Work ethics is a crucial component of the organizational structure that directs stakeholders' behaviors to enhance efficiency and productivity. Work ethics, which is also referred to as professional codes of conduct, apply to different professionals ranging from the military, healthcare, and education. The codes of conduct align with organizational needs and societal expectations to ensure that operations are grounded on ethical principles. Most organizations have written codes of conduct that individuals receive upon employment, while others are posted in conference rooms or company websites. The code of conduct acts as a constant reminder of the organizational etiquette and behavior expectations. A focus on ethics on the job aims at establishing its role in a dynamic business environment that requires the upholding of professionalism and morality.
Definition of Work Ethics
Work ethics refers to the ability to maintain the outlined moral values in the workplace. Ethics on the job could be viewed as a set of cultural norms providing a positive foundation for society's right job. Work ethics are based on the belief that work has an intrinsic value, and for this reason, any work should be done well based on moral principles. According to Alwagfi, Aljawarneh & Alomari (2020), work ethics is a secular and multidimensional collection of beliefs and attitudes related to work behavior that can be learned. Most organizations have a mission, vision, and values statement, which apply to different stakeholders to enhance sustainability. Individuals who adhere to the values that help achieve organizational objectives demonstrate ethics on the job. Moreover, work ethics could refer to an attitude shaping how individuals perform their job while adhering to high moral standards. Work ethics becomes an inherent attitude possessed by individuals that allow them to perform their duties and make decisions based on positive moral values (Alwagfi et al., 2020). Some of the positive moral values associated with work ethics are responsibility, integrity, teamwork, discipline, and humility. These values define the value statement for many organizations that encourage and require their employees to practice them. In this case, employees with positive work ethics will consider the moral implications of their actions, allowing them to create boundaries between what is right or not.
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Significance of Ethics on the Job
Work ethics are a crucial component of the corporate culture that allows organizations to set boundaries between right or wrong. Organizations are operating in a dynamic business environment associated with competition, diversity, and tightening regulations. This dynamism then requires businesses to adjust their structures so that they can remain relevant and viable. One way of reacting to dynamism is through the adoption and implementation of work ethics. Work ethics is a strategy for bringing all stakeholders to a common platform aligned with moral principles (Dehghani, 2020). Organizations emphasize the need to adhere to organizational values, which becomes a unifying factor. This statement not only applies to local companies but also multinational corporations with operations around the world. These corporations understand that work ethic is a universal provision that would direct all stakeholders' behavior despite their racial or cultural backgrounds. In this case, ethics on the job capture the founders' principles and values to define the organizational culture.
Organizations rely on employees to remain productive, competitive, and sustainable amid rising global competition. These employees are a significant resource that cushions organizations against changes in the external environment and internal conditions. If an organization has to make changes to align with global demands, it must challenge its employees' attitudes and beliefs. McCarthy et al. (2020) notes that organizations that instill a sense of ownership in their employees, believe in employees' abilities, and engages in open communication are more likely to get their support. Ethical guidelines play a pivotal part in facilitating organizational changes since it guides managers while performing executive and administrative functions. In particular, work ethics helps prevent tyranny and corruption in the workplace, which prevents stakeholders from giving their all to the organization's success. This environment improves the organization's successful organizational climate, which in turn allows them to embrace social justice and cohesion.
Relationship between Ethics on the Job and Performance
Ethics on the job is associated with how employees perform their job, categorized as either ethical or unethical. This association is the fact that ethics is a critical issue in human resource management since companies have to match employee talent and values. A positive ethical culture provides direction in other areas to create harmonious, united, and ethical employees. According to Benedicto & Caelian (2020), an organization's ethical climate is crucial since it determines job satisfaction and organizational performance. Employees who feel that the organizations they work in value professional ethics are more likely to perform better in their positions. Moreover, an organization that upholds ethical values is in a better position of instilling these values in the employees as part of the corporate culture. An ethical environment promotes inclusivity, respect, integrity, and honesty, among other values that define the modern and dynamic environment.
Employees need to feel valued and included in all organizational processes, encouraging them to give back through hard work and diligence. In this case, work ethics becomes a major predictor of employee performance since it creates an accommodating work environment. This outcome is significant, considering that organizations are required to embrace diversity by employing individuals from different nationalities, gender, sexual orientation, and races (Metwally et al., 2019). This provision is in line with expanding operations to foreign countries and territories in response to the changing global business environment. If a business survives in this new business model, they have to work with individuals from all backgrounds to enhance the chances of success. Ethics on the job will help the organization to outline the values that guide its operations and apply to all employees despite their differences. Work ethics then becomes a tool for promoting and appreciating diversity in the workplace, paving the way for job satisfaction and, in turn, increased productivity and profitability.
Barriers to Ethics on the Job
Work ethics are crucial since they outline behaviors and values that would facilitate organizational objectives. However, in as much as work ethics is important, stakeholders do not automatically adhere to the ethical guidelines due to various barriers. One of these barriers is employee attitude towards organizational structure, policies, leadership, and expectations. McCarthy et al. (2020) establish that employees usually have an attitude regarding ethical business practices, and these beliefs are codified to form ethical guidelines. If the top management attitudes reinforce the ethical guidelines, the employees will likely develop a positive attitude toward the ethical provision. The reinforcement of ethical guidelines by the top management is not automatic since some managers may create an illusion that ethics can be overlooked in some situations. The overlooking of ethical guidelines creates bad precedence, as the employees will be tempted to overlook them in a similar situation. This outcome contributes towards the disregard of work ethics, which ruins a positive corporate image, which in turn reduces profitability.
Organizational structure allows corporations to outline roles, activities in addition to guiding the decision-making process. In as much as this structure contributes to organizational well-being, it could be a barrier to ethics on the job in many ways. Privately held companies where employees are required to make profits may create barriers to observing ethical guidelines. Employees who work in such a company may be under undue pressure to perform, a situation that forces them to compromise their professional ethics to achieve their objectives (Metwally et al., 2019). Working for a small business owner paves the way for these employees to struggle between business ethics and strategies to satisfy the owner. The same case may apply to a multinational that has opened operations in countries that encourage business regulations bypassing through bribery and corruption. A company that stands for integrity and honesty may be put to the test of choosing between its ethical guidelines and getting a license to operate. Most of the multinationals would disregard ethical guidelines, especially if the host country promises a wide market share. In this case, the organizational structure becomes a major barrier in the practice of ethics on the job, especially if there is a conflict of interests.
Strategies for Strengthening Ethics on the Job in Organizations
Organizations are under undue pressure to maintain work ethics and, at the same time, be productive, a balancing act that requires the adoption of best practices. At times organizations are forced to overlook opportunities and need to strengthen work ethics. However, barriers can make organizations overlook stronger work ethics, making it harder to enhance professionalism. Nonetheless, organizations can still move beyond psychological and structural barriers and strengthen their ethics. One strategy that could be used to strengthen ethics is encouraging dialogue, listening, and acting fairly at all times. Azadian et al. (2020) assert that most organizations have failed to create an environment that encourages individual members to speak about important issues. Instead, these individuals chose to remain silent out of fear that they will face negative professional and personal consequences. Others chose to tread carefully around those in power, a situation that threatens the achievement of organizational goals. This culture of silence and silencing close off routes to better organizational goals, thus necessitating a need to reverse such a culture Organizations need to empower individual members by encouraging dialogue and feedback, a strategy that sends a clear message that they are equal partners. Organizations must also encourage fairness by involving all members in the decision-making process. Employees need to understand that the organization operates within ethical frameworks before transmitting this corporate culture to the clients.
Ethical standards provide a framework for conducting organizational operations to enhance success and suitability. Organizations that are keen on strengthening their work ethics must be ready to factor in the costs associated with disregarding ethical guidelines. Kancharla & Dadhich (2020) note that there is not a single organization that is perfect in adhering to ethical guidelines since they miss red flags fall short, or even face risky moments of temptation and weakness. However, a focus on the costs of disregarding work ethics could help an organization to strengthen its ethics. A disregard of ethics could result in minor wrongs or even caused injuries or death if a company manufactures faulty gadgets or goods that could potentially harm the clients. If a company is to avoid a negative image, there is a need to ensure adherence to ethical guidelines by all stakeholders and at all times. Organizations are required to ensure that the stakeholders understand what is at risk if they betray the provisions of the ethical guidelines (Kancharla & Dadhich, 2020). For this to happen, organizations should inculcate a sense of ownership in their members to ensure that every one of them works to protect it. Understanding the true costs of disregarding work ethics pushes companies to put strategies in place to avoid common pitfalls and, in this case, remain competitive and profitable.
References
Alwagfi, A. A., Aljawarneh, N. M., & Alomari, K. A. (2020). Work ethics and social responsibility: Actual and aspiration. Journal of Management Research, 12 (1), 26-36. doi:10.5296/jmr.v12i1.15794
Azadian, M., Rahimi, A., Mohebbi, M., Kashkouli, R. I., & Mardani, A. (2020). The barriers to observing professional ethics in the practice of nursing care from nurses' viewpoints. Library Philosophy and Practice, 12 (3),2-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/1477750920959549
Benedicto, H. R., & Caelian, M. V. (2020). Work ethics and job performance of government employees in a component city. Philippine Social Science Journal, 3 (2), 151-152. http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0438-8949
Dehghani, A. (2020). Factors affecting professional ethics development in students: A qualitative study. Nursing Ethics, 27 (2), 461-469. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969733019845135
Kancharla, R., & Dadhich, A. (2020). Perceived ethics training and workplace behavior: the mediating role of perceived ethical culture. European Journal of Training and Development 41 (6), 24-41. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-03-2020-0045
McCarthy, L. P., Imboden, R., Shdaimah, C. S., & Forrester, P. (2020). ‘Ethics Are messy’: Supervision as a tool to help social workers manage ethical challenges. Ethics and Social Welfare, 14 (1), 118-134. ttps://doi.org/10.1080/17496535.2020.1720265
Metwally, D., Ruiz-Palomino, P., Metwally, M., & Gartzia, L. (2019). How ethical leadership shapes employees’ readiness to change: The mediating role of an organizational culture of effectiveness. Frontiers in Psychology, 10 (5), 15-29. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02493
