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CODE
OF CONDUCT III.
MEMBERS Misconduct: B.
Responsibility for Implementation C.
References to Other Documents D.
Definitions: Adoption
Date: 06/19/07 Last Revision Date: 06/19/07 5.1 The purpose of this section is to communicate Institute Policy regarding the deterrence and investigation of suspected misconduct and dishonesty by Institute Officers, Board Members, all appointed Committee and Task Team Members, and Members, and to provide specific instructions regarding appropriate action in case of suspected violations. 5.2 Antitrust/Confidentiality
b)
theft or other misappropriation of
assets, including assets of the Institute, our customers,
suppliers or others with whom we have a business relationship c)
misstatements and other irregularities in Institute records,
including the intentional misstatement of the results of operations d)
wrongdoing e)
forgery or other alteration of documents f)
fraud and other unlawful acts g)
any similar acts. 5.2.1
The
Construction Specification Institute ("CSI") intends to
operate in compliance with the antitrust laws of the United States and,
as applicable, the antitrust laws of the states within the United States
and the antitrust / competition laws of other countries (generally,
"Antitrust Laws"). The Antitrust Laws are intended to preserve
and promote free, fair and open competition. This competition benefits
consumers and companies which are innovative and efficient. A violation
of the Antitrust Laws can have serious consequences for CSI and members.
Accordingly, CSI hereby issues the following guidelines for itself and
its members, as guidance in connection with participation in CSI
activities. The activities of CSI are not intended to restrain
competition or to harm consumers. The purpose of CSI is to bring
businesses and business people in the construction industry together to
promote business, exchange ideas and to take advantage of the vast
amount of experience and information that we can all derive from and
share with each other. 5.2.2
The protection of confidential business information and trade
secrets, subject to disclosures as required by law, is vital to the
interests and the success of CSI. Such
confidential information includes, but is not limited to, the following
examples: a)
personal compensation data b)
computer processes c)
computer programs and codes d)
customer lists e)
financial information f)
marketing strategies g)
new materials research h)
pending projects and proposals research and development
strategies 5.3
Whistleblower Protection The
reporting of an act of misconduct or dishonesty shall be considered
privileged and subject to protection. Said protection is intended to cultivate an open door
approach to Institute Policy compliance and no Officer, Director,
Committee or Task Team member, or member who in good faith reports a
violation of the Code of Conduct shall suffer harassment, retaliation or
adverse consequences. An Institute
Officer, Board, Committee or Task Team member, or member
who retaliates against someone who has reported a violation in good
faith is subject to discipline in accordance with section 5.8 of this
Policy. This
Whistleblower Protection is intended to encourage and enable Officers,
Directors, Committee or Task Team members, or members to raise serious
concerns within Institute prior to seeking resolution outside the
association. 5.4
Ethics/Conflict of Interest The
Institute Board commits all Institute Officers, Board Members, all
appointed Committee and Task Team Members, and all Members to ethical,
businesslike, and lawful conduct, including proper use of authority and
appropriate decorum when acting as Institute Officers, Board, Committee,
or Task Team Members, and as Members.
Accordingly; Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team
Members, and Members: a) Must conduct themselves with unconflicted loyalty to the
interests CSI and its stakeholder members. This accountability
supersedes any conflicting loyalty, such as loyalty to other advocacy or
interest groups, membership on other boards, and professional
responsibility to an employer. It also supersedes the personal interests
of any Institute Officer, Board, Committee, or Task Team Member. b) Must not breach their fiduciary responsibility to CSI and
must avoid conflict of interest, as well as the appearance of any
conflict of interest, with respect to the following:
4) Institute Board and Committee members will disclose their
involvement with other organizations, vendors, or any other associations
that might produce a potential conflict under this Policy. 5) The Institute Board of Directors may not participate in the
nomination review process of any CSI related award for which they, a
family member, or a firm they work for or represent, may be eligible or
which may otherwise present a conflict of interest or perception of self
dealing. 6) Institute Board and Committee members are expected to be
familiar with and abide by CSI policies. 7) The Board may for good cause exempt the members, members of a
Board, Committee, or Task Team from one or more of the provisions of
this Section by affirming the exemption in a Board vote or by stating
the exemption in that Board’s, Committee’s, or Task Team’s
charter, provided that the exemption is adopted by an affirmative
majority of the Board of Directors and provided that the exemption does
not permit an actual conflict of interest or actual self-dealing.
The action of the Institute Board will, by virtue of the
hierarchical relationship, be implicitly adopted as superseding, in
whole or in part, this Policy and thereby enable eligibility of members,
Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team members to act
accordingly. 5.4.1 Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team Members may
not attempt to exercise individual authority over the organization,
except as explicitly set forth in Institute Board Policies, Committee,
or Task Team charters. a) Interaction with the Institute Officers, Executive Director,
or with Institute staff must recognize the lack of individual Director
and Member authority, except when explicitly authorized by Institute
Policy, Committee, or Task Team charters. b) Interactions with the public, press, or other entities must
recognize the same lack of individual authority and the inability of any
Institute Board, Committee, or Task Team member to speak for the
Institute Board, Committee, or Task Team, except to repeat explicitly
stated Institute Board decisions. c) Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team Members
will give no consequence or voice to individual judgments of the
Executive Director or staff performance, except as part of the
performance evaluation. 5.4.2
Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team Members will
respect the confidentiality concerning Institute Officers, Board,
Committee, and Task Team issues and information of a sensitive nature. 5.4.3
Institute Officers, Board, Committee, and Task Team Members will
annually acknowledge compliance with this Policy Section 5.4 by
completing an appropriate consent form(s) as provided by the Secretary
of the Institute. Compliance
with this requirement is achieved in part through inclusion of all CSI
positions held on the CSI member profile and annual reporting by Regions
and Chapters of Officers and Committee Chairs.
The Secretary of the Institute shall review each submitted form
for general compliance with this policy and forward to the designated
Institute staff for filing. 5.5
Sexual Harassment/Harassment/Discrimination Institute
is committed to providing an environment that is free of discrimination
and unlawful harassment. Actions, words, jokes, or comments based on an
individual's sex, race, ethnicity, age, religion, or any other legally
protected characteristic will not be tolerated. As an example, sexual
harassment (both overt and subtle) is a form of misconduct that is
demeaning to another person, undermines the integrity of the
organization, and is strictly prohibited. 5.5.1
Sexual harassment is unwanted sexual attention of a persistent or
offensive nature made by a person who knows, or reasonably should know,
that such attention is unwanted. Sexual harassment includes sexually
oriented conduct that is sufficiently pervasive or severe to
unreasonably interfere with a person’s performance or create an
intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. While sexual
harassment encompasses a wide range of conduct, some examples of
specifically prohibited conduct include:
a)
Promising, directly or indirectly, a reward, if the person
complies with a sexually oriented request; b)
Threatening, directly or indirectly, to retaliate against a
person, if the person refuses to comply with a sexually oriented
request; c)
Denying, directly or indirectly, a person’s opportunity, if the
person refuses to comply with a sexually oriented request; d)
Engaging in sexually suggestive physical contact or touching
another person in a way that is unwelcome;
e)
Displaying, storing, or transmitting pornographic or sexually
oriented materials using Institute equipment or facilities; f)
Making sexual-related comments that can be overheard by others;
g)
Engaging in indecent exposure; or h)
Making sexual or romantic advances toward a person and persisting
despite the person's rejection of the advances. 5.5.2
Sexual harassment can be physical and/or psychological in nature.
An aggregation of a series of incidents can constitute sexual harassment
even if one of the incidents considered on its own would not be
harassing. 5.5.3
Persons are prohibited from harassing other persons whether or
not the incidents of harassment occur at Institute, Region, or Chapter
events. Sexual harassment
can involve males or females being harassed by members of either sex.
Sexual harassment can involve a person in a greater position of
authority as the harasser, and individuals in positions of lesser or
equal authority also can be found responsible for engaging in prohibited
harassment. Consensual sexual or romantic relationships between persons
are deemed unwise and are strongly discouraged if one person has
authority over the other person. 5.5.4
Harassment on the basis of any other protected characteristics is
also prohibited. Under this policy, harassment is verbal or physical
conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward an
individual because of his/her race, color, religion, sex, age, national
origin, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law that: a)
has the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating, hostile, or
offensive work environment; b)
has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an
individual's performance; or c)
otherwise adversely affects an individual's opportunities. 5.5.5
All incidents of sexual harassment or inappropriate sexual
conduct must be reported regardless of their seriousness. Publicizing
information about alleged harassment without following the reporting
procedures or filing a formal complaint might be considered evidence of
a vexatious intent on the part of the accuser. 5.5.6
Institute Officers must
deal expeditiously and fairly with allegations of harassment whether or
not there has been a written or formal complaint. Institute Officers
must: a)
Ensure that any claim of alleged harassment or inappropriate
conduct is reported to the entire Institute EXCOM within one day of
alleged incident; b)
Cooperate with the Institute Officers in the investigation;
and c)
Implement corrective action to prevent prohibited conduct from
reoccurring. Institute Officers
who knowingly allow or tolerate harassment are in violation of this
policy and subject to disciplinary action as set forth in Section 5.8
below. 5.5.7 Institute Officers or their designee is responsible for:
a)
Ensuring that both the individual filing the complaint (hereafter
referred to as the complainant) and the accused individual (hereafter
referred to as the respondent) are aware of the seriousness of a
harassment complaint; b)
Explaining Institutes harassment policy and investigation
procedures to the complainant and the respondent; c)
Exploring informal means of resolving harassment
complaints; d)
Arranging for an investigation of the alleged harassment and the
preparation of a written report. 5.6 Violation Any
member who believes a violation of this policy has been committed may
raise the incident or concern to the designated Chapter, Region, or
Institute Officer(s), staff person(s) or Board member(s) for resolution. 5.7 Investigation
In the circumstance of an allegation,
assertion, or act of misconduct, breach of the Code of Conduct, or
unprofessional behavior on the part of an Institute Officer, Board,
Committee, or Task Team Member Institute
Officers or their designee will conduct an immediate investigation into
the alleged harassment. A final report with recommendations will be
generated and submitted to the Institute Board of Directors for
resolution in accordance with Item 5.8 below.
In the circumstance of an allegation,
assertion, or act of misconduct, breach of the Code of Conduct, or
unprofessional behavior on the part of a Member the procedure set forth
in Section III – Members, Part
4, Misconduct shall prevail.
5.8
Discipline
Any
Institute Board, Committee, Task Team Member, or Member that is
determined to have violated any provision of this policy shall be
subject to sanctions up to and including expulsion from membership and
loss of any and all honors, awards, designations, titles, and privileges
as have been provided by CSI, as determined by the Board.
If
an investigation results in a finding that this policy has been
violated, the mandatory minimum discipline is a written reprimand. The
minimum discipline for very serious or repeat violations is expulsion
from membership. Persons who violate this policy also are subject to
civil damages or criminal penalties as permitted by law. |
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Page Last Updated Monday, November 10, 2008 |