Accounting and Finance Foundations

Unit 1

Accounting and Finance Foundations Unit 1: Accounting Careers 71

Accounting Careers

Professional counselors, including school counselors, are also governed by the ethical principle of confi-

dentiality. A counselor must create an environment of trust for treatment to be successful. This means

s/he must be able to assure clients that information about them shared during treatment will almost never

be discussed with anyone else. Sometimes, however, confidentiality conflicts with the counselor’s duty to

warn or protect. Situations that involve suicidal or homicidal behavior, child abuse, elder abuse, and depen-

dent adult abuse are examples of when information is exempt from confidentiality requirements.

Based on what you have read, answer the following questions:

1. Is there really a difference between the different kinds of “confidentiality”?


2. Do you think that all information you share with teachers, counselors, coaches, nurses,
   and doctors needs to remain confidential?


3. Give examples of situations in which you think the information might have to be shared.


4. Do you think that sometimes requiring that information be shared is good or bad?

Confidentiality in the workplace is also a must. Just as most legal and medical information cannot be

shared, much business information is confidential as well. Only certain company employees may have

access to the information, and, in many cases, even those individuals aren’t authorized to share it with

anyone outside the office.

To ensure that confidential business information remains confidential, many employers require their

employees to sign a non-disclosure agreement, which is a type of contract, when they are hired. Although

non-disclosure agreements may contain somewhat confusing legal jargon, they all serve the same basic

purpose—to explain to employees the consequences of sharing confidential information with unauthor-

ized persons. If you are ever asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement, remember not to take the request

personally—your employer doesn’t think that you’re a criminal. Instead, your employer is simply protecting

itself against loss.

So, what company information shouldn’t be shared? That all depends on the type of company and the type

of information it possesses. Certainly, you shouldn’t share the contents of a file stamped “Top Secret” or

“Confidential.” Secret formulas and new product ideas are off limits, too. But, you also need to be extreme-

ly careful about what you say to people regarding company and client financial records, business meetings,

upcoming mergers and acquisitions, staff members, and anything else that your employer doesn’t want

people outside the company to know.

Student Guide

Chapter 3