4.

Evaluation Solution to Solve Ethical Issues at Work

1. As an Employee

A. Gather as much information as possible.

i. Understanding is fundamental before taking action to solve an ethical issue. You need to
have as thorough an understanding of that issue as possible. The problem may not be as
straightforward as it first appears.
ii. Ask yourself if you really know enough information to determine what's going on. Ideally,
you should gather all relevant facts concerning the issue at hand, but if you cannot collect all
the facts, you at least need to know enough to make a well-educated hypothesis.
iii. You also need to ask yourself if you might be making assumptions. Everyone has their own
personal and professional biases. Some of those biases are grounded in experience, but if
you aren't careful, they could be skewing your perspective and making you see something
that doesn't actually exist.

B. Identify the parties involved.

i. Determine who else in the company is involved in this issue. Involvement can be direct or
indirect.
ii. On a direct level, those participating in the ethical violation are certainly involved.
iii. On an indirect level, those who will be impacted regardless of having no say in the issue are
also involved. Among others, this can include co-workers, customers, and stockholders.
iv. You'll also need to determine who, among those involved, will be your allies. Since fixing this
issue goes beyond the limits of your power, you will need the support, assistance, and
direction of others when solving it. That being the case, knowing who you can trust is a very
important matter.

C. Pinpoint the ethical issues involved.

i. Instead of settling for a general sense that something is wrong, you need to ask yourself
which ethical principles are being abused.
ii. Some ethical violations are more obvious than others. For instance, if you caught a co-
worker stealing expensive equipment, you could make the clear distinction that theft is
wrong. In situations dealing with small violations or interdepartmental strife, though, the
violation may not be as clear.
iii. Review the circumstances again and ask yourself which fundamental principle is affected.
Possible options include violations of power, integrity, honesty, objectivity, professional
competence, confidentiality, or fairness
 D. Review the company's standard procedure.

i. Find out if your company currently has an internal system set up for dealing with ethical
issues like this.
ii. If you have a company manual or similar documentation, review it now. Look into the
organization's policies concerning workplace ethics.
iii. Pay close attention to the chain of command. Find out who you should involve at which
points, and the correct procedure for doing so.
iv. If the company doesn't have a set structure for dealing with ethical issues, you will need to
determine who to go to using your own experience and understanding.

E. List and evaluate your options.

i. Think of every possible option available to you instead of settling for the most obvious.
Write out each of these options and consider the impact each one might have.
ii. When evaluating your options, consider how each one fares in the light of your company's
internal procedures, any external laws involved, and any general ethical values upheld by
society as a whole.
iii. Predict the consequences that will result from each option. This includes both positive and
negative outcomes. Understand that, in some circumstances, each option may come with
both negative and positive consequences.

F. Execute the best option.

i. After reviewing all of your options, determine which is best and put it into practice.
ii. In most cases, the solution will require you to escalate the issue to an authority within the
company. The correct person may depend upon who within the company is guilty of the
violation. Moreover, if the highest authorities in the company are guilty, you may need to
bring the violation to the attention of an external authority.
iii. The best option should address the ethical issue in a productive manner. If multiple ethical
values are involved, your solution should usually correct as many violations as possible.
iv. Whatever option you choose, be prepared to stand by it. There will always be critics, and
there is no guarantee that you can remain anonymous throughout the entire corrective
process.
 G. Keep a record as you monitor the outcome.

i. Unfortunately, your work doesn't end just because you've reported the issue. Keep an eye
on how things progress to make sure that the issue is genuinely addressed.
ii. As a general rule, it's a good idea to document nearly everything in writing. This includes
your own investigations, the reports you've filed, and the discussions you've had concerning
this issue. You may need to use these written records to defend yourself later.

H. Take things to the next level when needed.

i. If the initial solution you implement doesn't work, keep trying. Continue through the
hierarchy until you've exhausted every possibility.
ii. Don't be afraid of going above someone's head if he or she isn't getting the job done. Be
reasonable when evaluating how that supervisor has handled things, but don't let yourself
be bullied into submission by someone trying to sweep things under the rug.
 2. As an Employer or Supervisor

A. Objectively review the report.

i. When an employee you supervise brings an ethical issue to your attention, you have the
moral and professional obligation to hear what that employee has to say.
ii. If the employee explains the issue to you verbally, request a formal written report. The
additional paperwork might seem like a pain, but it should help protect everyone involved,
including both you and the whistle-blower.
iii. Do not allow your personal and professional relationships with the involved parties affect
your judgment. You may think well of the person being reported and poorly of the person
doing the reporting, and your instinct might be right when all is said and done. Until you
straighten things out, though, you need to treat the complaint as potentially valid and act
accordingly.

B. Perform your own investigation.

i. After receiving the initial report, you need to collect all of the facts from scratch. Don't take
anything for granted.
ii. Talk with other employees who might have information to share. Review written reports,
computer records, and security footage associated that may shed light on the issue.
iii. If your company has a department dedicated to addressing matters like these, make sure
that the department is informed. You'll need to work directly with that department during
the investigation.

C. Identify all involved parties.

i. Ask yourself which people are directly involved and which are indirectly affected. You will
need to concern yourself with both groups when taking corrective action.
ii. From your perspective, the parties directly involved will include both the employee who
reported the issue and the employee or employees mentioned in the report.
iii. Parties indirectly affected can include other employees, other supervisors, customers,
stockholders, and more. Even though these persons have no control over the issue, you will
still need to keep their needs and standpoint in mind.
 D. Identify the ethical issues involved.

i. Draw a definite conclusion on which ethical principles have been violated. In some instances,
there might be more than one principle involved.
ii. If your investigation proved the initial report true, you'll need to evaluate the actions of
those reported. Possible ethical violations could include, among others, violations of power,
respect, honesty, professional competence, or integrity.
iii. If your investigation proved the initial report false, you need to evaluate the actions of the
reporter. Ask yourself if the report was made in honest error or if the reporter violated the
ethics of honesty and respect by making false accusations.

E. Brainstorm possible solutions.

i. Think of different ways to solve the ethical violations committed. Keep in mind that solutions
need to address both short-term and long-term needs.
ii. Evaluate your options based on how well they actually address the issue and how well they
fit into any internal procedures already established by the company.
iii. Try to predict any consequences that will result from each of your options. Consequences
can be good, bad, or a mixture of both. When choosing which option or options you'll
implement, choose those that have the greatest positive consequences and least significant
negative consequences.

F. Ask for external support.

i. Depending on the overall nature of the issue, you might need to ask for support within the
company or outside of the company.
ii. Support within the company can come from your own supervisor (when applicable), human
resources, or other departments you work with closely.
iii. Support from outside the company can come in the form of ethics experts. Lawyers and
legal authorities—like the police—may need to be contacted if the ethics violation was also
illegal, but for less severe matters, an ethics expert might be a counsellor or adviser.
 G. Meet with the affected parties.

i. Short-term solutions will usually require you to sit down with the parties directly involved.
Depending on the circumstances, you may need to meet with each party separately or meet
with them together in conference.
ii. When an ethics violation was reported in confidence by an external party, you will need to
meet separately to protect the identity of the reporting party.
iii. If the violation itself involved multiple conflicting parties, you may need to sit down with all
parties in conflict at the same time.
iv. Take appropriate disciplinary measures. Those who violated an ethical principle should be
disciplined for it. Make sure that the consequence fits the severity of the violation, though.
v. Offer counselling and support. If the incident caused trauma or other difficulties to one or
more parties, find out from them what sort of support they need to heal.

H. Implement any necessary educational programs.

i. Oftentimes, ongoing ethical issues or those that affected a large group of people will result
in the implementation of ethics training.
ii. The specifics will vary from situation to situation, but overall, you should aim to make sure
that each current and new employee is aware of the ethical issue and how it should be
handled.