“You’re Asking Me to do What?!?”

Dr. Joe Brennan, APRUniversity at Buffalo

SUNYCUADJune, 2009

A crisis of ethics?

One in three workers observes misconduct:• Lying• Withholding needed information• Abuse or intimidation• Misreporting hours worked• Discrimination

Ethics Resource Center, National Survey of Business Ethics, 2000

A crisis of ethics?

Two in five workers don’t report misconduct

• Fear being viewed as a troublemaker or a snitch

• Fear retaliation• 40% of those who do report wrongdoing are

not satisfied with organization’s response

A crisis of ethics?

One in eight workers reports pressure to compromise ethical standards

• Two-thirds say pressure is from supervisors, co-workers

What HR managers say:

• More than 50% see workplace misconduct

• 12% see “regular pressure” to break rules

• Misconduct twice as frequent in organizations with regular pressureEthics Resource Center/Society for Human Resources

Management 1997

Employees care about ethics

• Ethics are “important reason” why they continue to work for their current employers.

• 90 percent want organization “to do what is right, not just what is profitable.”

Ethics Resource Center, National Survey of Business Ethics, 2000

View from the top

“Senior and middle managers’ perceptions about ethics in their organizations are consistently more positive than those of lower level employees.”

Ethics Resource Center, 2000

“At what point does this become our problem?”

Why should we care?

When leaders, supervisors and coworkers model ethical behavior, employees …

• Feel less pressure to commit misconduct• Report higher overall satisfaction

Why should we care?

“The foundation of our value to our companies, clients and those we serve is their ability to rely on our ethical and morally acceptable behavior.”

PRSA Board of Directors, 2000

What “causes” ethical behavior?

Two schools of thought1. “Deontological” – inner norms2. “Teleological” – external consequences

“Everyone lies son. There’s just different pay scales.”

“Let me get back to you. I’ve got an office full of people right now.”

Many factors influence choices

Ethical conduct determined by . . .1.Social and peer group expectations2.Organization’s norms and standards3.Individual’s beliefs and values

Linda K. Treviño & Katherine A. Nelson,Managing Business Ethics: Straight Talk About How To Do It Right, 1995

Professional codes of ethics

• PRSA Member Code of Conduct

• CASE Statement of Ethics

8 steps for ethical decision-making1. Gather the facts.2. Define the ethical issues.3. Identify the affected parties.4. Identify the consequences.5. Identify the obligations.6. Consider your character and integrity.7. Think creatively about potential actions.8. Check your gut.

Source: Treviño & Nelson