Legal Ethics ( Lgls445 )

Edward Snowden. This is a name that will be in the history books for ages. He will be branded a traitor or a whistleblower depending on where you look. Many Americans feel that Edward Snowden is a traitor who sold the United States’ secrets aiming to harm the nation. Others believe that he was simply a citizen of the United States who exercised his right to expose the government for their unconstitutional actions. It is important to not only know the two sides to the argument of friend or foe, but to also know the facts as well. My goal in this paper is to present the facts without bias and to adequately portray the two sides of the argument.

In addition, whistleblowers should be portrayed as being good in order for society to begin seeing them in a positive way. Furthermore, the government should make this type of crimes a public matter. Allowing the public to be able to see all charges and outcome regarding these cases could bring out other wrongdoings in other organizations. The government should also impose greater punishment such as jail time for these types of crimes rather than imposing fines that they are able to

Review “Just pucker and blow: An analysis of corporate whistleblowers” in Chapter 2. Please respond to the following:

According to Harvard Law School’s article, approximately two-thirds of companies in the U.S. are affected by fraud. However, whistleblower Hotline can be as defense against management overrides. The article noted that whistleblower could be more effective if it become as apart of the corporate compliance programs and a reward of any monetary sanctions collected to motivate the employees Also, the article mention that the employees

In an age when accelerated communications contribute to growing perceptions of organizational improprieties, the ethical and legal implications of whistleblowing have become a major topic of discussion. According to Lawrence and Weber (2014), whistleblowing is an employee disclosing apparent organizational misconduct to the government or media; however, this reporting of information should come after attempts at going through proper channels in order to persuade the organization to take appropriate actions has been ineffective.

The article I found by Thompson discusses risk and rewards of whistle blowing, the example used was from 1994 and the CEOs of the seven major American tobacco companies tested before Congress that nicotine was not addictive Shortly afterwards, Jeffrey Wigand, then head of research and development at Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., gave the lie to that, rest in a deposition in a lawsuit brought by the State of Mississippi and then in an interview on 60 Minutes. This resulted in the tobacco companies reaching a $246 billion multistate settlement in 1998. Wigand underwent a smear campaign and said that he and his family received death threats. Whistle blowing ended his marriage. The maverick doesn’t consider himself a hero. He has said, “People were dying. I was loyal to a higher order of ethical responsibility.” The 1999 movie The Insider depicts some of this saga and Wigand now lectures worldwide, offers expertise on tobacco issues, and runs the nonprofit Smoke-Free Kids, Inc.

Ms. Williams is a typical of a whistle-blower in the sense that whistle-blowers are willing to face retaliation from their employer. Janet P. Near, a professor at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University who has studied whistleblowing since 1980 stated that “If they [whistle-blowers] cannot suffer retaliation from their employer, we don’t count them” (Melnick, 2014, para 6). In many specialized industries, everyone knows each other so it is not unusual for whistle-blowers who get fired to have trouble finding work within the same industry. Near indicates that whistle-blowing is less about the psychology of an individual, but more about the severity of the situation unmasked (Melnick, 2014). C. Frederick Alford, political psychology professor and author of Whistleblowers: Broken Lives and Organizational Power stated whistle-blower arrive late at the realization that what people do and what they say are two different things so they are naïve in a certain sense (Melnick, 2014). As a result, they are shocked when they realize people lie, cheat, steal, and whatever (Melnick, 2014). Therefore, Near insists “What seems to predict whether someone will actually blow the whistle is: how serious the wrongdoing is, if they are very sure it happened and so on ... Situational characteristics rather

While reporting fraud on the government can be personally rewarding from a moral, ethical and financial standpoint, it can also be very difficult in terms of the stress and anxiety associated with standing up to powerful corporate interests. The decision to become a whistleblower can be a life-altering experience that was about to overtake General Motors. This could potentially have an adverse effect on the whistleblower’s employment, social activities, and other aspects of his or her life (McEldrew Young, 2016).

If the CEO received a report of his misconduct, the business would surely fall as the boss was the key person who kept the business running steadily. Most often, this event can cause massive damage to employee’s salaries, and affect the economic values as well. Furthermore, one may argue that whistleblowing may violate individual rights as employee’s signed a contract abiding by company’s standard. In an article called “Whistleblowing and Professional Responsibilities” by Sissela Bok, she emphasizes “employees have a loyalty oath of confidentiality and secrecy” (Bok 178) which may violate human rights as well. Individuals often view that they often have the right to privacy. However, whistleblowing to the company can create a breach in loyalty. Similar to a friend posting every secret about the person, employers contain information to avoid mass media and future damages to the community. Therefore, whistleblowing may create further chaos and future problems. While whistleblowing has its flaws regarding the standards placed on the employee, moral and ethical rights are higher than what an employer can offer for their

A person who informs on a person or organization engaged in an illicit activity, who exposes any kind of information or activity that is deemed illegal.

In the Enron case, Sherron Watkins attempted to fix the out of control financial situation by talking to the CEO, Ken Lay, but she was unfortunately silenced and demoted. She took responsibility in to her own hands and tried to handle the situation like a professional. Instead of talking to the press, she discussed the issue and tried to resolve it in house. Once she was silenced and demoted, she testified before Congress about Enron’s partnerships and resigned. Sherron Watkins could be called a whistle-blower in some circles, but I see her as a person who could not stand back and go along with something she felt was wrong. Whistle-blowing is “exposing an employer’s wrongdoing to outsiders, such as the media or government regulatory agencies”

Introduction: Agree: “In too many organizations, those who speak unwelcome truths are fired or at least marginalized” (p.xxi). Rationale: I believe that leaders should be able to listen to everyone and everything, no matter how bitter the truth can be. Employees who try to stand against wrong are usually the ones put in trouble or easily fired for little things. I remember a nurse who always stood against the management because they would not listen to her regarding the short staff. When she finally threatened to report the facility, she was easily put in trouble over a small thing and fired. I believe leaders who are in power should not stoop so low and should respect others points of view and encourage others to unite to achieve the goals. Disagree: “One hard-won bit of advice he gives would-be whistle blowers—make sure you have another job lined up first” (p.xxi). Rationale: Whistleblowers play a vital role in exposing corruption, fraud, and mismanagement, and in preventing disasters that arise from negligence or wrongdoing. Whistleblowers who speak out about wrongdoing potentially save lives and resources. I believe that the treatment whistleblowers get is unfair and they should be treated better. Currently, US whistleblower law offers no protection. I believe that people should be able voice out their concerns when something is wrong and not have to worry about being reprimanded. The concept that might be particularly helpful in my personal development as a leader is to

The point can be made that “whistleblowing” within a firm, large or small can be encouraged by putting in place policies and a process within a firm that will protect the employee’s and benefit the organisation by:

The twentieth President of the United States once said: “The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable” (Quotes, 2008). When there is wrongful doing, illegal activity, or unethical behavior happening within a government industry or business it can be difficult to bring this information out in to the open for the public to know. Whistleblowers have the difficult ethical responsibility, with a lot of scrutiny that happens as well, when telling the truth about their findings about a company that is not doing the right thing. Whistleblowing can create a variety of feelings and ethical perspectives for all that might be involved or even just witness the process unfold and

The whistleblower him or herself must be carefully scrutinized. What are the personal and the professional reputations of the whistleblower? What is the motive driving the whistleblower? Is it to benefit the client or the organization, or is it a need for attention or revenge? Is the whistleblower's cause seen as legitimate and significant by trustworthy colleagues and friends? Is the whistleblower aware of the potential consequences of blowing the whistle and still willing to accept responsibility for actions taken?