ETHICS:-

The term comes from the Greek word ethos, which means "character. The basic concepts and
fundamental principles of decent human conduct. It includes study of universal values such as the
essential equality of all men and women, human or natural rights, obedience to the law of land,
concern for health and safety and, increasingly, also for the natural environment in ones personal
life or in the field of business. An ethics gives us the power to identify what is wrong and what is
right. A code of ethics is a set of principles and rules used by companies, professional organizations
and individuals to govern their decision making in choosing between right and wrong.

Fundamental ethical principles

 The Principle of Respect for autonomy

Autonomy is Latin word for "self-rule" We have an obligation to respect the autonomy of
other persons, which is to respect the decisions made by other people concerning their own
lives. This is also called the principle of human dignity. It gives us a negative duty not to
interfere with the decisions of competent adults, and a positive duty to empower others for
whom we’re responsible. Corollary principles: honesty in our dealings with others &
obligation to keep promises.

 The Principle of Beneficence

We have an obligation in our business to bring about good in all our actions. Corollary
principle? We must take positive steps to prevent harm. However, adopting this corollary
principle frequently places us in direct conflict with respecting the autonomy of other
persons within or outside of the organization.

 The Principle of Non-maleficence

(It is not "non-malfeasance," which is a technical legal term, & it is not "nonmalevolence,"
which means that one did not intend to harm.) We have an obligation not to harm others:
"First, Do no harm." Corollary principle: Where harm cannot be avoided, we are obligated to
minimize the harm we do. Corollary principle: Don't increase the risk of harm to others.
Corollary principle: It is wrong to waste resources that could be used for good.Combining
beneficence and non-maleficence: Each action must produce more good than harm.

 The Principle of justice

We have an obligation to provide others with whatever they are owed or deserve. In public
life, we have an obligation to treat all people equally, fairly, and impartially.
Corollary principle: Impose no unfair burdens. Combining beneficence and justice: We are
obligated to work for t
 he benefit of those who are unfairly treated.

The Importance of Ethics in Organizations:-

 Ethics are the principles and values an individual uses to govern his activities and decisions.
In an organization, a code of ethics is a set of principles that guide the organization in its
programs, policies and decisions for the business. The ethical philosophy an organization
uses to conduct business can affect the reputation, productivity and bottom line of the
business

Leadership Ethics:- The ethics that leaders in an organization use to manage employees may have
an effect on the morale and loyalty of workers. The code of ethics leaders use determines discipline
procedures and the acceptable behavior for all workers in an organization. When leaders have high
ethical standards, it encourages workers in the organization to meet that same level. Ethical
leadership also enhances the company’s reputation in the financial market and community. A solid
reputation for ethics and integrity in the community may improve the company’s business.

Employee Ethics:- Ethical behavior among workers in an organization ensures that employees
complete work with honesty and integrity. Employees who use ethics to guide their behavior adhere
to employee policies and rules while striving to meet the goals of the organization. Ethical
employees also meet standards for quality in their work, which can enhance the company’s
reputation for quality products and service.

Ethical Organizational Culture:- Leaders and employees adhering to a code of ethics create an
ethical organizational culture. The leaders of a business may create an ethical culture by exhibiting
the type of behavior they'd like to see in employees. The organization can reinforce ethical
behaviour by rewarding employees who exhibit the values and integrity that coincides with the
company code of ethics and disciplining those who make the wrong choices.

Benefits to the Organization:- A positive and healthy corporate culture improves the morale
among workers in the organization, which may increase productivity and employee retention; this, in
turn, has financial benefits for the organization. Higher levels of productivity improve the efficiency
in the company, while increasing employee retention reduces the cost of replacing employees.

What are business ethics?

Ethics are moral guidelines which govern good behaviour So behaving ethically is doing what is
morally right...............

Behaving ethically in business is widely regarded as good business practice. To provide you with a
couple of quotes:

“Being good is good for any business but if the business is not getting anything but generating only
the money is not a good business “(Hengry Ford).

An important distinction to remember is that behaving ethically is not quite the same thing as
behaving lawfully:

 Ethics are about what is right and what is wrong

 Law is about what is lawful and what is unlawful
A common approach is to implement a code of practice. Ethical codes are increasingly popular –
particularly with larger businesses and cover areas such as:

 Corporate social responsibility

 Dealings with customers and supply chain
 Environmental policy & actions
 Rules for personal and corporate integrity

What are some examples of business ethics issues

Some of the key issues addressed in current codes of business ethics are bribery & corruption;
gifts & hospitality; conflicts of interest; diversity; health and safety, environmental
stewardship and political donations & lobbying. According to IBE/MORI research published
in October 2006, the three major areas of public concern are speaking out/whistleblowing (32
%), environmental responsibility (32 %) and discrimination in treatment of people (31 %).
Executive pay (27 %) and harassment and bullying in the workplace (25 %) also cause the
public concern.

Ethical Theories

Ethical theories are based on the previously explained ethical principles. They each emphasize
different aspects of an ethical dilemma and lead to the most ethically correct resolution according to
the guidelines within the ethical theory itself. People usually base their individual choice of ethical
theory upon their life experiences

Deontology

The deontological theory states that people should adhere to their obligations and duties when
analyzing an ethical dilemma. This means that a person will follow his or her obligations to another
individual or society because upholding one's duty is what is considered ethically correct (1,2). For
instance, a deontologist will always keep his promises to a friend and will follow the law. A person
who follows this theory will produce very consistent decisions since they will be based on the
individual's set duties.

Deontology provides a basis for special duties and obligations to specific people, such as those within
one's family. For example, an older brother may have an obligation to protect his little sister when
they cross a busy road together. This theory also praises those deontologists who exceed their duties
and obligations, which is called "supererogation

(1). For example, if a person hijacked a train full of students and stated that one person would have to
die in order for the rest to live, the person who volunteers to die is exceeding his or her duty to the
other students and performs an act of supererogation.
Although deontology contains many positive attributes, it also contains its fair number of flaws. One
weakness of this theory is that there is no rationale or logical basis for deciding an individual's duties.
For instance, businessman may decide that it is his duty to always be on time to meetings. Although
this appears to be a noble duty we do not know why the person chose to make this his duty. Perhaps
the reason that he has to be at the meeting on time is that he always has to sit in the same chair. A
similar scenario unearths two other faults of deontology including the fact that sometimes a person's
duties conflict, and that deontology is not concerned with the welfare of others. For instance, if the
deontologist who must be on time to meetings is running late, how is he supposed to drive? Is the
deontologist supposed to speed, breaking his duty to society to uphold the law, or is the deontologist
supposed to arrive at his meeting late, breaking his duty to be on time? This scenario of conflicting
obligations does not lead us to a clear ethically correct resolution nor does it protect the welfare of
others from the deontologist's decision. Since deontology is not based on the context of each situation,
it does not provide any guidance when one enters a complex situation in which there are conflicting
obligations (1,2).

Utilitarianism

The utilitarian ethical theory is founded on the ability to predict the consequences of an action. To a
utilitarian, the choice that yields the greatest benefit to the most people is the choice that is ethically
correct. One benefit of this ethical theory is that the utilitarian can compare similar predicted solutions
and use a point system to determine which choice is more beneficial for more people. This point
system provides a logical and rationale argument for each decision and allows a person to use it on a
case-by-case context

There are two types of utilitarianism,

Act utilitarianism and

Rule utilitarianism.

Act utilitarianism adheres exactly to the definition of utilitarianism as described in the above section.
In act utilitarianism, a person performs the acts that benefit the most people, regardless of personal
feelings or the societal constraints such as laws.

Rule utilitarianism, however, takes into account the law and is concerned with fairness. A rule
utilitarian seeks to benefit the most people but through the fairest and most just means available.
Therefore, added benefits of rule utilitarianism are that it values justice and includes beneficence at
the same time

As with all ethical theories, however, both act and rule utilitarianism contains numerous flaws.
Inherent in both are the flaws associated with predicting the future. Although people can use their life
experiences to attempt to predict outcomes, no human being can be certain that his predictions will be
true. This uncertainty can lead to unexpected results making the utilitarian look unethical as time
passes because his choice did not benefit the most people as he predicted (1,2). For example, if a
person lights a fire in a fireplace in order to warm his friends, and then the fire burns down the house
because the soot in the chimney caught on fire, then the utilitarian now seems to have chosen an
unethical decision. The unexpected house fire is judged as unethical because it did not benefit his
friends.

Another assumption that a utilitarian must make is that he has the ability to compare the various types
of consequences against each other on a similar scale. However, comparing material gains such as
money against intangible gains such as happiness is impossible since their qualities differ to such a
large extent (1).

A third failing found in utilitarianism is that it does not allow for the existence of supererogation or
heroes. In other words, people are obligated to constantly behave so that the most people benefit
regardless of the danger associated with an act (1). For instance, a utilitarian who sacrifices her life to
save a train full of people is actually fulfilling an obligation to society rather than performing a
selfless and laudable act. I9

As explained above, act utilitarianism is solely concerned with achieving the maximum good.
According to this theory an individual's rights may be infringed upon in order to benefit a greater
population. In other words, act utilitarianism is not always concerned with justice, beneficence or
autonomy for an individual if oppressing the individual leads to the solution that benefits a majority of
people. Another source of instability within act utilitarianism is apparent when a utilitarian faces one
set of variable conditions and then suddenly experiences a change in those variables that causes her to
change her original decision. This means that an act utilitarian could be nice to you one moment and
then dislike you the next moment because the variables have changed, and you are no longer
beneficial to the most people (1).

Rule utilitarianism also contains a source of instability that inhibits its usefulness. In rule
utilitarianism, there is the possibility of conflicting rules (1). Let us revisit the example of a person
running late for his meeting. While a rule utilitarian who just happens to be a state governor may
believe that it is ethically correct to arrive at important meetings on time because the members of the
state government will benefit from this decision, he may encounter conflicting ideas about what is
ethically correct if he is running late. As a rule utilitarian, he believes that he should follow the law
because this benefits an entire society, but at the same time, he believes that it is ethically correct to be
on time for his meeting because it is a state government meeting that also benefits the society. There
appears to be no ethically correct answer for this scenario.

Creating an Ethical Organizational Culture

Be a role model and be visible. Your employees look to the behavior of top management as
a model of what’s acceptable behavior in the workplace. When senior management is
observed (by subordinates) to take the ethical high road, it sends a positive message for all
employees.
Communicate ethical expectations. Ethical ambiguities can be reduced by creating and
disseminating an organizational code of ethics. It should state the organization’s primary
values and the ethical rules that employees are expected to follow. Remember, however, that
a code of ethics is worthless if top management fails to model ethical behaviors.
Offer ethics training. Set up seminars, workshops, and similar ethical training programs.
Use these training sessions to reinforce the organization’s standards of conduct, to clarify
what practices are and are not permissible, and to address possible ethical dilemmas.
Visibly reward ethical acts and punish unethical ones.Performance appraisals of managers
should include a point-by-point evaluation of how his or her decisions measure up against the
organization’s code of ethics. Appraisals must include the means taken to achieve goals as
well as the ends themselves. People who act ethically should be visibly rewarded for their
behavior. Just as importantly, unethical acts should be punished.
Provide protective mechanisms. The organization needs to provide formal mechanisms so
that employees can discuss ethical dilemmas and report unethical behavior without fear of
reprimand. This might include creation of ethical counselors, ombudsmen, or ethical officers.

Unethical practices?

Nepotism
Nepotism occurs when an employee shows favouritism towards a family member, either
during the hiring process or during daily business operations. This type of unethical
behaviour can mean that the most deserving employee may not receive the right recognition
or the right candidate may not be hired. The individual usually does not disclose that the
candidate or employee is a relative or friend. They may try to influence decisions with
comments or opinions that seem fair.

Discrimination
When an employee treats another employee unfairly due to certain characteristics, such as
age, ethnicity, gender, sexuality and/or religion, it can be classified as
discrimination. Discrimination is a topic that companies often discuss but some individuals
may be discriminating against a colleague without realising it. Some examples of
discrimination are:

 Excluding an individual from a work event or team get-together

 Making fun of an employee, especially because of one of their characteristics

 Making negative remarks (indirectly) about someone’s characteristics (e.g. Oh you

wouldn’t know what this is, you probably didn’t have it back in your country)

 Not giving an employee the same promotion and training opportunities as other
employees

Insider trading

Insider trading refers to employees buying and selling stocks based on information only they
have and is not yet available to the public. This gives employees an unfair advantage as they
are able to handle the shares based on what they know, which could lead to higher profits for
them and help them prevent potential losses.

Misappropriation of assets

Misappropriation of assets occurs when an employee uses company assets and resources for
their personal interests rather than the interests of the company.

Harassment and sexual harassment

Harassment and sexual harassment are unethical practices that should be prevented and
heavily discouraged. Harassment is intimidating, aggressive, offensive or humiliating
behaviour against an individual and includes name-calling, bullying and actions that intend to
cause harm. Sexual harassment can refer to inappropriately touching another employee,
making comments of suggestive and sexual nature, sharing explicit photos and/or making
sexual jokes. In 2021, more than 1 million women in Australia had experienced sexual
harassment.

These types of unethical practices can have a negative influence on the workplace, employees
and the company as a whole. It is strongly advised that all companies develop a strong, zero
tolerance policy against all types of harassment as this will create a friendly and welcoming
work environment.
Misleading customers

Another example of unethical practices is employees misleading customers. This can occur in
a number of ways such as the employees presenting customers with a “better price” when the
price is actually higher, or employees citing false terms and conditions. The most common
reason for this type of unethical behaviour is monetary benefits for the employees.

Bribing

Bribing is another example that is both illegal and unethical. It occurs when an individual
gives money, gifts and promises favours to a recipient with the goal to influence their
decisions or behaviour. An employee may benefit by making a deal with a partner or a
supplier, so they can get a higher invoice. This makes it seem like the employee pays more,
while in reality, they are secretly pocketing the money. The supplier in turn may benefit from
more business or exclusivity (being the sole supplier).

No respect for customer data

The last one on this unethical practices list is the lack of respect for customer data. Lack of
respect can refer to an employee who keeps sending emails to a customer who has
unsubscribed or, the worst case scenario, an employee selling customer data to a third party.
Scammers always look to buy new victim numbers and names, hence why it may seem like a
good option for an unethical employee. There are more examples and it may look different
for each individual. For example, instead of selling customer data, they might not store it
securely or forget to record data correctly.

Types of Ethics:
Ethics is a branch of philosophy, there are many types of ethics based on different approaches
and situation. Let’s understand these types briefly:
o Normative Ethics
One way of understanding ethics is by looking at the norms, or rules, in society. Normative
Ethics looks at what the right and wrong things to do are in a specific situation.
These two words can be contrasted with other aspects of ethics such as Meta-Ethics which
looks at how people come up with morality and ought beliefs.

 Meta-Ethics

Meta-ethics is a branch of ethics that focuses on the nature of ethics itself. It seeks to
understand the meaning of ethical terms such as good, bad, right, and wrong.
Meta-ethics delves into the philosophical aspects of ethics, examining the origins of moral
and ethical principles and the meaning behind using them. It addresses questions like what is
meant by being right or wrong and how we define concepts like “good” or “bad.”
Meta-ethics is concerned with the language we use to discuss morality and aims to analyze
and understand the nature of ethics and morality.
For example, when we say, “abortion is good” or “abortion is bad,” meta-ethics explores the
meaning and implications of these statements. By studying meta-ethics, we gain a deeper
understanding of the foundations and concepts that underpin ethical decision-making.
  Descriptive Ethics

Descriptive ethics, also known as comparative ethics, focuses on describing and explaining
people’s moral attitudes, beliefs, and practices. It aims to understand what people consider to
be good, right, virtuous, or morally acceptable. Descriptive ethics is an empirical
investigation that explores the moral beliefs of individuals and societies.
This branch of ethics examines how different cultures and societies define and practice
morality. It explores questions like how many people think it is wrong to kill a person or what
moral rights individuals believe they are entitled to.
Descriptive ethics helps us understand the diversity of moral beliefs and practices across
different groups and cultures. It provides valuable insights into how individuals and societies
perceive and act upon their moral values.
Ethical conduct for public servant

 A sense of responsibility
 Skills in communication and personnel administration
 Ability to cultivate and utilize institutional resources
 Willingness to engage in problem-solving and to work with others as a
team
 Personal confidence to initiate new ideas
 Prefers to be influenced by public needs, interests and sensitivities
rather than resorting to the use of raw bureaucratic power.

TEN COMMANDMENTS FOR AN ADMINISTRATOR


o Most important factor in administration is conviction, in human
relationships.
o A good administrator should try to anticipate the behaviour of
people.
o The administrator must be functionally active which means, he
should have his own sources of information.
o The administrator should be clear in communication.
o The administrator should avoid sharp departure from the accepted
policy.
o The administrator should undertake intensive touring to be close
to people and workers at the cutting edge.
o The administrator should enlist public co-operation without being
propagandist.
o The administrator should ensure that the unity of command in a
department is not disrupted.
o The administrator is a trustee of public interest and not a ruler
over public.