Code of Ethics
The Code of Ethics is about respect: respect for our partners, our society, the law, our policies and procedures, for sport, the environment, and especially ourselves and each other.
1.0 Purpose
1.1. At viaSport we are committed to creating a culture grounded in strong integrity where it is easy to do the right thing, and hard to do the wrong thing. At the heart of it, the Code of Ethics is about respect: respect for our partners, our society, the law, our policies and procedures, for sport, the environment, and especially ourselves and each other.
2.0 Application
2.1.viaSport’s Code of Ethics applies to all individuals employed by, or engaged in activities with viaSport including, but not limited to board members, advisory group members, contractors, Coach Developers and volunteers. As representatives of viaSport, we strive to conduct ourselves in a professional and ethical manner in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations and common sense.
3.0 Conflict of Interest
3.1. It is viaSport’s policy to conduct business in a way that is ethical, fair, and impartial, and thus critical for all employees, board members, and advisory group members to avoid situations that are, or could be perceived as, conflicts of interest. Our stakeholders must be able to trust that viaSport will exercise sound judgement and discretion in all areas of operation.
3.2.A conflict of interest arises when an individual participates in a decision (including any contract, arrangement of employment, sale or provision of codes and services, receipt of gifts) which may benefit viaSport but may also be seen to benefit that individual due to their direct or indirect interest surrounding the outcome of the decision. A conflict of interest may undermine, or hold the potential to undermine, the reputation of the organization and viaSport’s impartiality if our personal interests are at odds with professional obligations.
3.3.Individuals with questions regarding interpretation of the policy may discuss them with their Manager or the Chief Executive Officer. Individuals who find themselves in an actual, perceived or potential conflict of interest must disclose the matter to their Manager immediately. People who fail to disclose may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.
4.0 Conflict of Interest
4.1. INCLUSIVITY:
viaSport is dedicated to creating a workplace and community free of all forms of discrimination and that respects all forms of diversity. As a role model and the leader of the sport sector in British Columbia, viaSport will provide strategic insight, direction, and capacity in order to help member organizations ensure that all people, irrespective of their age, gender, ability, race, religion, ethnic origin, creed, colour, social status or sexual orientation, have a genuine and equal opportunity to participate in sport at all levels and in all roles. That is, as a participant, athlete, coach, official, manager, administrator or spectator. viaSport employees will contribute to advancing the overall inclusion objectives through strategic leadership, advocacy, and knowledge management and development.
4.2. GENDER EQUITY:
viaSport is committed to broadening access, ensuring opportunity, and equitably distributing resources for all participants of sport and physical activity. As a role model and the leader of the sport sector in British Columbia, viaSport will provide strategic insight, direction, and capacity in order to help member organizations, athletes, coaches, administrators, and officials create equitable access to sport at all levels across the province. viaSport employees will contribute to advancing the gender equity in sport and physical activity objectives through strategic leadership, advocacy, and knowledge management and development.
4.3. LGBTQQ+:
All employees and individuals that we come in contact with in our daily activity as representatives of viaSport deserve to be treated fairly with dignity and respect. viaSport seeks to create a culture of inclusion around the LGBTQ+ community (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans*, Two- Spirit, queer, and those who are questioning). viaSport will not tolerate discrimination or harassment on the basis of sex or sexual orientation. Any viaSport employee needing further guidance or information on the subject is encouraged to speak confidentially to their leader or the Chief Executive Officer.
4.4. ACCESSIBILITY:
viaSport is committed to meeting the accessibility needs of all people including persons with disabilities in a timely manner and consistent with the principles of dignity, independence, integration and equal opportunity. We will communicate with people with disabilities in a way that considers a person’s disability and actively prevents and removes known barriers to accessibility to ensure accessibility requirements are met.
4.5. SOCIOECONOMIC AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY:
viaSport is committed to workplace diversity. We recognize the benefits arising from employee and Board diversity, including a broader pool of high- quality employees, improving employee retention, accessing different perspectives and ideas and benefiting from all available talent. “Diversity” is any dimension that can be used to differentiate groups and people from one another and it means the respect for and appreciation of the differences in gender, age, ethnic origin, religion, education, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, political belief or disability. At viaSport we respect and value the perspectives, experiences, cultures and essential differences our employees and partners possess.
5.0 Respect for People
5.1. All staff, partners and stakeholders have the right to expect, and the responsibility to contribute, to an organization where all people are treated with respect and dignity. viaSport is committed to fostering a safe, respectful and discrimination-free environment for current employees, candidates, partners and stakeholders consistent with the provisions outlined by the British Columbia Human Rights Code.
5.2. We will not tolerate any form of maltreatment toward any individual by volunteers, partners, managers, and employees including permanent, temporary, casual, contract, and student workers. viaSport accepts and adopts all language contained in the British Columbia Universal Code of Conduct (BC UCC).
British Columbia Universal Code of Conduct (BC UCC)
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5.3. We will not tolerate any form of violence, workplace bullying, harassment of any kind or discriminatory act toward any individual by volunteers, partners, managers, and employees including permanent, temporary, casual, contract, and student workers. This policy applies to interpersonal and electronic communications, such as email. Examples of conduct or comments that might constitute bullying and harassment include verbal aggression or insults, calling someone derogatory names, harmful hazing or initiation practices, vandalizing personal belongings, spreading malicious rumours and any inappropriate conduct or comment by a person towards a worker that the person knew or reasonably ought to have known would cause that worker to be humiliated or intimidated.
5.4. No employee, Board Member, or Advisory Group Member shall suffer harassment, reprisal, retaliation, or adverse employment consequence as a result of reporting a violation to the Respect for People policy. Any form of retaliation will not be tolerated.
5.5. Refer to the Respectful Workplace Policy for complaints reporting procedures. The following procedures apply in the event of any complaint of undermining respect for people:
5.5.1. Any employee or applicant who learns of, observes, or is concerned about conduct that violates this policy must immediately inform a Manager, Chief Executive Officer, or Board Member. All complaints made in relation to this policy are promptly and thoroughly investigated. All complaints will be treated as discretely and confidentially as possible;
5.5.2. If as a result of an investigation, a complaint is found to be a deliberate false claim, it may result in discipline up to and including termination. If the complaint is validated to be in violation of this policy, disciplinary action could include termination of employment;
5.5.3. Retaliation against an individual who has made a complaint of harassment or discrimination, or who has assisted in a harassment investigation, will not be tolerated and may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment; and
5.5.4. Any employee who retaliates against an employee reporting a violation will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment.
6.0 Respect for Health and Safety
6.1. viaSport is committed to providing and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace for all employees, keeping in line with the legislative requirements of both the Workers’ Compensation Act of BC and the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulation. Copies of each are available here and here respectively.
6.2. The following practices apply to the maintenance of a safe and healthy workplace:
6.2.1. viaSport will promote a positive health and safety culture;
6.2.2. viaSport will endeavour to eliminate workplace hazards and reduce the risks to its employees by integrating an awareness of health and safety into all workplace activities;
6.2.3. viaSport management will take an active leadership role in promoting a safe and healthy work environment by promoting positive attitudes towards accident prevention;
6.2.4. Employees will be encouraged to embrace a safety first attitude and will be advised of all known health, safety and ergonomic hazards in their work and of appropriate measures to address these hazards;
6.2.5. Employees will be trained to follow safe work procedures and will identify and report potential hazards to their immediate supervisor so the unsafe condition can be addressed;
6.2.6. Employees/management will review health and safety issues on an ongoing basis and evaluate performance information, and provide feedback to employees and management regularly; and
6.2.7. All health and safety programs and policies will be monitored to ensure they are kept current as legislative requirements evolve.
6.3. The following practices apply to the maintenance of a safe and healthy workplace:
6.3.1. Employees will immediately report any accidents or near accidents to their Manager so that an investigation can be completed and reports can be filed with WorkSafeBC within the time limits specified by legislation; and
6.3.2. If there is a workplace accident or near accident, it will be investigated thoroughly to determine the action necessary to prevent recurrence.
7.0 Respect for Privacy
7.1. The Privacy Policy reflects viaSport’s commitment to its employees and outlines the principles viaSport adheres to in protecting personal information. viaSport’s privacy commitment includes ensuring the accuracy, confidentiality, and security of personal information while also allowing employees to request access to, and correction of, their personal information.
7.2. viaSport will inform individuals of why and how viaSport will collect, use, and disclose their personal information, obtain their consent where required, and only handle their personal information in a manner that a reasonable person would consider appropriate in the circumstances. This policy is in line with British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) and applies to employees aswell as contractors, Board Members, and Advisory Groups. A copy of the act is available from here.
7.3. The following procedures apply to obtaining and managing personal information:
7.3.1. Unless the purposes for collecting personal information are obvious and the individual voluntarily provides their personal information for those purposes, viaSport will communicate the purposes for which personal information is being collected, either orally or in writing, before or at the time of collection;
7.3.2. viaSport will obtain the individual’s consent to collect, use or disclose personal information (except where, as noted below, when authorized to do so without consent);
7.3.3. If information is used to make a decision that directly affects the individual, viaSport will retain that personal information for at least one (1) year so that the individual has reasonable opportunity to request access to it. Personal information will be retained for seven (7) years in the event that the individual is the recipient of any financial award;
7.3.4. To ensure accuracy of personal information, individuals may request correction to their personal information in order to ensure its accuracy and completeness. A request to correct must be made in writing and provide sufficient detail to identify the personal information and the correction being sought;
7.3.5. viaSport is committed to ensuring the security of all employee’s personal information and protecting it from unauthorized access, collection, use, disclosure, copying, modification, disposal, or similar risks. viaSport will continually review and update security policies, controls and technology, ensuring ongoing security for the purposes of protecting personal information;
7.3.6. All employees have a right to access their personal information, subject to limited exceptions. A full listing of the exceptions to access can be found in section 23 of PIPA; and
7.3.7. The documents of viaSport are important business assets crucial for the ongoing functioning of the organization. The law requires viaSport to maintain certain documents for a requisite minimum period. The Records Retention Policy is designed to ensure that records are adequately protected and maintained; to ensure documents that are no longer needed are discarded or destroyed as appropriate; to ensure compliance with applicable laws, including laws protecting documents containing personal information; to minimize the inappropriate destruction of records; and to permit viaSport to identify and retrieve records.
8.0 Respect for Environment
8.1. viaSport is mindful of the environment in which we live, both in terms of our office and the environment in which sport takes place. With this in mind, viaSport will:
8.1.1. Promote employee recycling and efficient energy usage in the office;
8.1.2. Engage in energy saving practices within and outside of the office;
8.1.3. Minimize the usage of non-renewable resources in our business practices;
8.1.4. Promote a culture of environmental awareness and environmentally-friendly commuting;
8.1.5. Comply with, and exceed where possible, all applicable environmental legislation;
8.1.6. Commit to continually improving our business practices with the environment in mind;
8.1.7. Seek out products, services, and suppliers that limit environmental degradation and take environmental sustainability into account;
8.1.8. Utilize technology to reduce carbon footprint where possible and promote travel alternatives (i.e. through viaSport productions, webinars); and
8.1.9. Share our practices with the sport sector.
9.0 Respect for our Workplace
9.1. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY:
viaSport values the contribution of every employee and partner to the organization’s goals, recognizing that the outputs are the property of viaSport. viaSport shall have exclusive ownership in all ideas, discoveries, inventions, formulae, techniques, processes, know- how, trade secrets and other intellectual property, including all expression of such intellectual property in tangible form, which are used in or relate to viaSport’s activities, and which the employee conceives or makes for the organization during employment. Note: This does not apply to any inventions which the employee had previously used or developed prior to joining the organization, or inventions which were developed outside of working hours if the invention was not within the scope of employment duties.
9.2. ACCOUNTS AND PASSWORDS:
Certain employees may require the use of a computer to fulfill the responsibilities of their role. Such employees will either be provided with a computer or provided access to a computer, which they will be responsible for maintaining appropriately. Computer access will be managed via individual user accounts and confidential passwords. User accounts are to be accessed only by their assigned users for legitimate business purposes.
9.3. LOGIN IDS & PASSWORDS:
Upon the assignment of a computer or computer access, employees will be supplied with a unique login ID which they will be required to enter (along with their password) whenever they need to access computer. Passwords must not be disclosed to, or shared with, other users or third parties. Users are required to take all necessary precautions to prevent unauthorized access to computer resources. Users shall not attempt to obtain anyone else’s account password.
9.4. USE OF EQUIPMENT:
The following policies apply to the use of viaSport’s equipment such as laptops, smartphones, cameras, and editing technology, at or away from the office:
9.4.1. It is the responsibility of the employee to maintain the equipment in good operating condition, beyond the normal wear and tear occurring from day-to-day use;
9.4.2. Employees are responsible for storing the device in a safe and secure location when not in use, as well as periodically cleaning the equipment as necessary; and all equipment and any voice or data service plans are the property of viaSport.
9.5. INTERNET CODE OF CONDUCT:
Access to the Internet has been provided to staff members for the benefit of the organization and its customers. It allows employees to connect to information resources around the world. Every staff member has a responsibility to maintain and enhance the organization’s public image, and to use the Internet in a productive manner congruent with viaSport’s values and code of ethics. Acceptable and appropriate Internet-related work activities include:
9.5.1. Researching, accumulating, and disseminating any information related to the accomplishment of the user’s assigned responsibilities;
9.5.2. Collaborating and communicating with other employees, business partners, stakeholders and clients of viaSport, according to the individual’s assigned job duties and responsibilities; and
9.5.3. Conducting professional development activities (e.g. news groups, chat sessions, discussion groups, posting to bulletin boards, Web seminars, etc.) as they relate to meeting the employee’s job requirements.
9.6. Email:
The e-mail system is used to facilitate business-related communication throughout the organization and field locations. It is to be used primarily for the organization’s business. We are committed to ensuring that all forms of communication from viaSport meet specific standards of professionalism, respect, and attention to detail. Information on the e-mail system is considered proprietary and belongs to the association and that the association reserves the right to review that material with or without employees’ knowledge.
9.7. VIRTUAL PRIVATE NETWORK (VPN):
viaSport’s VPN opens a secure doorway from anywhere on the internet to restricted access into the viaSport network. A secure access is established on top of ordinary internet connections, encrypting the data passing to and from employees’ workstation as it passes through the internet.
9.8. SOFTWARE:
viaSport regularly requires the use of various software packages to conduct our business effectively. As such, when licensing third party software, viaSport will respect all copyright protection legislation, and ensure that unauthorized copies are not produced. We will adhere to all applicable legislation and regulations in the performance of our activities, including copyright legislation, and software license agreements that we have entered into. viaSport shall not utilize pirated or otherwise illegally copied software.
9.8.1. viaSport strictly prohibits the creation and/or use of pirated software, illegal file sharing, downloads and/or uploads of copyright materials without appropriate authorization, and may apply appropriate disciplinary actions in the event of any breach of this policy. Unauthorized duplication of software can create unnecessary legal liability for both viaSport and the employee in terms of both civil and criminal penalties under the Copyright Act. A copy of the Act is available from here.
9.8.2. It is unacceptable for employees to:
9.8.2.1. Remove any pre-installed software from viaSport owned computers without prior authorization;
9.8.2.2. Delete, disable or make any changes to provided anti-virus and/or firewall software;
9.8.2.3. Install or otherwise use software or other copyrighted material that has not been authorized by viaSport (e.g. software brought from home);
9.8.2.4. Use viaSport’s software on any computer that is not owned by the organization; and
9.8.2.5. Use viaSport’s software for work on personal projects outside of the scope of your work for viaSport.
9.9. DEACTIVATION:
Upon termination of employment, the employee’s supervising leader shall provide notification to the Director, Operations immediately to ensure the removal of the former employee’s access.
9.10.FILE STORAGE:
Data integrity and privacy are critical aspects of the service provision model presented by viaSport. It is the responsibility of all employees to ensure that all data and files owned by viaSport are only stored on the Shared Data drive (W:). This folder is subject to the appropriate security and back-up procedures. This policy applies particularly when devices such as laptops are utilized.
10.0 Respect for Financial Resources
10.1. As an organization committed to maximizing the investment in sport to make every dollar count, viaSport’s staff, Board, and contractors will demonstrate exceptional judgement with financial resources.
10.2. BUSINESS EXPENSES:
viaSport will reimburse employees and volunteers for legitimate business expenses over the course of their work with viaSport. This covers the reimbursement of travel and business expenses incurred on behalf of viaSport business by board members, advisory members, volunteers and employees of viaSport. Expenses will be reimbursed on a monthly basis upon submission and approval of itemized claims with original receipts attached. The supervising leader will approve expenses before payment.
10.3. TRAVEL EXPENSES:
Employees occasionally are required to travel away from home for work activities. viaSport allows a per diem for meals and mileage rates while travelling. The Director, Operations shall publish by memorandum the authorized per diem and mileage rates for travel and business-related expenses. Expenses beyond the regular per diem or entertainment expenses must be approved by your manager and claimed as an expense reimbursement. Employees who receive a monthly car allowance are ineligible to charge mileage or gas if personal car is used for travel.
10.4. Corporate credit card:
viaSport employees may be issued a corporate credit card at the discretion of the Director, Finance & Operations or CEO. This credit card, drawn on viaSport’s accounts, is intended to limit the inconvenience reimbursement claims may cause on an employee’s personal finances if they incur expenses on a monthly or regular basis for travel and supplies. Employees holding credit cards are responsible for maintaining all receipts to facilitate appropriate monthly reconciliation and coding.
11.0. Respect for brand and reputation
11.1.PROFESSIONAL SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE:
Certain employees will be given access to administer viaSport’s social media pages as it relates to their job responsibilities and the goals and objectives of the organization. Such employees have the responsibility to govern the use of any of viaSport’s social media pages and to report any wrongdoings to management immediately. Employees who are not responsible for managing the social media pages, but who may be obliged or who feel theneed to interact with, or post comments to, viaSport’s social media pages using their personal social media accounts are required to adhere to the following:
11.1.1. Adopt a positive attitude when responding to comments on viaSport’s social media pages or applications, or comments about the organization in general;
11.1.2. Use good judgment when posting photos from viaSport or partner events;
11.1.3. Notify any employees who are in photos before posting them and only do so with their prior approval;
11.1.4. Avoid using social media pages as a substitute for internal organizational communications or client service; and
11.1.5. Report inappropriate messages to Leaders and Director, Communications as required.
11.2.PERSONAL SOCIAL MEDIA USEAGE:
Employees that maintain personal social media pages or accounts will be held accountable for what they write or post on social media or internet pages. Employees are expected to conduct themselves professionally at all times as all materials associated with their social media page may reflect on the organization. Employees are prohibited from posting:
11.2.1. Inflammatory comments, unprofessional remarks or disparaging/defamatory remarks about viaSport, its employees, clients, or partners;
11.2.2. Discriminatory statements or sexual innuendos regarding co-workers, management, clients, or partners;
11.2.3. Proprietary and confidential organizational information;
11.2.4. On behalf of viaSport, or communicating as a representative of the organization without prior authorization; and/or
11.2.5. On personal social media pages in any way that conflict’s with viaSport policies.
Employees should abide by these guidelines whether they mention the organization by name or not. Where a link can be made between a negative or inflammatory post and viaSport, even if not named directly, the employee may be subject to disciplinary action.
Note: This policy is not intended to interfere with the private lives of our employees, or impinge their right to freedom of speech. This policy is designed to ensure that viaSports’ image and reputation are maintained, and will not be impugned.
Policy History