Ethics is a part of philosophy that tries to examine the morality of action and behavior in the society. Codes of ethics are geared towards creating professionalism in the workplace. They make sure the work standards are not compromised in any way, and we differentiate what is right from wrong. Furthermore, they make sure the relationships at the workplace are maintained at the professional level and everyone conducts themselves responsibly. They also make sure the organization meets its promises to the client (both the writer and the reader) by running an efficient organization which plays by the rules. In case the organization does not meet the client's expectations, it uses the right channels of communication in alerting the client of the shortcomings and tries to compensate the client. However, the codes of ethics that have been laid down by organization need to be constructed well using the right language so that they can be understood and enhance decision making especially in archival organization. If the codes are constructed wrongly they bond to bring tremendous harm to the organization.
Glenn Dingwall observers the codes of ethics on archival practice are tied to power and prestige. Hence, this has made it difficult to apply them in our relationships at the work stations and making ethical decisions. This is because the employees see the codes as orders on how to behave not something to guide them how to be professionals at work. He further observes that there is the lack of proper guidelines as to how the codes of ethics are should be applied at work. The archival codes of ethics are constructed from different traditions that bring the inconsistencies in the codes. However, he acknowledges that archival is a field that is growing, and it not yet established like other professional such as nursing or lawyers. Additionally, there are no clear rules on being an archivist.
Therefore, from own perspective, the codes should be developed and controlled by the association archivist. This will make the codes to be universal in that all the archivist in the united state will have uniform code. The codes should be customized to accommodate all the players in the industry. This will bring the professionalism to the archives. This is because all the archivist in the country will play by the same rules. This will bring about good relation between the archivist, the creator of the knowledge and the public, since their uniform rules which govern the profession.
An organization has to maintain professional standards at work. Therefore, all the employees must be informed about the codes that have been put adopted by the organization. The organization must make sure all the employees are adhering to the codes at all times. However, if an employee fails to honor the ethics codes and breaks them intentionally; the employee should be dismissed (fired). Nevertheless, if the employee did not break the codes intentionally, he/she should have a chance to defend or explain themselves on why the code was broken. This will make sure the organization maintains the dignity and the professionalism of the organization.
