A commercial shipping company experienced increased business prior to the holiday season and immediately needed more trained forklift operators to help with the workload. Due to the urgent need, an employee was ordered by his supervisor to start moving pallets with a forklift. Knowing that he has never operated a forklift previously and has never been trained in how to operate one, the employee was concerned about his safety and expressed this concern to his supervisor. His supervisor told the employee to do what he was told or start looking for another job. The employee notified the facility union representative, who promptly called OSHA to report the concerns. Subsequently, OSHA arrived and conducted an inspection; multiple violations were issued to the company concerning forklift operators who had not been trained. Upon receipt of the violations, the company terminated the employment of the employee who notified the union representative. Were the actions of the employee appropriate? Were the actions of the employer appropriate?
You are a safety manager for a West Coast construction company. In the past, you have made poor choices when faced with ethical dilemmas involving on-the-job accidents. Now you are called to the job-site to act as the mediator for a situation involving a supervisor and some of his employees. The disagreement involves the employees stating that their supervisor is implying that they disregard OSHA regulations when it comes to their own safety. Your team is working against a deadline to complete a job in an area in which the construction industry is booming. You and your supervisor know that you both will get a monetary bonus if you complete the job by a certain time. How would you determine a potential course of action in handling this situation? What ethical guidelines would you follow in making a decision on handling the issue? Explain your answers in detail.
Your essay should be at least 500 words in length and include an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. You are required to use at least your textbook as source material for your response. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations.