Exploring Everyday Ethics in the Workplace
Have you ever found yourself in a discussion with someone and the questionable ethics of one of their comments or requests causes you to utter a surprised or hesitant “Oh….”? How to respond to that type of situation is the focus of the workplace ethics video The “Oh” Series - Everyday Ethics. Workplace training videos like this one let employees observe realistic ethical dilemmas and see the correct ways to respond modeled for them. Employee training is essential when it comes to ethical behavior.
To reinforce strong workplace ethics and encourage an ethical culture, begin by reviewing your organization’s policies for handling work-related ethics concerns. Many organizations publish ethics guidelines for situations that could potentially occur in their industry - market division, the altering of financial documents, colluding on pricing, etc.
Use workplace training videos that cover common business laws and statutes to help employees understand when actions could be not just unethical, but illegal. For example, asking for or receiving gifts, money or trips in order to influence another person’s decision is called a kickback, and is against federal (and many state) laws. This practice is unfair to the suppliers who aren’t chosen, as they’re competing for the business ethically. Employees and vendors can face fines and jail time for this behavior. Employees need to be aware of which actions are illegal at work, and be prepared to respond if asked to commit one of these actions.
Then there are other, more day-to-day ethical dilemmas that aren’t necessarily illegal, but aren’t quite right, either. Employees should be trained to know how to handle these workplace ethics situations, as well. For example, what should you do when a co-worker friend asks you to clock her in on time tomorrow morning since she’ll be a little late taking her sick mother to a doctor’s appointment? While this favor may not be against the law, employees should know that this “time theft” is still unethical, breaks managers’ trust, and could get both employees disciplined or even fired.
Workplace training videos like The “Oh” Series - Everyday Ethics provide thought-provoking scenarios to spark ethical discussions, give lessons on the laws and consequences that apply to unethical behaviors, and teach employees how to tactfully handle tricky workplace ethics situations.
We also recommend these other video programs on ethics in the workplace:
