Code of Ethics
Code of Ethics for Language Agencies
All Language Agency Corporate Members of the Institute agree:
- Only to undertake assignments that they are competent to fulfil
- Not to accept any work that, in their opinion, is intended for unlawful or dishonest purposes or is contrary to the public interest
- To be fair in all their dealings with clients, subcontractors, employees, other language professionals, fellow members and the public in order to establish and maintain good working relationships
- Not to make any unsupported or misleading claims in any publication, marketing or promotional material, documentation or elsewhere
- To treat all material and/or information received from clients in the course of business as highly confidential and not to use any such information for personal or financial gain.
- To ensure that each of their employees and subcontractors signs and upholds a non-disclosure agreement
- To adhere to all the terms of any service agreements with clients, including service to be provided, special instructions, cost and deadlines; should it become impossible to observe such an agreement for any reason whatsoever, the client shall be consulted at the earliest opportunity concerning a solution or alternative course of action
- To be guided in negotiating remuneration by the principle of equitability and fairness
- To enter into and observe service agreements with their freelance language workers, and to state their expectations clearly prior to contracting such freelancers for any work
- To use only competent, experienced language workers qualified to carry out an assignment successfully
- To be bound by an arbitration process established by SATI in the event of a dispute between themselves and any clients, employees, subcontractors or fellow members
- Always to uphold the highest ethical and moral standards in their dealings with their clients, employees and subcontractors and in the exercise of the language practice occupation
- To take part in the activities of the Institute and always to conduct themselves in such a way that their conduct and the quality of their work will be to the credit of the Institute and language practice as an occupation
MISSION STATEMENT FOR LANGUAGE AGENCY CORPORATE MEMBERS
In the spirit of its motto, PER INTERPRETES PONS CONDITUR, the South African Translators’ Institute is committed to playing its part in a changing world by helping to build bridges between people and groups and fostering in the community an awareness of the need for effective communication.
In pursuit of this goal the Institute endeavours to:
- Promote excellence in translation and related fields, as well as clarity of thought and expression
- Ensure high standards of professionalism among its members through accreditation and the adoption of a code of ethics
- Provide support for its members both in their occupational lives and as members of a multi-cultural and society