1st year ethics in the workplace ppt

9/28/2021

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Shwanda Barnette, J.D.Florida League of Cities

Ethics in the WorkplaceFACC Fall AcademyThursday, October 21, 2021

Agenda

Opening Moves

What Ethics Is Not

So, What is Ethics

Making Ethical Decisions

Ethical Principles Exercise

Contributing to a Culture of Ethics

Concluding Thoughts on Ethical Decision-making…

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Opening Moves

Opening Moves-Expectations

This will be a mutually beneficial learning opportunity

You will spend just as much time teaching and learning from each other as you will listening to me

Feel free to ask questions for clarification at any point along the way by raising your hand, and there will also be designated time for Q&A at the end

What you give is what you get

Opening Moves-Ground Rules

Introduce yourself before working with your small group

Make sure everyone in the group has equal opportunities for “air-time”

Display grace and kindness to all participants

Commit to staying engaged

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Opening Moves – Who am I?

My Background: Lawyer Educator DC.gov FLCU

Instructional Philosophy: Philosophical Inquiry (PI)

Enhanced Social Inclusion Active Participation in the Learning

Process Deepen understanding by transforming

what is learned into daily practice and problem solving

What we are gaining through this collaborative experience

Opening Moves – Who are you?

Name?

Municipality?

What makes you a great fit for your role?

What do you love the most about your career?

Opening Moves - Breakout

Remember to spend time getting to know each other before we dive into these discussions.

NameMunicipalityWhat makes you a great fit for the Clerk’s Office What do you love the most about your job

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What Ethics is Not

What Ethics is Not…

Simply following the ethics laws/rules.

There are actions that are lawful but not ethical

There are actions that are ethical that may violate the law

Some actions, if not for the law, would be perfectly acceptable

Some actions may be ethically required but are illegal

Ethics is Not…

Abstract and irrelevant to real-world practice

Just a matter of personal preference

About what is best for me

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Breakout!

Think of a time in your life when you had to make a difficult decision to choose the “right thing” over what seemed most beneficial to you. What considerations or factors went into the decision you made to do what was right?

So What Is Ethics?

So…What is Ethics?

“moral principles for living and making decisions.”Larry Z. Leslie (2004) Mass Communication Ethics: Decision making in postmodern culture, 2nd edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 6.

“the study of what we ought to do.”A. David Gordon and John Michael Kittross (1999) Controversies in Media Ethics, 2nd edition. New York: Longman, 1.

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Workplace Ethics

Focused on the elements of the workplace culture and applying ethics to each aspect

Every employee contributes to the workplace culture

Workplace Ethics definition: create and foster a workplace in which employees are honest and do the right thing in each situation (Small Business Chronicle)

Roles in Workplace Ethics

Senior Management: policies and enforcement

Supervisors: leadership, education, awareness, reinforcement, reporting

Employees: understanding, application, communicating questions, concerns and issues

Responsibilities

Think before you act: How does this decision affect the

municipality? How does this decision affect me,

personally?

Consider the impact of your decisions on all involved

Hold yourself and others accountable to be good stewards of the municipality's resources

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An Ethical Workplace Is…

A safe and healthy work environment To maintain an ethical workplace,

employees must feel:

Physical safety (Safe space)

Emotional safety (Respect; regard for well-being)

Career safety (Opportunities for development)

Employees are more likely to engage in unethical

behavior when they don’t feel safe!

Breakout!

What are some ways you see the following elements of staff safety demonstrated within your municipality:

Physical safety (Actual safe space)Emotional safety (Respect; regard for well-being)Career safety (Opportunities for development)

Know the rules!

Florida’s Ethics Law: FL Constitution established several state statutes, as well as the Commission on Ethics

Chapter 112 – FL Ethics Law

Chapter 119 – Open Records

Chapter 286 – Open Meetings

Your city’s ordinances (and some charter counties have them, also)

Your municipality is depending on you to be the expert!

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Making Ethical Decisions

How our life experiences shape our decision-making

Most of us, who have chosen a life in public service, want to do “the right thing”

Most public servants that find themselves in ethical trouble get there unintentionally

How we determine right and wrong is largely shaped by society, but also by our personal life experiences

So how do we develop a shared sense of what is right and wrong in our

municipalities?

How do values guide us?

What are values? Whatever it is that we value

Our individual values are important to consider

The collective values should be clearly defined

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How do values guide us?

How do we clearly define “values” in the workplace?

Codes of Conduct help to define our values

Department Heads set the tone for understanding our values

Supervisors help to enforce the collective values

Staff members “buy-in” to uphold our values

Breakout!

What is your definition of a “Public Servant?”

What are their traits/characteristics?

The Decisions of Public Servants

Not only what we value personally, but the values that are associated with our roles as public servants should guide our decision-making

We must consider: The values of our constituents/community

The “collective good” for which we bear special responsibility

Applying relevant values to the facts of a situation

Using one or more tested ethical principles to the decision

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Ethical Decisions: More than the Law

When in doubt about whether a potential decision is ethical or not, consider consulting your attorney.

But also, consult your inner ethical compass. Most people will be able to identify situations that at least raise a red flag.

If a violation occurs, don’t try to cover it up. The ethical problem may go from bad to worse.

Break Time –Please Be Back in 10 Minutes!

Ethical Principles Exercise…

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Ethical Principle #1

Do that which you can justify and for which you are willing to take complete responsibility.

--Jean-Paul Sartre


Scenario: You have an old, wealthy and powerful friend in town.

Your adult child just graduated from a local university and is

looking for their first career job. Your friend calls you to “catch

up” and congratulate you on recently becoming the Town Clerk.

After casual conversation about your child’s recent graduation

festivities, your friend offers to personally give your child a job

starting the following Monday.

What do you say/do?

Analysis: ??? Decision: ???


Do that which you would want every person to do, as if required by law.

--Immanuel Kant

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Scenario: You’ve noticed a department head and one of her

employees leaving the office at the same time, daily. They seem

to be flirty based on conversations you witnessed; and you ran

into them downtown, holding hands, this past weekend. In

casual conversation with HR Staff, you learn that this department

head just requested a promotion for this subordinate, to move up

to a job for which the employee is not qualified.

What do you say/do?



Imagine that you do not know anything about “who” you are in the society in which the results of your decision are to be experienced. What decision would you choose?

--John Rawls


Scenario: Many residents are in an uproar about a recent racial incident

involving your village police officers. Your village does not have a known

history of racial violence, and the clerk’s office has a very diverse staff.

You notice tensions rising between staff members who have strong

opinions on both sides, and from your office, one morning you overhear

one of your staff members say to an elderly resident at the counter, “We

had less issues in this village, when we had less of “them” here.”

What do you do in that moment? Moving forward?


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Do the greatest good for the greatest number [of people], while doing the least harm, possible.

--John Stuart Mill


Scenario: A well-respected developer proposes a major

revitalization project for a blighted area in your city. Many

residents are excited to see this area finally improve for the better.

However, in order to implement the project, your city will need to

exercise their lawful right to eminent domain. The residents of the

blighted area are unified in their opposition to losing their homes.

How should city leaders address this?



Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do, and what is right to do.

--Potter Stewart

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Scenario: Your friend Mike and his girlfriend, who also works for

your city, recently broke up. He suspects that she was not only

unfaithful but that she lied to him about many things. Mike works

in the mailroom and knows that you have access to the

database that maintains all personnel information for employees,

most of which is public record. Mike asks you to look up any

helpful information you can find about his ex.

What do you do?



Contributing to a Culture of Ethics

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How can you contribute to a “Culture of Ethics” in your municipality?

Every day you are faced with decisions that have the potential to create ethical dilemmas

A few guiding thoughts may help you avoid unethical behavior and contribute to a “Culture of Ethics”

How does it feel?

If I think it “feels” wrong, it probably is.

Do not ignore that feeling and get yourself into a situation that you will likely regret. Even if you do not know whether there is an explicit rule against it, or not, trust your inner moral compass. If it doesn’t feel right, stop and pursue further guidance.

Too Good to be True?

If it feels too good to be true, it probably is.

Most people who give you something or do something for you that feels too good to be true will eventually want or expect something in return. It’s best to avoid this by not accepting whatever goods or services are being offered if it feels too good to be true.

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What’s Your Price?

If this will create a sense of obligation, I should decline.

Can you honestly say that you can accept a gift from someone without it influencing you in some way or another? People don’t typically give elected officials or government employees gifts just because they like them, but because they want something.It is to create a sense of obligation for present or future gain.

Breakout!

What are some examples of gifts that may seem small or innocent but could possibly create a sense of obligation in elected officials or staff. Try to list 3-5 examples.


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Concluding Thoughts…

Breakout!

What is one thing you will take away from today’s session?

State one thing you can commit to doing that will contribute to a “culture of ethics” in your municipality?

Key Takeaways

Ethics - not simply following the ethics laws/rules

Ethics - about making the right decisions, every day for the collective good

Holding yourself and others accountable to uphold the values of your municipality is key

Your municipality is depending on you to be the expert

Every staff member contributes to the culture of ethics

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Questions?

Thank you!Shwanda Barnette, J.D.Florida League of Cities

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1st year ethics in the workplace ppt

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