Do you act on Rumor or respect privacy?
State the main ethical issue in the case as you see it
Ethics is a set of principles or rules that determine a person’s behavior and his relationship with the environment around him or her. The essay talks about a company and its employees, the employees tend to rely on rumors that are going around the company. Rumors are not reliable since they spread to people without any proof. A rumor might also be a wild story since rumors have neither a starting point nor an ending point. Rumors are created by idle people in the society be it in the work place or any institution. In accordance to the article, rumor has it that Lucy who is an excellent salesperson of the company and a successful person in the society appears to be cheating on her husband. Lucy’s friend Keith Laski who is an engaged man happens to have more shares in the company and in a good relation with the customers.
The problem facing the firm began after the members of the company asked the chairperson to confront Lucy about her behavior. Other employees in the firm thought of Lucy to be a problem and a false image to the company. Though Lucy was a famous image to the people, they still thought she was portraying a vulgar image of the company. The chairperson found it to be difficult to make a decision between the rumor, the other employees and Lucy, as an individual. The chairperson thought if he would get into Lucy’s private affair the company would lose an intimate and committed workmate. The chairperson took the responsibilities of the company and did not want to see the company collapse. The chairperson was required to make a hard decision.
In analyzing the article, the employees in the company had a problem with Lucy’s behavior for the company’s aims was to encourage upstanding-moral values among the society, society involvement and spiritual connection within the community that the company is located. The part of the company wanted Lucy to stop her inappropriate conduct. Making a decision on what to do was a difficult decision for the chairperson to make. This is because of the reason that the chairperson had no prove on the rumor spread about Lucy and the fact that the company would collapse if Lucy was immediately stopped from her duty.
The individuals in the firm affected most by the rumors were the chairperson and Lucy, the chairperson was at the receiving end of the entire problem. The chairperson would be blamed for the company’s failure if Lucy were to leave. In addition, the chairperson was to blame for retaining Lucy in the company by the rest of the employees. Lucy was a hard working salesperson she was responsible for the rising of the company to the heights it was in the society, and if she left, the company would collapse.
Consider options in resolving the problem from the perspective of the:
The company’s problem was difficult to resolve, however, the chairperson is required to come up with a solution to the problem. All the solutions made will have consequences at the end, but he still had to do it. The chairperson might have decided to take Lucy’s story as a rumor that might have led to a break up with some of the company’s employees. The company would lose the trust among the society thus, hated as the society depended on the company for jobs and the company required a ready market from the society. The chairperson might have done this in favor of the company forgetting about the customers, the members and the society around the company. However, the chairperson might have decided to ignore the rumors and let Lucy stay at work. However, it would also cost the chairperson the societies trust and the immediate market and customers, which is the society around the company.
The chairperson might have also decided to protect the company; the society in which the company was located in and the company employees who wanted the chairperson to dismiss Lucy. This was because Lucy might have declined to stop her weird behavior. These actions might have led to some consequences such as losing one of the strongest sales personnel, Lucy and the strongest buyer who was the suspected man friend to Lucy. The consequences might have led to an unusually lose to the company for they had to look for a new customer and a competent sales person. If the rumors were false, then it would also have made the people lose trust in the company.
Chairperson was to sack the members who were against the company rules and regulations set since the chairperson was forced to abide by the laws. The chairperson had to maintain the rules and had no choice but to suck Lucy for her inappropriate conduct in the company. The chairperson was not to care whether Lucy was a competent worker but look at the mistakes she had committed. The chairperson would also decide on sacking Lucy upon who he was and how he considers the rumors. If the chairperson respected the privacy and did not listen to rumors, then he had to take his time, listen, and interrogate both the parties before coming up with the conclusion.
What would you do?
Rumors are often not true stories but are gossips that spread by idle people; the solution to this problem would take one a lot of time to come up with a fairer decision. The chairperson would first take the issue by himself and try to find out some solutions to the problem. For instance, the chairperson would start by investigating the whole matter as a secret to himself before even involving any second party. The chairperson might then organize a group that will help him systematize a panel of neutral members of the company to make a committee. The committee should try to investigate on the matter seriously by maybe trying and gathering some information from respondents from both sides. Some of the respondents should be from Lucy’s side and other from the group in the company that was against Lucy.
The neutral panel should be fair and just in solving the problems but should not oppress any employee of the given two parties. The committee should then try to meet Lucy, Keith Laski in person and listen to their opinions. After the two have gone through serious probations, it becomes easier to make a decision after this probation. The chairperson would then make what the right decision from the information found or the chairperson might also decide to make his decision or own investigation for more review. The chairperson might then decide over it and if Lucy was guilty then the chairpersons requires sacking her. The members of the company if were wrong then the right measures are to be taken. The members should get a stern warning against gossiping or if found the employee is sacked as well.
What was the most challenging aspect of this case for you personally?
Gossipers are the worst people in any working society and may lead to a big conflict between working societies. The gossipers are common everywhere and they ruin so many firms. One time a gossiper led two different companies into a war in that the gossiper went out and told the secrets of the company, he worked for to the other company that were rivals in the market field. The companies made numerous profits, they competed in everything, and any company was ready to do anything to get ahead of the other. The gossiper wanted more salary thus he got to the other company let out the secrets of the rival company. The company gained fame because of the gossiper the other company on finding out it led to a war whereby the gossiper is killed and it led to war between the companies and increased the cases in courts that led to collapsing of both the company.
These events are normal and the gossipers are normal in a society there must be one in a society to be complete. This is a no new thing in the companies or any firm the gossipers are a big hindrance to the development. The gossipers pick words from a place and they spread it without caring if it is true or false. The act of a company by gossipers is common nowadays; most gossipers tend to look for the greener pastures or good salaries. The gossipers do so to gain fame among the other company where they become employees in their own benefits at the expense of the other people. The gossiper may end up bringing rivalry and hatred making the business partners act as if they are at a war instead of being business associates. This reveals secrets from a certain company to one of its rivals making the other company gain the business ideas making it come up and become better than the others an action that may lead to wars.
Rumors may lead to a downfall of a very big company that makes profits and leads all the markets throughout the year. Privacy is very good since everybody does his or her part not that one does not need help to help each other. Tight fitness is very different from being private, for instance, in the sample story given if, every person would live his or her private life then it would not have busted to being a big story in every persons mouth.
