In 1995, the boards of the AAIH, ABIH, ACGIH and AIHA adopted this joint Code of Ethics to which members of these organizations shall conform, and to which every applicant attests by signing his or her membership application.
Objective
These canons provide standards of ethical conduct for industrial hygienists as they practice their profession and exercise their primary mission, to protect the health and well-being of working people and the public from chemical, microbiological and physical health hazards present at, or emanating from, the workplace.
Canons of Ethical Conduct
Industrial Hygienists shall:
- Practice their profession following recognized scientific principles with the realization that the lives, health and well-being of people may depend upon their professional judgment and that they are obligated to protect the health and well-being of people.
- Counsel affected parties factually regarding potential health risks and precautions necessary to avoid adverse health effects.
- Keep confidential personal and business information obtained during the exercise of industrial hygiene activities, except when required by law or overriding health and safety considerations.
- Avoid circumstances where a compromise of professional judgment or conflict of interest may arise.
- Perform services only in the areas of their competence.
- Act responsibly to uphold the integrity of the profession
Code of Ethics for Registered Occupational Hygienists and Occupational Hygiene Technologists
In 1992 the CRBOH adopted the following for it’s members.
Registered Occupational Hygienists and Registered Occupational Hygiene Technologists shall:
- Place the health and safety of workers above all other interests in the performance of their professional work.
- Direct professional activities toward the protection and improvement of the health, safety, and well-being of all persons.
- Make every reasonable effort to protect the environment from adverse effects resulting from the performance of their work.
- Perform their work honestly, objectively, and in accordance with currently accepted professional standards.
- Respect the privacy of confidential personal, professional, and business information.
- Participate only in projects or situations that do not place them in personal or business conflicts of interest. This provision is waived if the principal parties to the ROH’s or ROHT’s conflict of interest have given their informed, specifically expressed, consent.
- Conduct themselves with integrity.
- Maintain a working knowledge of current developments in the profession and a detailed knowledge of areas in which they claim expertise.
- Promote activities that advance and disseminate occupational hygiene knowledge.
- Co-operate with the directors of the Canadian Registration Board of Occupational Hygienists in administering this Code of Ethics.