5. Ethics in the Workplace Needed More Than Ever During your career, you will face morally ambiguous situations. While your alternatives may be legal, even profitable, they may not be ethical. Ethical behavior may not pay off right away, but in the long run, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. Examine the following scenario, and identify the ethical guidelines that will help a business maintain a high ethical standard. As part of the management team, you have been told that in six months the workforce will be reduced by half. The staff will be told next month Knowing this fact, should you share this confidential information with a trusted friend and coworker who may lose her job? No, as part of the management team you cannot share confidential information with your friend. Maybe, but only if your friend promises not to tell anyone else. Yes, you should tell your friend. If the roles were reversed, you would want your friend to tell you. When should you talk to your friend about the job cuts? You should wait until your friend asks you about it. You should wait until the rest of the staff is notified, You should wait until you know who will be laid off Facing and resolving ethical dilemmas is challenging. However, ethical guidelines, combined with self-examination, can help you identify key issues and choose the correct ethical path. When presented with ethically ambiguous situations, which of the following questions can help you make good decisions? How do others involved with the problem perceive you? How can you influence others to agree with you? How would you see the problem if you were on the opposite side? Ethics refers to conventional standards of right and wrong that prescribe what people should do. These standards usually consist of rights, obligation, and benefits to society. When you are preparing a presentation, you find the perfect graphics on the Internet Should you use them? Yes, as long as you follow copyright law. No, it is never OK to use someone else's work Yes, but only if you have changed them slightly to make them your own