be taken will depend very much on the circumstances of the case. If there is no real dispute as to facts there may be no more involved than to make a decision based on whatever has been reported (for example, by the line manager) and the employee's response. In other cases, where facts or circumstances are in dispute, options may include seeking statements from, or holding discussions with, other people. Written records must be made of any discussions. e The Conduct Case Manager or investigator's role is to investigate the alleged breach of the Code of Conduct and recommend whether, on the balance of probabilities, a breach of the Code of Conduct has occurred. It is not their role to make any comments or recommendations about potential sanctions that may be applied to the employee should a breach be found. f Where an investigator is making a recommendation to the Conduct Case Manager as to whether, on the balance of probabilities, there has been a breach of the Code of Conduct, a written report of the case will be made, including:
(ii) the basis for the recommendation, including key findings; (iii) an outline of the evidence taken into account; and
h If the matter is being investigated and determined by the Conduct Case Manager, they will document a written report as detailed above, and include their determination as to whether, on the balance of probabilities, a breach of the Code of Conduct has occurred. i If the Conduct Case Manager finds that there has been no breach of the Code of Conduct, they will inform the employee to that effect as soon as possible and provide a copy of the written record to the employee. j If the Conduct Case Manager finds that there has been a breach of the Code of Conduct, they will provide a copy of the written record for consideration and decision as to an appropriate sanction(s), to one of the following Delegates:
(ii) where the employee involved is an SES employee: the Chief Operating Officer, Strategies, Services & Technology Group, or the Australian Statistician. 34 An employee has the right to be accompanied by a support person at any stage of these procedures. This may include a union representative or another person of their choice. The role of this person will be to provide support and advice to the employee. This role can involve:
b seeking clarification of points; c assisting to articulate the employee's position; and d clarifying procedures. 37 Once a decision has been taken that the Code of Conduct has been breached, a further decision needs to be taken as to what, if any sanction(s) should be imposed. The available sanctions (s.15(1) of the Act) for current ABS employees are:
b deductions from salary, by way of a fine; c reduction in salary; d reassignment of duties; e reduction in classification; f termination of employment. Back to top
46 The Delegate will then make their final decision as to the imposition of a sanction(s) or otherwise, and inform the employee in writing of that decision. The employee will also be informed of the review rights available (refer paragraphs 54 to 56 below).
53 Any records made as a result of a misconduct investigation will be managed in accordance with the requirements of the Information Privacy Principles of the Privacy Act 1988. Where appropriate, the employee's line management will be advised of the breach of the Code of Conduct and advised to take appropriate preventative steps to ensure future breaches do not occur, and to include details in referee reports where the breach is relevant to the duties of the position. The weighting of consideration of breaches will diminish over time. Further details are provided in paragraphs 52 to 56 of this guideline. Back to top 54 An employee has the right to request a review of actions on decisions that relate to:
b a sanction imposed for breach of the Code of Conduct, excepting termination of employment.
60 The Public Service Regulations provide that an Agency Head may suspend an employee if the Agency Head believes on reasonable grounds:
b the employee's suspension is in the public, or the agency's interest.
Back to top 67 If an ABS employee:a is to move to another agency under section 26 of the Act (including on promotion), and is suspected of breaching the Code of Conduct; or
d becomes the subject of a conduct allegation and leaves the ABS before the matter is resolved, then information about the breach or allegation may be disclosed to any prospective or new employing APS agency.
c decisions as to whether or not an employee should be sanctioned in relation to a breach of the Code.
|