Ethical Lapses

I found this article on ethical lapse in the workplace to be very interesting and also pertinent to my studies right now. I have completed two assessments of ethical cases for my accounting class this semester in which I had to analyze two situations that were violations of ethics and then suggest a course of action.

I believe there are many unethical situations that occur in the workplace, and not just in a corporate environment. I have witnessed several in the place that I used to work during the summer, a conference center where I was a server. I witnessed sexual harassment, theft, favoritism, and more. I did not address the situations, although I am a little ashamed to say, because they did not affect me personally or I did not view them serious enough to cause conflict. I do believe, however, that in a corporate environment these ethical issues become more serious.

When I start my career and enter the corporate world, I will definitely be aware of maintaining a sense of ethics in the office. If I were put in a situation where I felt as if I had to address an issue, I would try and confront the person creating the ethical problem directly first. Then, if the issue continued, I would address it with upper management.

These ethical issues can be small, but they can also amount to huge scandals, such as the notorious Enron scandals, to name one. What many employees might fear is that reporting an ethical problem could result in job loss or pay cut. These employees should be notified that their job is protected by SOX, an act passed to encourage good character in the workplace.