Arris Cristever Evarola BSCOE-IV Christian Von Pagalunan BSIE-IV Ethnics and Safety Ethnics Defined There are

many definitions of the term ethnics. However, no one definition has emerged as universally accepted. According to Paul Taylor, the concept can be defined as inquiry into the nature and grounds of morality where morality is taken to mean moral judgments, standards, and rules of conduct. According to Arlow and Ulrich, ethical dilemmas in workplace are more complex than ethnical situations in general. They involve societal expectations, competition, and social responsibility as well as potential consequences of an employees behavior on customers, coworkers, competitors, and the public at large. The result of the often-conflicting and contradictory interest of workers, customers, competitors, and the general public is a natural tendency for ethical dilemmas to occur frequently in the workplace.

Guidelines for Determining Ethical Behavior Guidelines are needed for safety and health professionals to use when trying to sort out matters that are not clearly right or wrong. First, however, it is necessary to distinguish between the concepts of legal and ethical. They are not the same thing. Just because an option is legal does not necessarily mean it is ethical. In fact, it is not uncommon for people caught in the practice of questionable behavior to use the I didnt do anything illegal defense. A persons behavior can be well within the scope of the law and still be unethical. The following guidelines for determining ethical behavior assume that the behavior in question is legal. Apply the morning-after test. This test asks, If you make this choice, how will you feel about it tomorrow morning? Apply the front-page test. This test encourages you to make decision that would not embarrass you if printed as a story on the front page of your hometown newspaper. Apply the mirror test. This test asks, If you make this decision, how will you feel about yourself when you look in the mirror? Apply the role-reversal test. This test requires you to trade places with the people affected by your decision and view the decision through their eyes. Apply the commonsense test. This test requires you to listen to what your instincts and common sense are telling you. If it feels wrong, it probably is.

Ethical Behavior in Organizations An employees ego strength is his or her ability to undertake self-directed tasks and to cope with tense situations. A measure of workers Machiavellianism is the extent to which he or she will attempt to deceive and confuse others. Locus of control is the perspective of workers concerning who or what controls their behavior. Employees with an internal locus of control feel that they control their own behavior. Employees with an external locus of control feel that their behavior is controlled by external factors.

Safety and Health Professionals role in Ethics It is this fact that defines the role of safety and health professionals with regard to ethnics. Their role has three parts. First, they are responsible for setting an example of ethical behavior. Second, they are responsible for helping fellow employees make the right decision when facing ethnical questions. Finally, safety and health professionals are responsible for helping employees follow through and actually undertake the ethnical option once the appropriate choice has been identified. In carrying out their roles, safety and health professionals can adopt one of the following approaches the best ratio approach, the black and white approach, or the full- potential approach.

Best Ratio Approach The best-ratio approach is the pragmatic approach. Its philosophy is that people are basically good and under the right circumstances behave ethically. Black and White Approach Using Black and White Approach, right is right, wrong is wrong, and circumstances are irrelevant. The safety and health professionals job is to make ethical decisions and carry them out. Full-Potential Approach Safety and Health professionals who use the full-potential approach make decisions based on how the outcomes affect the ability of those involved to achieve their full potential.

Companys Role in Ethnics Creating an Ethnics Environment A company creates an ethnical environment by establishing policies and practices that ensure all employees are treated ethnically and then enforcing these policies. Do employees have the right of due process? Do employees have access to an object grievance procedure? Are there appropriate safety and

health measures to protect employees? One effective way to create an ethical environment is to develop an ethnics philosophy and specific, written guidelines for implementing that philosophy.

Setting an Ethical Example Companies that take the Do as I say, not as I do approach to ethics will not succeed. Employees must be able to trust their company to conduct all external and internal dealings in an ethnical manner. Companies that do not pay their bills on time; companies that pollute; companies that do not live up to advertised quality standards; companies that do not stand behind their guarantees; and companies that are good neighbors in their communities are not setting a good ethical example. Handling of Ethical Dilemmas No person will serve long as a safety and health professional without confronting an ethical dilemma. How, then, should you proceed when confronting an ethical dilemma? There are three steps: 1. Apply the various guidelines for determining what is ethical presented earlier in this chapter. 2. Select one of the three basic approaches to handling ethical questions. 3. Proceed in accordance with the approach selected, and proceed with consistency.

Apply the Guidelines In this step, as a safety and health professional, you should apply as many of the tests set forth as necessary to determine the ethically correct decision. In applying these guidelines, attempt to block out all mitigating circumstances and other factors that tend to cloud the issue. At this point, the goal is only to identify the ethical choice. Deciding whether to implement the ethical choice comes in next step. Select the Approach When deciding how to proceed after step 1, you have three basic approaches. These approaches, as set forth are the best ratio, black and white, and full potential approaches. These approaches and their ramifications can be debated and infinitum; however, selecting an approach to ethical questions is a matter of personal makeup, the expectations of the company, and the degree of company support. Proceed with the decision The approach selected will dictate how you should proceed as a safety and health professional. Two things are important in this final step. The first is to proceed in strict accordance with the approach selected. The second is to proceed consistently.

Questions to ask when making decisions Safety and health professionals often must make decisions that have ethical dimensions. A constant state tension often exists between meeting production schedules and maintaining employee safety. Safety and health professionals usually are right in the middle of these issues. Ethics and Whistle Blowing What can safety and health professionals do when their employer is violating legal or ethical standards? The first option, of course, should be to bring violations to the attention of appropriate management executives through established channels. In most cases, this will be sufficient to stop illegal or unethical behavior. But what about those occasions when safety and health professionals is ignored or, worse yet, told to mind your own business? these are the types of situations that have led to the concept of whistle blowing.