Discussions
Part 1: Initial Post
"Ethics in the Workplace"
Respond to the following:
• Discuss the varying degree of ethics found in organizations you have worked for and how these cultures affected you and / or your work. Then, discuss how you know you are part of an ethical organization.
• You have completed a report for your supervisor that outlines a problem that cannot be solved easily or quickly. About one week later the same report is circulated throughout the company that has been altered significantly. You suspect your supervisor made changes to undermine the severity of the problem. Do you have an ethical obligation to speak up? Discuss how you would handle this situation.
Part 2: reply to one student post substantially (does not have to be lengthy but explain your reasoning plz)
a. I have worked in many environments, from military to Starbucks to the government (both as a contractor and a federal employee). I have experienced many different levels of ethics throughout the years, good, bad and in-between. One particular office I can think of from a long time ago had a horrible degree of ethics, which really affected the office and how people interacted. The management of this organization proved to not be professional due to the fact that they believed anything certain employees would tell them. Proper investigation into rumors was not done, and people got moved around within the overall organization, which was frustrating to many. The management of this organization eventually made it so no one wanted to work their until they left, which wasn't good for the quality of employees. When I went to training for the military I also experienced unethical behavior between instructors and others. Some instructors were not fair and others were teaching correctly. It became frustrating because some students got higher grades because their teacher practically taught the test. Fortunately I am now in a great organization where the management leads by example and makes a clear effort to ensure all employees have ethical behavior as well. I know that I am now part of an ethical organization because I trust my leaders and know that if an issue arises that they take care of it just like they should.
If I wrote a report and found that later my supervisor had edited to hide pertinent information to the issue at hand I would be ethically obligated to say something. It is not right that the supervisor tried to remove information to lessen the severity of the issue; this would need to be discussed with upper management. I would go to the boss of my supervisor and bring up the issue that the supervisor removed this information from the report.
b. I've worked for a few companies over the last few years and they've all been what I would consider ethical. Most if not all enforce a zero tolerance policy towards, sexual harassment, discrimination, and other work place offenses. This allows for no room for disrespect within the work place without facing harsh punishment. This policy has for me fostered an environment conducive to learning and maintaining respect for both men and women, disabled, and individuals from different backgrounds as well.
You have an ethical obligation to speak up if a report you created to address a company issue has been modified to downplay the severity of the issue. The longterm goal is to ensure the issue is eliminated and doesnt occur again and to protect the employees. Modifying such a document minimizes the issue for the affected individual. Handling this should occur at the lowest level; In this case with the supervisor who made the changes. If no common ground is reached, at that point it is acceptable to elevate the issue to ensure company ethics are maintained.
or
c. Ethical decisions can happen at all levels within a company. They can range from how a company treats its employees to how it expects its employees to interact with customers. This week's lecture had a good example of a top level ethical decision, where Tylenol had to be pulled from the shelves to resolve an issue. This was done at great expense to the company, but shows a good moral fiber. I have worked for a company that expected you to assist any customer who came to you, even if you were clocked out and leaving. This same company would put you on a written warning if you went over your scheduled hours for the week. Behavior this like leads to resentment between employees and the employer, which can lead to bad behavior later on.
When you are part of an ethical organization you know it because it is difficult to find examples of unethical behavior. In addition, most places I have worked that have a highly ethical culture talk openly about ethics, and set expectations on how employees at all levels should interact.
If my supervisor had edited a document to downplay the severity of an issue, I would feel extremely uncomfortable for multiple reasons. First, if things do get out of hand that was the company's first chance to be in the know and to begin working on a solution. Second, if a truly negative issue arises around this situation, I would imagine someone that would hid it would also try to cast blame somewhere, and that would most likely fall back to me. With how I feel about those situations, it should come as no surprise that I believe I would have both an ethical and self-preserving obligation to speak up. Depending on the overall culture, I would try go directly to my supervisor to make sure they did understand the severity of the situation, and give them a chance to make it write. If I was worried about backlash from my management I would go to HR and ask them to bring in my managers superiors to have a discussion about the memo.