Dawn Finch

President CILIPChildren’s Author and Librarian

• In general, ethics is the philosophical examination, from a moral standpoint, of particular issues activities in private and public life that are matters of moral judgment

• Business ethics is a form of applied ethics or professional ethics that examines ethical principles and moral or ethical problems that arise in a business environment.

Ethical codes are established for those professional which require a high level of ethical practice.

What and why?

What are our ethical principles?

The conduct of members should be characterised by the following general principles and values:

• Concern for the public good in all professional matters, including respect for diversity within society, and the promoting of equal opportunities and human rights.

What are our ethical principles?

• Concern for the good reputation of the information profession.

• Commitment to the defence, and the advancement, of access to information, ideas and works of the imagination.

• Provision of the best possible service within available resources.

• Concern for balancing the needs of actual and potential users and the reasonable demands of employers.

• Equitable treatment of all information users.

• Impartiality, and avoidance of inappropriate bias, in acquiring and evaluating information and in mediating it to other information users.

• Respect for confidentiality and privacy in dealing with users’ information.

• Concern for the conservation and preservation of our information heritage in all formats.

• Respect for, and understanding of, the integrity of information items and for the intellectual effort of those who created them.

• Commitment to maintaining and improving personal professional knowledge, development, skills and competences.

• Respect for the skills and competences of all others, whether information professionals or information users, employers or colleagues.

• Why is this important? IFLA view

“The ethical code is offered in the belief that:Librarianship is, in its very essence, an ethical activity embodying a value-rich approach to professional work with information. The need to share ideas and information has grown more important with the increasing complexity of society in recent centuries and this provides a rationale for libraries and the practice of librarianship.”

“The core mission of librarians and other information workers is to ensure open and unbiased access to information for all for personal development, education, cultural enrichment, leisure, economic activity and informed participation in and enhancement of democracy.”

IFLA 2012

“Librarians and other information workers are strictly committed to neutrality and an unbiased stance regarding collection, access and service. Neutrality results in the most balanced collection and the most balanced access to information achievable.”

IFLA 2012

“Librarians and other information workers should treat each other with fairness and respect. Librarians and other information workers should strive to earn a reputation and status based on their professionalism and ethical behaviour. They should not compete with colleagues by the use of unfair methods.”

IFLA 2012

Who are we?

• Trusted• Reliable• Open• Informed• Respectful• Librarians!

Links• CILIP Ethical Principles and Code of

Conducthttp://www.cilip.org.uk/about/ethics• IFLA Ethical codes for librarianshttp://www.ifla.org/news/ifla-code-of-ethics-for-librarians-and-other-information-workers-full-version• ALA – Ethical principleshttp://www.ala.org/advocacy/proethics/codeofethics/codeethics