ETHICAL PRINCIPLES AND RULES OF CONDUCT WHILE PERFORMING INTERMEDIARY SERVICES IN INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTIONS ON BEHALF OF “FAMILY” NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
GENERAL PROVISIONS
1. These rules define the ethical principles and rules of conduct of the members and specialists at “Family” National Association (the Association).
2. The main purpose of these rules is to establish a common work culture among the specialists and the members of the Association and to accomplish ethical professional conduct in their work.
3. These principles and rules of conduct are mandatory for the members and the specialists at the Association.
ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
1. The members and specialists at the Association shall exercise their rights and duties in the service of the civil society, while observing and protecting the rights, legitimate interests and freedoms of the citizens, with particular attention to children.
2. The members and specialists of the Association shall be guided by the international and domestic laws and the lawful acts of state authorities as well as by the best interests of the children.
3. The members and specialists of the Association shall follow a course of conduct based on the principles of legality, loyalty, impartiality and accountability.
4. In all their activities the members and specialists of the Association shall not engage in discrimination based on sex, race, nationality, ethnic origin, citizenship, origin, religion, education, beliefs, political affiliation, personal or social status, age, sexual orientation, marital status, property status, or on any other grounds, established by the law, or by international treaties to which the Republic of Bulgaria is a party.
5. With their conduct the members and specialists of the Association shall work to raise the prestige of the Association as synonym of high professionalism and quality of service.
6. The members and specialists of the Association shall not participate in events that might affect negatively the prestige of the Association and their colleagues.
7. The members and specialists of the Association shall avoid having work relationships that are illegal or could be regarded as unethical.
8. The members and specialists of the Association shall avoid any contacts that might lead to a conflict of interest.
9. Each of the members and specialists of the Association shall perform their duties in a lawful and appropriate manner in view of using the entrusted funds most responsibly and protecting the property of the Association.
10. The members and specialists of the Association shall observe the ethical principles and rules of conduct not only while performing their daily work duties, but also in their public and private life.
11. The members and specialists of the Association shall not allow at their workplace conduct that is incompatible with morality and decency.
12. The members and specialists of the Association shall not allow to be placed in financial or other dependency that may affect the impartial, professional and unbiased execution of their duties.
PRINCIPLES OF WORK
1. In their relationship with their colleagues each of the members and specialists of the Association shall be guided by the principles of propriety, ethics, integrity, loyalty, cooperation and mutual respect.
2. Each of the members and specialists of the Association shall work to enhance their own, their colleagues’ and the Association’s reputation.
3. Each of the members and specialists of the Association shall fulfill their obligations while coordinating and reporting the results to the Chairperson of the Association and performing their assigned tasks in the prescribed manner and within the prescribed period.
4. Each of the members and specialists of the Association is obliged to work responsibly and cooperate with other members and specialists so as to achieve the set goals and complete their tasks.
5. Each of the members and specialists of the Association has the right to initiate suggestions and ideas, to support higher-level decision-making through analysis, opinions, recommendations and proposals.
6. The members and specialists of the Association shall exchange information with their colleagues regarding the activity of the Association as a whole and in view of enhancing their professional knowledge.
7. The members and specialists shall not hinder their colleagues' performance of their duties.
8. The members and specialists shall work constructively, lawfully and conscientiously as members of the team.
9. The members and specialists shall not perform any actions that would discredit, undermine the dignity, reputation or professionalism of their colleagues or the Association.
10. The members and specialists shall support and encourage their colleagues in the implementation of ethical principles and rules of conduct of the Association.
11. The persons employed by the Association under labor contracts are responsible for the observance of labor discipline - arriving at work and leaving their workplace at the specified times, while using it entirely for performing their obligations.
12. The persons employed by the Association under labor contracts are responsible for arriving at work in a condition which allows them to perform their duties in accordance with the requirements.
13. Leaving the workplace for the purposes of execution of work-related duties outside the office of the Association, training, etc., or personal necessity, within the specified working hours, must be carried out after consulting the Chairperson of the Association, and in their absence – an authorized member/specialist of the Association.
RULES OF CONDUCT
1. For the implementation of the intermediary activity in intercountry adoption, the Management Board members and the employees of the Association shall possess moral qualities, training and experience in the field of services related to children and intercountry adoption.
2. The Management Board members and the employees are not allowed to work in a specialized institution, a social service for children of residential type or a territorial division of the Social Assistance Agency.
3. The employees of the Association are obliged to exercise their rights and obligations conscientiously and to be worthy of respect in society in view of their conduct.
4. The employees of the Association owe a duty of loyalty and respect to their clients and partnering organizations in performing their activity.
5. The employees of the Association are obliged not to disclose facts and circumstances which have become known to them during or in relation to the activity they perform or have performed at the Association.
6. In view of the requirement for confidentiality and privacy, the employees of the Association may not enter into a management contract, civil or labor contract with another organization, which has been accredited under Art.116 of the Family Code, for a period of at least two years after the termination of their existing contract, unless otherwise stipulated in the latter.
7. The employees of the Association are obliged to protect personal data in compliance with the provisions of Instruction No.1/ 28.09.2009 for the internal rules for technical and organizational measures and the type of protection when processing personal data at “Family” National Association.
8. The employees of the Association shall perform their duties in a lawful, accurate and timely manner, within the statutory deadlines.
9. The employees of the Association shall strive continuously to increase their professional qualifications and personal competence, to increase their knowledge and skills, required for the implementation of their position, through various forms of training and self-study, participation in national and international forums, research and studying of practices in the field, and shall also develop further their level of professionalism in the execution of their main duties and share their experience.
10. The employees of the Association shall set the basis of their practice on contemporary knowledge of child development and the knowledge of the individual characteristics of each child.
11. The employees of the Association shall understand and respect the unique qualities and potential of each child.
12. The employees of the Association shall support every child's right to free expression of opinion on all issues of their interest.
13. The employees of the Association shall respect the dignity of each prospective adoptive parent, their culture, customs, language and beliefs.
14. The employees of the Association shall inform the prospective adoptive parents about everything related to the child (especially with regards to their health condition and development).
15. The employees of the Association shall undertake the necessary actions in view of the prospective adoptive parents’ awareness of the way in which the child is raised and educated.
16. The employees of the Association shall not use the relationships with prospective adoptive parents for personal gain.
17. In case of conflict between the interests of the child and those of the prospective adoptive parents, the employees of the Association shall act in the best interests of the child, while fully and appropriately informing the prospective adoptive parents about the supremacy of the child's interest.
18. The employees of the Association are obliged to actively support and assist the state authorities in exercising their powers.
19. The employees of the Association shall work to improve the cooperation and interaction between the state institutions and the accredited organizations, especially those related to child and family welfare.
The present ethical principles and rules of conduct while performing intermediary services in intercountry adoptions, which are mandatory for the members and employees of “Family” National Association, have been accepted and validated at a meeting of the Management Board of “Family” National Association held on 27 November 2014.