Ethical dilemmas in the workplace can be difficult to navigate and have the potential to have a lasting negative impact on the workplace. If not handled properly, ethical dilemmas can erode trust in the workplace, damage employee morale, and lead to legal issues. While ethical dilemmas are unavoidable, it is possible to handle them in a professional and effective manner. In this blog post, we will explore some practical steps for handling ethical dilemmas in the workplace, including identifying the ethical dilemma, evaluating the possible solutions, and considering the potential consequences. We will also discuss ways to create an ethical workplace culture and how to address ethical issues. With the right approach, ethical dilemmas in the workplace can be properly managed and resolved without any adverse effects.
- Repeat Back and Clarify. …
- Ask Ethical Questions. …
- Focus on your Manager’s Best Interests. …
- Suggest an Alternative Solution. …
- Escalate Situations. …
- Blow the whistle. …
- Leave Unethical Environments, If Necessary.
How to handle an ethical dilemma in the workplace
Here are seven methods and steps for handling an ethical conundrum at work:
1. Analyze whats at risk
To decide what actions to take, weigh the advantages and disadvantages of the risks involved in the situation. For instance, it might be considered time theft if your coworker leaves work early every day. However, someone else might not view the circumstance as an ethical concern if your coworker consistently meets their goals and completes their work. Clarify the issue by evaluating the risk before bringing it to someone’s attention. If you ultimately determine that the risk is great, think about taking the necessary steps.
2. Rely on your training
Many companies provide ethical training for employees, especially for leaders. If you’re unsure what to do in a moral situation, think back on your training to help you decide what to do next. By adhering to training from your company or organization, you almost never put yourself in a worse situation.
3. Review your company handbook
Many businesses have a handbook for employees that describes appropriate conduct. Seek out a chapter on ethics to see what details might affect your choices. For instance, your workplace might have a compliance and ethics hotline. You can report misconduct or breaches of corporate ethics by calling this number anonymously or in confidence. To allay fears of retaliation, some prefer this option over reporting directly to leadership.
4. Refer to industry guidelines
Some professions, like law, accounting, and medicine, have industry standards or laws that uphold moral and ethical conduct. Frequently, infractions can result in punishment or the loss of a license, for instance. When faced with difficult moral quandaries, consulting codes of conduct and ethics can assist you in deciding what course of action to take. Many industries have their own ethics hotlines, which function similarly to a company’s. For instance, you can inform the state bar association of a lawyer’s ethical transgression to initiate an investigation.
5. Trust your instinct
There may be times when you feel off at work, and it is usually better to investigate these feelings than to ignore them. If there is unethical activity going on, this can help protect both your business and yourself. Putting your trust in your gut can also mean waiting to act until you’ve confirmed or looked into your suspicions. For instance, before confronting or approaching a supervisor, you might start paying closer attention to a coworker you suspect of manipulating the timer.
6. Have a conversation
To help you handle the situation, think about speaking with the person directly about the ethical conundrum. You can broaden your perspective, seek clarification, and make an effort to persuade your coworker to choose a more moral course of action. They might appreciate your directness and correct their actions. You rarely need to use this strategy unless there are serious ethical violations, like discrimination or harassment. Consider speaking with a supervisor, a human resources agent, or a representative of your company’s ethics hotline if the problem is still not resolved after speaking with the person in question directly.
7. Remove yourself from the situation
Consider leaving a team or organization if you frequently find yourself in ethical quandaries there if no other attempts or actions seem to help. You can reduce stress and uphold your own personal standards and ethics by finding another job. Before deciding to leave, you might try to explore all of your other options.
What is an ethical dilemma?
An ethical conundrum is a situation in which you are faced with a choice where neither option has a favorable outcome. These difficulties, which are also known as a moral dilemma or an ethical paradox, frequently arise in professional settings. For instance, you might witness moral quandaries or be asked to do something you feel is improper. Your worry might be that whichever course of action you take could have negative effects on you or other people.
Ethical dilemmas might sometimes happen because of:
Benefits of effectively handling dilemmas
Handling ethical dilemmas in the workplace effectively has several benefits. Four things to think about when faced with a moral dilemma are listed below:
Tips for handling ethical dilemmas
Here are five suggestions for handling an ethical conundrum at work:
Examples of a workplace dilemma
Here are three instances of ethical conundrums at work and how to handle them:
Taking credit for others work
In this case, a manager rewards themselves by taking credit for someone else’s work:
While working on a marketing campaign for the introduction of a new product, Ursula shared a slogan idea with Tom, her manager, who was also having a promotion interview. When the product launched, the client approved the new slogan, and sales revenue exceeded expectations. When Ursula heard about Tom’s promotion to manager, the interviewing director mentioned how Tom’s catchphrase played a significant role in his hiring. Tom and Ursula had a private discussion about Ursula’s disapproval of his actions and his failure to give her credit. She asked him to correct the situation professionally.
Tom specifically described how Ursula’s slogan led to high sales and client satisfaction rates during the performance review cycle. Her review was seen by senior leaders as well, enabling her to receive the due credit for her efforts and accomplishments without jeopardizing Tom’s new position.
Using internal information to make profit
In this illustration, a manager uses insider information about a forthcoming merger to make money on the stock market:
Jackson supports Portia, a vice president of a pharmaceutical company, in her role as executive assistant. He overhears Portia discussing an impending merger and acquisition of her business with another, telling the caller to purchase shares of the other company. Jackson uses the company’s business and ethics hotline to confidentially report what he heard because this is a glaring ethical dilemma. By doing this, Jackson assisted the company in handling the situation prior to any stock sales, avoiding any potential legal repercussions as well as a bad public image.
Conducting other business at work
In the following illustration, a coworker frequently makes use of company resources to advance their side project:
Bart frequently observes Caleb using the office computer during business hours to post products, email customers, and handle other aspects of his e-commerce business. Caleb runs a small e-commerce site for comic books. Even as crucial deadlines approach and other team members stay late to complete work, Caleb continues to use company time for personal matters, which initially doesn’t irritate Bart.
Bart questions the situation in private because he doesn’t want to make assumptions or hurt his working relationship with Caleb. Caleb acknowledges that he was unaware of how much time he was devoting to personal matters or that anyone else was noticing, and he expresses gratitude to Bart for bringing it up in person. Over the following few working days, Bart immediately notices that Caleb only utilizes his personal smartphone to work on his e-commerce business during lunch.
Kinds of Workplace Ethical Dilemmas
FAQ
What are the 5 steps in resolving ethical dilemma?
…
- Observation: Confirm that you are fully informed regarding the situation.
- Alternatives: Consider your choices. …
- Analysis: Identify your candidate decision and test its validity. …
- Application: Apply ethical principles to your candidate decision. …
- Action: Make a decision.
What are the 4 steps for solving ethical dilemmas?
- 1) Identify the problem.
- 2) Generate alternatives.
- 3) Decide on a course of action.
- 4) Implement.
