[not sure if this is still an active guideline]
Preamble:
SLA promotes the professional welfare of its members and
the organizations and people they serve and fosters the global progress
of the knowledge society. In an environment where concepts and practices
of ethics and service continue to extend and expand, SLA members strive
to implement and promote guidelines for the ethical and appropriate use
of information and knowledge. Fundamental to these guidelines is the
recognition that there are different kinds of information and knowledge,
such as personally identifiable, proprietary, or classified information
or public information pertaining to the actions of government. Also
fundamental is a respect for a diversity of viewpoints, for cultural
differences and for civil discourse.
SLA recognizes that ethical reflection is required in the application
of these guidelines. In certain situations, ethical values may be in
conflict or may demand that one ethical value take priority over
another, especially given the diversity of SLA membership. For example,
accountability to society or to the organization may trump the right to
privacy or confidentiality.
SLA’s guidelines for professional conduct are positioned within
various interacting value systems: basic human rights; organizational
missions, goals, objectives and ethical codes; legal, cultural, societal
and governmental norms; and personal ethical beliefs. The guidelines
are intended to help SLA members frame ethical deliberation whenever
professionally-related ethical problems arise.
SLA members foster the profession’s reputation for integrity,
competence, diligence, honesty, discretion and confidentiality through
creating and sustaining an environment that facilitates mutual trust
among employers, clients or other individuals served, and the
profession. They encourage the profession by sharing best practices,
experiences and research.
SLA professionals:
Act with honesty, fairness and in good faith in serving and providing value to their employers, clients, and vendors.
Provide their employer, organization, or clients with the highest
level of service, by delivering the best sources and services possible
within organizational constraints and by improving the quality of and
adding value to the information and knowledge they provide.
Enhance employer success by contributing to the mission, goals, policies and strategies of the organization.
Respect the intellectual property of their employers, clients and
competitors, and within the legal and ethical constraints of the
organization, inform their clients or employers of potential legal and
ethical violations in the provision of sources or services.
Honor the privacy, rights, and reputation of individuals and
organizations in the proper use of information content regardless of
format or medium, adhering to the best practices of ensuring
confidentiality.
Strive for excellence by seeking and maintaining professional
knowledge and competencies in intellectual and information technologies
in themselves, their colleagues, their organization and other
professionals, including education for information literacy.
Represent themselves accurately concerning their education,
competencies and experience to their employers, clients, colleagues and
other professionals.
Avoid conflicts of interest while in the performance of their work.
Prepared by the SLA Information Ethics Advisory Council
Toni Carbo, Thomas Froehlich, Louis-Rene Dessureault,
Jonathan Gordon-Till, Barbie Keiser, Barbara Wildemuth,
Deb Hunt and Carolyn Sosnowski
Approved by the SLA Board of Directors December 2010
