ADOPTED  DATE: 7-12-02

ESI ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
CODE OF ETHICS & STANDARD OF CONDUCT

THE GENERAL

The ESI Alumni Association exists for the benefit of its members.  It sponsors and promotes education and training of its membership, and strives to elevate the professional standards of the personal protection industry.   The establishment of professional standards rest upon two core components: skill based training and ethical conduct.  The ESI Alumni Association holds its membership to a high standard of personal and business ethics that constitute a Code of Ethics and Standard of Conduct.

A STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLE

The Code does not intend to substitute for an individual belief system or personal code of integrity, but it does establish a foundation governing the behavior of its members as representatives of a high profession.  The Code of Ethics and Standard of Conduct covers behavior of its members on issues of personal and business morality, psychological stability, and a belief in fundamental democratic principles.  The ESI Alumni Association embraces as an article of faith the democratic principles of the Declaration of Independence.

This nation’s Birth Certificate was set forth with a sacred pledge by the Signatories of the Declaration of Independence

• “We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness – that to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed.”

A CODE OF ETHICS & STANDARD OF CONDUCT

1. A member of the ESI Alumni Association will obey all laws, regulations or other regulatory requirements pertaining to the profession of personal protection and security, including violations of this Code.


2. Sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace are unlawful employment practices. In 1980 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued comprehensive guidelines on the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace. These guidelines define sexual harassment as a type of sexual discrimination prohibited under title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Members who are employers will hire without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, citizenship, place of birth, age, or disability in accordance with federal, state and local laws.  Members who seek employment will accept it without regard to the same.


3. Each individual has the right to work in an atmosphere that promotes equal opportunities and prohibits discriminatory practices, including sexual harassment.  Members will not participate nor tolerate sexual harassment in the work place in which they have supervisory responsibility.  Members that observe it, but are not legally responsible, have a moral obligation to see to it that the behavior is prohibited.


4. A member of the ESI Alumni Association will conduct themselves with respect to clients, employers and one another in such a manner as to reflect the highest standards of professionalism, honesty, integrity and fairness.


5. Members should hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of their clients and the public and in the performance of their duties.


6. Each ESI Alumni member is responsible for the propriety and consequences of his or her actions. Misconduct will not be excused because the action was directed or requested by a client or another person.


7. Members will for one year after the date of termination of  a relationship with an employer shall not, directly or indirectly, solicit business for any of the services offered by the employer, from any clients of the employer or divert business from that employer.


8. Members will protect all information and material, including but not limited to any confidential or other proprietary information or material regarding the business or affairs of their client, employer and any affiliated companies or corporations.  Members will keep confidential all information regarding their client, officers, employees, or agents, including trade-secrets, pending or future operations, investigations, business affairs, know-how, research, client and agent identities, client lists, pricing, business or other plans, operational and other manuals, protocols, software and programs, and any other information obtained by any employee from or through their employer.


9. Members will not realize personal gain from employment that is unethical or a questionable practice derived from acquiring information proprietary to their client or employer.


10. In the course of performing any work or assignment, members will keep confidential and will not disclose any information to anyone unless their client or employer grants prior permission.


11. Members will work as a member of a Team, putting aside personal differences in favor of professional commitment to complete the job.


12. Gratuities must be a reward for professional merit.


13. Members are expected to conduct themselves outside their employment in a manner that does not adversely affect their job performance or the reputation of their profession.


14. Members are expected to dress appropriately for protective assignments.  Agents are expected to present a neat and professional image at all times.


15. Members will not commit an unlawful act or use, dispensing, distribution, possession or manufacture of alcohol, illegal drugs or controlled substances.


16. Experience has shown that personal relationships between agents and Principals are detrimental to both the protective effort and the maintenance of a professional working environment.


17. Mental illness is a disease not unlike any other medical condition, and it is often treatable with medication or professional therapy.  Members who suffer any form of mental illness must be willing to seek professional treatment, and  their membership suspended until medical diagnosis can be provided that ensures that the condition is under control or no longer exist.

The ESI Alumni Association will create an Ethics Committee. The Ethics Committee will consider and pass judgment on any violation of this Code, the ultimate consequence will be expulsion from the Association.

Any member who is disciplined or expelled from the Association has the right of appeal to the Board of Directors of the ESI Alumni Association.

The Code identifies basic principles that the Association believes to be fundamental to the conduct of a protection specialist, but it does not address every conceivable ethical dilemma that a member may encounter.  Members who are unsure about the proper course of action to be taken in any particular situation are encouraged to ask questions and consult with the ESI Alumni Association Ethics Committee.

STATEMENT ACKNOWLEDGING RECEIPT AND ACCEPTANCE OF CODE

After reviewing the foregoing Code of Business Ethics and Standards of Conduct, please execute the statement on the last page.  In executing the statement, you are acknowledging that you have received and reviewed the Code; that you will strictly comply with the Code of Business Ethics and Standards of Conduct; and that you are subject to disciplinary action for a violation thereof.

STATEMENT

I acknowledge that I have received and thoroughly reviewed the ESI ALUMNI ASSOCIATION CODE OF ETHICS AND STANDARDS OF CONDUCT.

I agree to comply strictly with the principles set forth in the Code.

I understand that I will be subject to disciplinary action if I violate the principles set forth in the Code.

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SIGNATURE

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PLEASE PRINT NAME