From an ethical perspective, the rights and responsibilities a worker has to their organization have a lot to do with their emotional feeling, their conscience and sense of purpose. A worker is required to be complete the tasks assigned to them on time. Completion of the delegated job needs to be consistent with the standards set by the employer. It would be unacceptable, from an ethical perspective, for the employee to do a shoddy job even if they completed the assignment within the stipulated guidelines. Employees are ethically compelled to give their 100% when it comes to their productivity whether or not they are being watched or evaluated by their employers (Hartman, et al., 2014). Similarly, to the employer, the employees have an ethical responsibility to attend the ethical workshop forum organized by the marketing firm as part of their recruitment conditions.
The employees have a right to be represented in any forms of discussions with their employers. Employers are required by their code of ethics to be receptive to the idea of representation by a qualified and competent official especially when decisions are being made which concern the health and safety of the employees (Hartman, et al., 2014). The perils that employees may encounter in the line of their work range from unsafe work environments in the field to risk of road accidents while undertaking company duties (Hartman, et al., 2014). It is a right of the employee, in my opinion as an ethics officer, for the employer to make arrangements to solicit the expertise of a qualified health and safety practitioner when formulating policies regarding the safety of the employees. The employees also have an ethical responsibility to inform their employers of the potential areas of concern to their safety in the work place to minimize accidents from occurring (Hartman, et al., 2014).
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Employees are required by the ethics code to be honest in undertaking the responsibilities they are assigned by their employer (Hartman, et al., 2014). The information that they give to their employers should, to the best of their knowledge, be true and honest. For the employers, having employees who are of high integrity helps them make informed decisions (Hartman, et al., 2014). Ethics demand that the employee has the right to be heard, but it is the employee responsibility to be honest with the information they remit to their employers. Additionally, as an ethics officer, I expect the employees to exercise their dealings with an impeccable degree of integrity, honesty and truthfulness.
Ethical Responsibilities of the Employer
The ethical responsibilities of the employer to their employees are to provide a platform where they are able to impart knowledge on the company’s corporate ethical policy (Hartman, et al., 2014). The marketing firm has fulfilled this responsibility in the scenario provided, since the two day training exercise the firm organizes before onboarding helps provide information on company ethics to the employees. Before the new employees are incorporated into the company community of workers, they have to be conversant with the rules and undertakings their company expects of them and the company’s ethical pledges to the employees as well. It is the company expectation that its employees will exercise the values they have been taught at all times when undertaking the firm’s assignments.
The marketing firm in the scenario provided is also ethically required to conduct a refresher course to ensure the employees are up to date with the firm’s corporate policy. In this vein, the employees get updated on any changes. Similarly, the employer uses the opportunity to gauge how well employees grasp the dictates of its corporate ethical policy. The refresher course is normally held after a definite period of time (Hartman, et al., 2014), and for the marketing firm in context, the employees are required to attend to it annually. It is important that the employees are conversant with the company ethics policies and they are able to apply them when faced with situations which require their application (Hartman, et al., 2014).
Ethical Business Dilemma
Mr. X, an owner an emerging automobile company that had contracted our marketing firm, visits us one morning while seemingly agitated. The receptionist quickly allocates an appointment for him with our company’s operations manager. Mr. X feels that the digital advertisement technique we had employed in the media on behalf of his automobile company is ineffective. He wants a change of strategy with immediate effect. The dilemma, however, is he is not willing commit himself or his automobile company into additional payment.
Our operation manager is patient throughout X’s ranting, and explains to him our commitment to providing him with value for his money. He explains that he will have his staff re-look the details of the advertising method and promises to improve the content. On the issue of the budget, he explains that the company works with what the client has made available. He concludes the meeting with a deal that if our marketing firm relaunches the advertisement with enriched and more effective content which translates to the sale of at least fifty automobiles in that year, Mr. X will pay for the advertising costs incurred plus 14% interest. Mr. X leaves our company satisfied with the assurance we are doing our best to market his product.
Analysis from Utilitarian and Relativistic Perspective
From utilitarian perspective, the happiness of the many people validates an action (Beauchamp, et al., 2004). From the scenario described, this was not achieved from our company’s digital marketing tool. However, it is important to consider the time-scale, since the advertisement had only been on air for two weeks. The limitations of the perspective towards the theory, however, lay on the fact that it is hard to accurately predict the outcomes of actions we as a company elect to undertake (Beauchamp, et al., 2004). From the dilemma our operations manager had to solve, it is obvious that our marketing company was not in a position to make the most effective judgment solely based on the nature of outcomes.
From a relativistic perspective, the question of the undertakings our marketing company took in the advertisement of the product by Mr. X’s company can only be determined on the basis of the norms of our society (Beauchamp, et al., 2004). We worked with the budget that the automobile company provided for us, and the delivered the best value for money, just like the operations manager informed him. Given that we complied with the rules governing our society (Beauchamp, et al., 2004) at the time of making the advertisement, we felt that we fulfilled our ethical duty to our customers as a company.
Common Ethical Decisions
One of the ethical decisions that is reflective of the corporate ethics which an employee can make in an organizational setting is to have a high standard of integrity when using the resources availed by the client. As a marketing firm, we base our work on the finances the client provides. When an employee chooses to uphold integrity, it is an ethical decision which reflects on the values our marketing firm also holds in high esteem. Another ethical decision an employee can choose to undertake is commitment to delivering value for money for the customer. It is a decision which requires that the employee gives their best in the work entrusted to them by the client. Such a decision mirrors the corporate ethics which the marketing firm prides itself in, that of satisfactory customer service.
Common Excuses by Employees
For the employee decisions discussed above, each one presents grounds for an ethical dilemma. For example, an individual may have financial constraints at home, and as a result, be tempted to embezzle resources the firm has entrusted to them for carrying out official duties. They may use common excuses such as inflation and not being paid enough for their violation of the ethics code. Additionally, an employee may be distracted in such a way that it affects their performance. Consequently, the employee may fail to deliver good quality of their work. Common excuses they may have for their dilemma may be complaints about being overloaded. The company should however, be alert to existence of incompetent personnel and take firm action.
References
Beauchamp, T. L., Bowie, N. E., & Arnold, D. G. (Eds.). (2004). Ethical theory and business.
Hartman, L. P., DesJardins, J. R., & MacDonald, C. (2014). Business ethics: Decision making for personal integrity and social responsibility . New York: McGraw-Hill.
