[cabfpub] Informal discussion of Code of Conduct Ballot

Mon May 1 18:54:00 UTC 2017

Hello all,

Below is a proposed ballot for the Code of Conduct.  This is the same version I circulated last week, but in ballot form.  If you have comments/questions that you have not yet been submitted, please let me know.  Thanks very much.

I plan to start the official 7-day discussion period at the end of this week.

Thanks to Tarah for all her help in getting us here!

Best regards,

Virginia Fournier
Senior Standards Counsel
 Apple Inc.
☏ 669-227-9595
✉︎ vmf at apple.com <mailto:vmf at apple.com>

===================
DRAFT BALLOT
===================
Ballot ###

Purpose of Ballot:  To add a Code of Conduct to the CAB Forum Bylaws.

The following motion has been proposed by [name] of [company] and endorsed by [name] of [company] and [name] of [company].

—MOTION BEGINS—

1.  A new Section 6.4 will be added to the Bylaws of the CAB Forum, and will read in its entirety as follows:

“Section 6.4

All Members shall abide by the CAB Forum Code of Conduct, which is attached to these Bylaws as Exhibit C.”

2.  A new Exhibit C will be added to the Bylaws, and will read in its entirety as follows:

“Exhibit C

CAB Forum Code of Conduct (the “Code")

The CAB Forum (the “Forum") is comprised of a global group of professionals with differences in language, skills, expertise, experience, and backgrounds.  To maintain a professional and productive environment, it is necessary for Members of the Forum to follow the letter and spirit of this Code.  This Code applies to all official Forum activities, such as meetings, teleconferences, mailing lists, conferences, and other functions.  The Forum is committed to maintaining a professional and respectful environment.

All Member representatives are expected to behave in a collegial and professional manner in accordance with this Code. Members will familiarize their representatives with this Code, require them to behave accordingly, and agree to suspend, remove or replace a Member representative who violates the Code, as appropriate. 

I.  Conduct.  The Forum is committed to providing a friendly, safe, and welcoming environment for all, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, personal appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, age, religion, nationality, or other similar characteristic.  The Forum recognizes and appreciates that its participants have diverse languages, backgrounds, experience, and expertise, and expects that all participants will be treated with respect by all other participants.

(a)  In connection with official Forum activities, all Forum participants shall:
Be polite, kind, and courteous to other participants, refraining from disparaging remarks on the perceived intelligence or ability of others.
Treat fellow Forum participants with respect, professionalism, courtesy, and reasonableness.  
Respect that people have differences of opinion, and that there is seldom unanimous agreement on a single “correct" answer.  Be willing to compromise and agree to disagree.  

(b)  Refrain from conduct such as:  
Threatening violence towards any person.  
Discriminating against anyone on the basis of personal characteristics or group membership.
Harassing or bullying anyone verbally, physically, or sexually.
Directly insulting or demeaning another person.
Touching another person in a physically inappropriate way. 
Deliberately intimidating, stalking or following (online or in person) another person.
Inappropriately disrupting official Forum events, including meetings, talks, and presentations.
Spamming, trolling, flaming, baiting, and other attention-stealing behavior.
Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.

(c)  Inform the Chair, Vice Chair, and/or a Working Group Chair immediately if participants feel they have been or are being harassed or made uncomfortable by a Forum member. Intimidation, personal attacks, and retaliation of any kind will not be tolerated. 

(d)  Promote the rules of this Code and take action to bring discussions back to into compliance with the Code whenever violations are observed. 

II.  Moderation.  These are the policies for upholding the Code.

(a)  Any Forum participant may report, in good faith, a perceived violation of the Code to the Forum Chair or Vice Chair, or to a Working Group Chair (each, a “Code Liaison”).  One or more Code Liaison(s) will work with the reported Forum participant to determine whether a violation of the Code has occurred and, if so, how to resolve it.  Resolution may also include appropriate executives from the Forum participant’s Member company, as appropriate.  If the reported Forum participant, Member executives, and the Code Liaison(s) are unable to resolve the issue, any of the foregoing may request the assistance of a reasonably acceptable independent third party (such as an Interested Party or WebTrust) to assist with the resolution.   

(b)  Don't just aim to be technically unimpeachable, try to be your best self. In particular, avoid engaging in offensive or sensitive personal discussions (versus ideological discussions), particularly if they're off-topic; this all too often leads to unnecessary arguments, hurt feelings, and damaged trust; worse, it can drive people away from the Forum entirely.

(c) If someone takes issue with something you said or did, resist the urge to be defensive. Just stop doing what it was they complained about.  Consider apologizing, as appropriate.  Even if you feel you were misinterpreted or unfairly accused, chances are good there was something you could've communicated better -  remember that it's your responsibility to clearly communicate your message to your fellow participants. Everyone wants to get along and we are all here first and foremost because we want to talk about standards and everything that involves. You will find that people will be eager to assume good intent and forgive as long as you earn their trust.

(d)  Depending on the severity, violations of the Code on the part of a Member representative may ultimately result in the representative being asked to leave a meeting, be removed from a mailing list, be suspended from some or all Forum activities, or the Member may be asked to remove the representative from further involvement with the Forum and/or replace such representative with another qualified individual from Member’s organization. 

Adapted from the WHATWG Code of Conduct [link], with reference to the W3C Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct [link], and the Citizen Code of Conduct [link].”

The procedure for approval of this ballot is as follows (exact start and end times may be adjusted to comply with applicable sections of the Bylaws and IPR Agreement):

BALLOT ###

Status: Amendment to Bylaws

Start time (22:00 UTC)

End time (22:00 UTC)

Discussion (7 days)

Starts:  May __, 2017

Ends:  May __, 2017

Vote for approval (7 days)

Starts:  May __, 2017

Starts:  May__, 2017

No Review Period required.

Votes must be cast by posting an on-list reply to this thread on the Public List.  A vote in favor of the motion must indicate a clear 'yes' in the response. A vote against must indicate a clear 'no' in the response. A vote to abstain must indicate a clear 'abstain' in the response. Unclear responses will not be counted. The latest vote received from any representative of a voting member before the close of the voting period will be counted. Voting members are listed here: https://cabforum.org/members/ <https://cabforum.org/members/>

In order for the motion to be adopted, two thirds or more of the votes cast by members in the CA category and greater than 50% of the votes cast by members in the browser category must be in favor.  Quorum is shown on CA/Browser Forum wiki.  Under Bylaw 2.2(g), at least the required quorum number must participate in the ballot for the ballot to be valid, either by voting in favor, voting against, or abstaining.
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END OF DRAFT
===================

Best regards,

Virginia Fournier
Senior Standards Counsel
 Apple Inc.
☏ 669-227-9595
✉︎ vmf at apple.com <mailto:vmf at apple.com>

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