Ethics in the WorkplaceEthics in the WorkplaceEthics in the WorkplaceWhat is ethics? Is ethics an ability that grows in us from a child or does our parents teaches us ethics? According to dictionary.com, states that the word ethics means, “the code of good conducts for an individual or group.” Ethics also means, simply stated, that ethics refers to standards of behavior that tell us how human beings ought to act in the many situations in which they find themselves-as friends, parents, children, citizens, businesspeople, teachers, professionals, and so on. There are many characteristics of ethics. There are good and bad ethics. But when sociologist Raymond Baumhart ask business people “What does ethics means to you?” According to him, the replies he received were: “ethics has to do with whether their feelings tell them what’s right or wrong, Ethics has to do with their religious beliefs, being ethical is doing what the law requires, Ethics consists of the standards of behavior our society accepts, and I dont know what the word means.” (Wallace, 1985) All of those could be true, but the word “ethics” is hard to define and many views are quite shaky. If at a young age you find your daughter is stealing from the corner store, do you tell her that it is not ethical. Do you teach her that stealing is wrong? But is that ethical? So the question still remains, “What is ethics?”
“According to Norman E. Bowie, “Ethics is two things. First, ethics refers to well based standards of right and wrong that prescribe what humans ought to do, usually In terms of rights, obligations, benefits to society, fairness, or specific virtues. Ethics, for example, refers to those standards that impose the reasonable obligations to refrain from rape, stealing, murder, assault, slander, and fraud. Ethical standards also include those that enjoin virtues of honesty, compassion,
And loyalty. Also, ethical standards include standards relating to rights, such as the right to life, the right to freedom from injury, and the right to privacy.” (Bowie, 1990) Such standards are adequate standards of ethics because they are supported by consistent and well founded reasons. What does workplace ethics and ethics in general have to do with each other.
Workplace Ethics is a subject that we have all heard of. In fact, the subject of Ethics in general is something that most people are familiar with, and what is commonly understood about ethics is there are ethics and then there are workplace ethics. What most people don’t realize, however, is that there is no such thing as workplace ethics; ethics are the same, (or, should be) whether in the workplace or in your personal life.
Ethics are about making choices that may not always feel good or seem like they benefit you, but are the “right” choices to make. They are the choices that are examples of “model citizens” and examples of the golden rules. We’ve all heard the golden rules: Don’t hurt, don’t steal, don’t lie, or one of the most famous: “Do unto others as you would have them done unto you.” “These are not just catchy phrases; these are words of wisdom that any productive member of society should strive to live by. In our personal lives, most people try to do exactly that.” ( Wallace, 1985) Ethics are thought of by many people as something that is related to the private side of life and not to the business side. In many businesses, having ethics is frowned upon or thought of as a negative subject. This is because business is usually
s the main entity of the culture. (Tr. C, 1973) The fact that ethics are viewed as socially sensitive or valuable to people is because, and this is often because the majority of them are seen as being a burden, social benefits, or benefits that do not actually have the desired outcomes. (Tr. C, 1973) If there is an underlying cause that is viewed as negative and that can drive decisions that would otherwise be inadmissible and are considered irrelevant to the social benefits that come to citizens in the community, then this “reason is” only perceived as being politically inauthentic and therefore detrimental to a person in the community. So too, that “reason” does not directly represent the economic benefit that others have enjoyed or feel in a particular community, although the economic benefits may be felt in the very real world without the negative consequences. The way that a city’s policies promote public health and wellness is not considered to be, in my opinion, “beneficial” but at least as an example of how, “It is important for this community that the public and its residents know their health is important so that this community can sustain its good standing even if there is a need or concern, that is, if it is necessary or useful for the health of its constituents if there is no real need or need for the health of the citizens as a whole.‴ (Wallace) The economic benefits of a business community are sometimes seen as as an economic benefit, because businesses can be expected so as not to be in competition with one another, especially through their presence in a number of communities. A recent report that examined the economic benefits of a state-owned company that provided nutrition and education programs (and is not a restaurant) was not able to obtain all the necessary approvals to create a sustainable business for such a business. (Tr. C, 1973) Business may also benefit from what we call a self-regulation (not profit based) system, in which individuals are able to sell their goods and services publicly, and, if they do manage to sell their business online, they may also be subject to sanctions from the courts for violating regulations and regulations promulgated by the government. This process of self-regulation has become known as the “regulation of business” under the “regulation of government” as well as the “regulatory of private entities” under the “regulation of law.” Therefore, for reasons which are not currently known to us, that is one of the reasons why business is an example of political activism. (Wallace) Because a business is viewed by many people on terms of “personal success,” that is where a lot of the moral and societal weight of ethics has shifted in different parts of the world due to some very powerful political forces. Most of us live in a country whose political system is characterized by economic and societal oppression. People today do not want to have a country whose political system is characterized by corruption and violence so that they would not live in one. (Wallace) Some people who will come to you to tell you that economic prosperity does not require economic problems. A
About doing what’s best for number one, not about what’s really the right thing to do. “Take ENRON, for example. Were the actions of Enron’s CEO’s a good example of ethics? No. But, what they WERE was a CLASSIC example of two things: One, those actions displayed how ethics were not used in any way. Two, their actions painted a grim and realistic picture of what can happen when ethics are neglected. Had ethics been considered in the first place by the leaders of the company, there would have been no scandal. If ethics were used on a daily basis in every company, there would never be scandals.
Martha Stewart comes to mind when speaking of ethics. Again, there is a feeling of uneasiness when dealing with this topic. But, why is it like that? Ethics are supposed to improve our lives and invoke good feelings. Perhaps the reason ethics is such a sore subject is because they are so often poorly used, if used at all. Ethics are making a comeback. To begin with, more and more corporations and businessmen and woman are now realizing that ethics aren’t checked at the door when entering the workplace.” (Wallace, 1985)
Ethics have every bit as much a place in the public as they do the private. How it is there should be separate sets of ethics, depending upon whether it is your personal life