Removal of Human Rights from the CORU Code of Ethics for Social Workers (2019)

By Helen Kelly, Social Worker, and Graduate of the MA in Social Work, University of Galway 2020

“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of unity.” (Article 1, UN Convention of Human Rights)

CORU Code of Ethics

CORU Ireland, in its revised the Code of Ethics (2019) removed all references to Human Rights in the legally binding ethical code for social workers in Ireland.  The CORU code of Ethics of Social Workers (2011:6), notes that “Social Work is a profession based on the principles of Human Rights and Social Justice.” Allied to this, The International Federation of Social Workers (2014), define social work as

 “ a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities are central to social work.”

The IFSW (2014), in its global definition of social work,  consequently endeavours to recognise that social work is very much informed and guided not only by specific western practice and theory, but also the richness of the indigenous populations of each region, area, and corner of the globe in terms of their knowledge, values, and contribution to social work research. A global definition of social work therefore seeks to counteract the hegemonizing of indigenous knowledge by western theory of social work practice and education.

Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, in his December 10, 1986, Nobel Prize acceptance speech Wiesel proclaimed that

“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere. When human lives are endangered, when human dignity is in jeopardy, national borders and sensitivities become irrelevant.”

Globally, we are faced with a universal landscape of increasing inequality and conflict. The Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Act (2014), which is accountable to the Oireachtas, is continually working at policy level to appraise and assess the efficacy of human rights and equality law, policy and practice within public bodies Ireland. The Human Rights and Equality Commission, in its Strategy Statement (2022-2024)  pledges to working in communities to monitor and report on people’s lived experiences of equality and human rights. The mission statement of the IHREC(2014: 2) is summarised in the following line “Our vision is of an inclusive Ireland where human rights and equality are respected, protected and fulfilled for everyone, everywhere.”

Social Inequality

In the TASC Report (2022: 65) entitled “The State we are in: Inequality in Ireland today”, the data collected demonstrated that “ The major contributor to inflation has obviously been energy, which has increased by 43.8% over the last year. As energy is a necessity, all households consume it so that it comprises a larger share of low-income households’ budgets, given their lower incomes.”

As a necessary competent in society, it can be ascertained that energy consumption is less subject to change in the face of rising prices. Another factor that elevates lower-income households’ energy use is their comparatively poor standard of accommodation, which tends to be less well-insulated than high-income housing. Combined, these factors explain why the poor have suffered most under rising cost of living pressures. While income is the most obvious way to analyse cost of living in an inequality context, it is clearly not the only one. Pre-covid most discussion of Ireland’s high cost of living had centered on the rising cost of accommodation. Urban renters, in particular, had experienced very high increases in the cost of a most basic necessity, shelter. Geography has much to say about the economic lives that people live.

Education

Ireland is often lauded in terms of education metrics, but we lag behind in the area of lifelong learning. 2022 Eurostat figures outline that under fourteen percent of workers aged 25 to 65 partake in professional development. The EU target is at least sixty percent in terms of training by the year 2030. There are several barriers to equity of access in education in Ireland, most notably SUSI grants for students. Greater recognition of prior learning is also a factor.

Housing
The Financial Times report that the number of asylum seekers in government accommodation has risen by 150 per cent to almost 20,000 in early February 2023, from 8,000 at the start of 2022. Last year, Ireland received a record 13,651 applications for asylum; the previous high was 11,634 in 2002. In January, applications for international protection — including large numbers of people from Algeria, Nigeria, Georgia, Somalia and Zimbabwe — leapt 234 per cent on the same period of last year.

The housing crisis in Ireland has numerous causes and knowing may be the key to solving homelessness. As of June 2022, unfortunately, despite years of outlining that housing is a priority, the housing crisis is deepening. According to figures from the Department of Housing 10,492 people are homeless and relying on emergency homeless accommodation. This is up on 7,991 in May 2021. It is also almost certainly an underestimate, with housing activists like Fr Peter McVerry believing it could be 50% higher.

In conclusion, the fundamental value base of social work with the core emphasis on the unique worth of each individual  is central to social work theory. Social Workers experience of the impact of social conditions on the capacity of individuals to live well means that rights are inseparable from economic and social freedom. Therefore, social workers must continue to play a key role in securing the protection of human rights for all.