Code of Conduct
1. Name of policy
Code of Conduct of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (Australia) Inc. (CCL)
2. Policy Statement
The Code of Conduct outlines the required standard of acceptable conduct and behaviour for all members, employees, volunteers and contractors in the performance of their CCL related duties and interactions.
This standard of behaviour will support CCL’s ability to maintain public trust and confidence in the integrity and professionalism of our role in the community, and our role in effectively lobbying for climate action.
The Code of Conduct and the behaviours outlined within it are fundamental to CCL building healthy and positive relationships within the community. The Code of Conduct also governs the way in which employees, volunteers and contractors are to relate to each other and to other stakeholders.
However, the Code of Conduct is not intended to provide a detailed and exhaustive list of what to do in every aspect of work. Instead, it represents a broad framework that will help guide conduct and behaviour in the performance of duties and interactions.
3. Members agreement with this Policy
When members pay their Membership application or renewal fee, they acknowledge that they understand and agree with the rights and responsibilities of this Code of Conduct, which may be updated from time to time.
4. Definitions
Advocate - publicly support or recommend a particular cause or policy
Bullying - a form of harassment which is repeated unreasonable behaviour directed towards a worker which creates a risk to health and safety, and which can include physical or verbal abuse
CCL or CCLA - means the Citizens’ Climate Lobby Australia Inc.
Code of Conduct - means the CCL Code of Conduct as revised (this document)
Conflicts of interest - occur when personal interests compromise our objective decision-making for CCL. They can occur from organisation and financial interests, family and CCL relationships. Even the appearance of a conflict of interest can damage CCL’s charitable reputation.
Corruption - means to dishonestly obtain a benefit by misuse of power, position, authority or resources.
COVID-19 - means an acute and highly infectious air-transmissible disease in humans caused by a coronavirus, identified in 2019 and which became a deadly pandemic in 2020.
Discrimination - means an unjust distinction in the treatment of people based on categories including their colour, sex, religion, political opinion, national extraction, social origin, age, medical record, criminal record, marital or relationship status, impairment, mental, intellectual or psychiatric disability, physical disability, nationality, sexual orientation ,and trade union activism.
Fraud - means to dishonestly obtain or arrange a benefit by deception or other means.
Harassment - means unwanted behaviour which can include telling insulting jokes about particular racial groups; sending explicit or sexually suggestive emails or text messages; displaying racially offensive or pornographic posters; making derogatory comments or taunts about someone’s race; asking intrusive questions about someone’s personal life, including his or her sex life.
Intellectual property - means an idea, invention, literary and artistic creation of CCL that can be protected by law from being copied by someone else (by, for example, patents , copyright and trademarks)
Personal information - means a broad range of information, or an opinion, that could identify an individual e.g. name, email address, photograph, gender and home address. Personal information shall be stored securely, only being provided to those requiring access.
Sensitive Information - includes information or an opinion about an individual’s racial or ethnic origin; political opinions or associations; religious or philosophical beliefs; sexual orientation or practices; health or genetic information. Sensitive information shall be stored with a higher level of protection than personal information.
5. CCL’s purpose and core values
non-partisan - Our members and the leaders we lobby come from across the political spectrum. We believe that everyone is a potential ally.
relationships - we take the most generous approach to other people as practical — appreciation, gratitude, and respect.
optimism - we believe that people are good, and that democracy works. We are confident in this approach because we see progress.
integrity - We do our research and we are on time for meetings. We’re thoughtful, thorough, and we respect experts and data.
focus - Our core policy position is the climate dividend. We focus on this and ally with other organisations with similar goals and means of operation.
personal power - We use our voices, which transforms us from spectators to engaged citizens, and reveals the true nature of democracy to us.
diversity - We seek out, support and elevate people whose voices may not have been fully heard. Equality is a structural policy at CCL.
5.1 Rights and Responsibilities
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors of CCL have the right to be treated with respect and fairness, have their contributions recognised, and have their initiative encouraged. In return, they shall:
Comply with the Code of Conduct.
Report behaviour that may be contrary to the Code of Conduct and required standards of behaviour in accordance with the complaint procedure set out in Clause 11.
5.2 Application
This code binds the members, employees, volunteers and contractors of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (Australia) Inc.
6. Personal and professional behaviour
All members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall maintain a high standard of professional behaviour that maintains and promotes confidence and trust in the work of CCL. Our personal and professional conduct shall strive to create a harmonious, safe and productive workplace which models our organisational values. We shall:
Uphold the highest standards of honesty and integrity in the conduct of duties.
In all aspects of CCL activity, treat the public, parliamentarians, volunteers, contractors and any employees honestly, fairly and with respect and integrity.
Make decisions ethically, fairly and without bias using the best factual information available.
Comply with all CCL policies and procedures relevant to the person’s position.
6.1 Lawful behaviour in keeping with a charity
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors of CCL shall comply with all legislative, industrial or administrative requirements, and any lawful and reasonable directions given by persons in authority.
Team Leaders and the Board has put in place reasonable control procedures to ensure that the resources of CCL are not used to actively promote, advocate or encourage any offence under an Australian law relating to real property, personal property or cause personal injury or harm to an individual (Brown, 2021; Treasury, Commonwealth of Australia, 2022). These include adequate training for those updating the website and bringing these matters to the attention of members.
6.2 Public Comment
All members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall ensure that public comments (either verbal or written) made in a private capacity are not attributed as official comments of CCL. In this regard, no person shall use official stationery or branding for private correspondence or for purposes not related to CCL activities duties.
7. Safeguarding Information
Any documents, images, videos, music, programs and apps that members, employees, volunteers and contractors create while working with CCL shall become the property of CCL unless otherwise negotiated in writing.
Documents, images, videos, music, programs and apps of unknown origin especially when obtained from the internet may have copyright or terms of use attached, and permission shall be sought to use these on websites or promotional material. In particular, images shall not be used if the copyright is unknown.
Personal information is that which can identify an individual, whereas confidential information is where CCL has marked documents “CCL Confidential”.
Other information can be:
copyrighted CCL which shall also not be shared unless authorised
marked with a Creative Commons copyright under which sharing is allowed according the conditions of the Creative Commons copyright, or
Public information which can be shared in the public domain.
7.1 Privacy
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall comply with CCL’s Privacy Policy.
7.2 Confidentiality
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall keep confidential documents marked confidential, which may include contracts or documents with commercial terms.
7.3 Intellectual Property
Intellectual property can represent the outcome of significant investment and is a valuable asset that CCL protects. This includes CCL’s logos, artwork including on its website, photos all of which are copyrighted CCL at the time of their creation.
7.3.1 Copyright
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors:
shall not share documents marked “CCL Confidential” unless authorised.
may share documents marked with a Creative Commons copyright under which sharing is allowed according to the conditions of the Creative Commons copyright.
7.4 Public information
Public information may have been obtained from the public domain, and may be shared in the public domain.
8. Discrimination
CCL members, employees, volunteers and contractors must not harass or discriminate against their colleagues or members of the public on the grounds of sex, marital status, age, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, physical or intellectual impairment, sexual preference or carer’s responsibilities.
Such harassment or discrimination may constitute an offence under the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977. In addition, workers must not harass other workers or discriminate on the grounds of political or religious conviction.
8.1 Discrimination
Discrimination occurs when someone is treated unfairly because they belong to a particular group or have a particular characteristic, such as:
Age;
Sexual orientation;
Sex
Gender identity;
Caring or family responsibilities;
Disability;
Trade union status;
Ethnic origin or race;
Pregnancy or potential pregnancy;
Breastfeeding;
Religion.
8.2 Harassment
Harassment occurs when someone is subjected to offensive or disturbing behaviour. Under discrimination law, it is unlawful to treat a person less favourably on the basis of particular protected attributes such as a person’s sex, race, disability or age, and even one instance of this is sufficient.
Note that under the NSW Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 harassment is defined by reference to the nature and consequences of the behaviour, not the intent of the initiator. This means that whilst some behaviour may appear to be humorous or insignificant to one person, it may still be harassment if it is offensive or disturbing to another person.
All CCL staff and volunteers shall speak up against any conduct which they consider to be discriminatory or harassing.
8.3 Bullying
CCL maintains an environment free of all forms of bullying and will not tolerate any employee or volunteer who uses bullying towards their colleagues, members of the public or other CCL stakeholders.
Bullying in the workplace generally involves excessive use of power over others, creating fear in order to control them. Examples of bullying behaviour include:
Verbal abuse;
Public humiliation;
Excluding or isolating people;
Unreasonable criticism;
Continually changing the “rules”;
Deliberately changing work rosters to inconvenience someone;
Giving people meaningless or impossible tasks;
Deliberately establishing unreachable work goals;
Deliberately withholding important information;
Undermining the person’s achievements;
Misgendering or refusing to use preferred personal pronouns;
Threatening to dismiss a person without a lawful reason.
9. Conflict of Interest
Conflicts of interest may arise:
with financial interests in activity that CCL is involved in
with personal relationships, when working with close friends or family members in CCL or who are employed in a company that CCL is engaged with.
when you are also working with or as a Director in an organisation that CCL is engaged with
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall avoid conflicts of interest and never use CCL resources or our position with CCL for personal gain. Such persons shall avoid situations that can create a conflict of interest, and if one arises, declare it in any meeting, do not participate in any decision, or disclose it to the Team Leader or to the Board.
Board meetings shall record conflicts of interest for each proposal that is voted upon in its minutes.
10. Fraud and corruption
Members, employees, volunteers and contractors shall not engage in any fraud or corruption.
Fraud includes:
Theft such as stealing property, petty cash, gift cards, donations, client funds or corporate assets;
Falsification of records, accounts or documents to deceive;
Dishonestly destroying or concealing accounts or records;
Embezzlement or misappropriation of funding or other assets;
Misuse of assets or property for personal benefit (e.g. vehicles); and
Forgery or issuing false or misleading statements with intent to obtain financial advantage or deceive.
Corruption includes:
Bribery, extortion & blackmail;
Secretly permitting personal interests to override corporate interests;
Secretly giving or accepting gifts & benefits in return for preferential treatment to the giver;
Collusion, false quotes, false invoices or price fixing;
Manipulating design & specifications or processes for personal gain or to conceal defects;
Complicity in excessive billing or submission of false support documents or concealment of documents;
Falsifying job qualifications or work or safety certifications;
Nepotism (favouring relatives); and
Privacy breaches or data manipulation with intent to cause harm.
Everyone in CCL is responsible for fraud control and corruption prevention. Accordingly, every person shall report every suspected incident in accordance with the complaint procedure set out in Clause 14.
11. Workplace health and safety
CCL strives to create a safe, harmonious, interesting and fun place of work, including there is no harassment, bullying or discrimination.
Employees and volunteers are responsible for taking reasonable care of themselves and others, including visitors, while working. All members and volunteers are responsible for ensuring there are safe work practices in place.
Local leaders shall find out the local health guidelines and ensure that events operate in accordance with any local pandemic restrictions such as for COVID-19 that are in force at the time.
All employees and volunteers shall complete an Incident Report Form for all incidents of accidents, injuries and near misses. An Incident Report Form is available at this link . All members shall immediately disclose or report any real or perceived hazard to the Board, if possible and appropriate. Hazards include any unsafe or unhealthy conditions, work practices or behaviour.
12. Making a complaint
Any person who wishes to make a complaint about another member in relation to contravening this policy or in accordance with the CCL’s the Constitution Clause 15 Disciplining of Member, shall follow the following procedure:
If a person (complainant) wishes to make a complaint about another person associated with CCL, they shall first raise that concern in good faith directly with that person.
Any discussion between parties shall be conducted in a respectful manner.
12.1 Complaint Form
If the complainant feels uncomfortable to contact the other person directly, the complainant shall complete the Complaint Form
Send it to the Board via the Secretary or to another Director.
12.2 Complaint Process
If the Board cannot resolve the complaint within 21 days, the complaint process of CCL’s Constitution Clause 15 Disciplining of Member shall be followed to resolve the matter, including any right of appeal that a disciplined member may wish to exercise.
13. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct
Where it is established that a member, employee, or volunteer has breached the Code of Conduct, they may be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including termination of employment or termination of the volunteer relationship.
How to contact us
Should you wish to get in touch with us, please send an email at info@ccl.org.au.