Conflicts of Interest

Purpose: To ensure that conflicts of interest are managed ethically and responsibly.

Scope: This policy applies to all members of the Orange Sky family, namely board members, employees, volunteers and contractors.

Introduction

To ensure the continuing success of Orange Sky, members of the Orange Sky Family are expected to be ‘responsible persons’ of integrity and able to make objective decisions focussed on achieving our core mission. A conflict of interest may arise when a volunteers’ private interest clashes with their volunteering responsibilities, which may directly or indirectly become detrimental to the purpose of Orange Sky.

As an organisation, we have a duty of care to ensure that conflicts of interest are prevented where possible, or identified and managed in an ethically responsible way so that they do not adversely affect our services, reputation and/or relationships with members of the Orange Sky Community (e.g. friends, service providers, donors, sponsors, volunteers and employees). To do this effectively, we expect all volunteers to identify and raise any real or perceived conflicts of interest to their appropriate leader, and in turn, Orange Sky must develop and implement a plan to appropriately manage the conflict.

Identifying Conflicts of Interest

Conflicts of interest most commonly arise when volunteers are tempted to support friends beyond the boundaries of their role as a volunteer, and as a result, detract from the core purpose of Orange Sky and our policies. For example, attempting to support friends outside of the Orange Sky environment to write resumes, attend interviews, start small business ventures, or find accommodation. While it may also be tempting to support our friends’ commercial endeavours, we strongly discourage volunteers from purchasing any products for sale by friends (e.g. artworks, handmade goods, event tickets). If Orange Sky has any opportunities to provide casual employment for friends, volunteers can suggest the friends’ name to the staff member responsible for recruitment and allow the organisation to conduct its usual selection process. This will ensure that the role of the volunteer is always clearly defined, enhancing the overall consistency and integrity of our service.

Examples of conflict of interests may include, but are not limited to:

• Becoming an Orange Sky volunteer when you have pre-existing relationships with friend(s) on the street, which may cause a clash between your personal and volunteering responsibilities.
• Accessing any of the services provided by Orange Sky or its’ service partners while volunteering with Orange Sky.
• Attempting to support friends in any way beyond the boundaries of the Orange Sky shift environment.
• Purchasing goods from friends that would contribute to their financial venture.

Managing Conflicts of Interest

Orange Sky HQ will direct the process of resolving all conflicts of interest (including those that have not been disclosed directly). Conflicts of interest cannot always be avoided but when they arise they must be identified, disclosed and effectively managed. A breach of this policy may provide grounds for disciplinary action, up to and including termination. Ignorance of these procedures will not generally be accepted as an excuse for non-compliance. Only in extreme circumstances and where such ignorance can be demonstrated to have occurred through no fault of the individual concerned will Orange Sky accept such an argument.