Ethics In The Workplace

Jerry Mason, senior vice president and general manager at Morton-Thiokol, and Morton-Thiokol were on the brink of negotiating the booster’ rocket contract renewal with NASA. Although, it is not an acceptable reason, we could see how engineers and others below the authority of Jerry could be afraid to state something contrary to what he stood by. When someone’s self-interest and pride gets in the way of engineering, it can neglect the welfare of the public, and cause them harm. This case study highlights many irresponsible, and ethical failures in a professional work environment. Jerry Mason failed to abide by the following impediments for responsible action; self-interest, ignorance, and group thinking.

1. Discuss an ethical dilemma that you have had to face in the workplace. Ethical dilemmas

Following the Code of Ethics provided by APEGA is an important responsibility of those privileged to be a Professional Engineer. Though following the code might not be in ones best interest, it is meant to maintain the values and standards of the whole profession. Example below:

With a black supervisor that could get in trouble for bringing it up I would leave well enough alone and do as told. I would do this more to protect my supervisor more than my personal

When it comes to engineering, building, and designing something that will be used by humans, safety is the most important step in the entire process. It should be taken very seriously by all who are involved in a project, but the engineers should be the ones who double, triple or even quadruple check safety issues. Mainly the engineers because it is in their code and law of ethics and safety is the first Canon on the list, “Hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public.” (NSPE, 2012). There are very bad consequences that happen when someone decides not to fallow the Code of Ethics for Engineers, for example the Space shuttle Challenger disaster that happened in January of 1986. There were issues with parts and conflicts

Virtue ethics also referred to, as “ethics of character” by Harris is a guiding hand when discussing engineering ethics [1]. The acts of engineering ethics establish a set of obligations to be upheld by each engineer. In the general sense, this embodies the “prevention of unethical conduct”, along with promoting the safety and well being of mankind [1]. But how exactly does one measure what is to be considered “unethical” or “moral” when situations can be held under several different circumstances? This is the vital role of virtue ethics that will be explained further by taking a closer look at Charles E. Harris’ article, “The Good Engineer” and its relevance to Aristotle’s virtue ethics.

At the BSSL we would like to make work a legal, profitable, and comfortable environment to be at during your careers here with us. We are going to start implementing an open door policy. We want all employees to feel they can speak with any member of management, without risk or fear of loosing their jobs, if they feel uncomfortable about something they are asked to do here. Also, all employees need to keep their eyes and hears opened for illegal and unethical behaviors. If an unethical or illegal behavior is reported and proven we would like to offer the employee that comes forth with the information a reward to show our

Virtue ethics, an ethical system formulated by Aristotle thousands of years ago, has shown promise as a vehicle for describing the full range of engineers’ goals and responsibilities beyond the prohibitive and preventive ethics found in engineering codes (Harris). This theory incorporates aspirational ethics, the positive and

Ethical dilemmas are particularly sensitive issues in the workplace because the well-being of the individuals and the organization as a whole are at stake. Employees must feel as though they are being supported and not punished, and should not feel as though they were being put on display; their dignity should always remain intact. This paper examines how, as a high school principle, I would address the issue of one of the high school teachers becoming addicted to prescription drugs.

Repeatedly in the history of engineering have engineers been faced with the dilemma of deciding whether they should take action to correct wrongdoing by a party directly involved in their work []. The dilemma boils down to an ethical or moral debate. The engineers must choose between their allegiance to their employers and clients, or to the public they serve with their work. In many jurisdictions the option for engineers to take action, or blow the whistle, in these situations has become a required action, bound by the code of ethics many engineers are bound to uphold.

First adopted in 1914, the code of ethics for the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) is the model for professional conduct for all ASCE members. The code of ethics is an excellent model as it is broken down into eight canons for further understanding. The purpose of each canon is to serve as a guide and reminder for professional engineers that they are to have the moral and ethical integrity the profession calls for at all times while holding safety paramount. The ASCE code of ethics is very informative and insightful because although each canon does not go into great depth, the canons leave room for interpretation under different situations.

Personal values may conflict with ethical decision making if those personal values are different than the organizational norms of the business or institution. Constructing, and maintaining personal ethics in the workplace rests with the individual, and how willing he or she is in assimilating to the evolving cultural dynamic of the corporate world. Many times a person find their personal, cultural and/or organizational ethics conflicting and must reconcile a course of action that will mitigate cognitive dissonance. In order to be a productive member of society, in small groups and globally, one must reconcile these conflicts on a daily basis and continually move forward while maintaining personal integrity and

“A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold” (Proverbs 22:1, King James Version). Your reputation is a far greater asset then material things such as money and wealth. Earning the respect and trust of others is something that individuals as well as organizations should always strive to obtain. As a manager in either the legal office or the engineering department, I would have made sure that maintaining the company’s reputation would have been one of my top priorities. In addition to have preventing this misconduct in the workplace, straightforward guidelines would have been established identifying key components to look out for

As chemical engineers, we hold common values such as personal responsibility, creativity, and making a contribution to the world. We have organizations and a code of ethics that describe values of our engineering community and establishes ethical standards for us to follow. “A Code of Engineering Ethics identifies a specific precedence with respect to the engineers’

Practically every professional engineering organization has developed a code of ethics. Codes of ethics are formal declarations of an engineer’s professional obligations, and it is important to know expectations for oneself before pursuing and committing to a course of action. This paper is also a great opportunity to practice researching and writing skills which are necessary to almost every career.