Leilane T. Pacaña
Transfer Activity 1: Learning Summary
Core Value: Ethics in the Workplace
There are various things to be considered and observed in every workplace and one of them
is ethics. All people who are working who are basically called as the workers in the workplace,
need to observe ethics due to its significance and benefits not just for the whole company in general
but to themselves as well. I am certain that we are all knowledgeable about ethics because we have
been adhering to ethical standards everyday as these are what is acceptable in the society. With
this module, I was able to learn more and deepen my understanding about the ethics in the
workplace that must be strictly observed. Ethics is defined to be the discussion of good and bad
actions, the discussion of right and wrong behavior, and the justifications of what makes the
behavior right and wrong. The concept of right and wrong has been introduced to us since we were
just kids which means it is not new to us and that we are already adhering to ethical standards.
Moreover, ethical behaviors are those practices and decisions that are based on the moral principles
that focus on the common good. As we adhere to ethical behaviors, it does not only benefit
ourselves for the reason that it also benefits other people around us. Another concept that I have
learned is the importance of ethical decisions as there are a lot of considerations before choosing
the right and beneficial decision for us. Just like how ethics are significant in our everyday living,
the significance of it to be applied in the workplace is clearly observed for the benefit of the people
involved. Ethics in the workplace is defined as the set of rules that serves as a standard or guide to
be followed by the employees to act in line with morals and values in the firm for everyone’s
benefit. All people who are working within the workplace must adhere to these standards.
There are various ethical standards or ethical behaviors that must be followed by all the
workers. Having these traits would help them in improving themselves not just being a worker but
as their whole in general. To begin with, attendance is one of the most important traits that must
be observed by all of the employees. Being ready to work and always on time should be prioritized
by the employees since preparing ourselves to work is significant so that we could work effectively
and efficiently. Having a good attendance will also reflect effectively on our dedication for
working that has a positive effect for the company we work for. Moreover, our character is also
important; we must display honesty and be responsible with all of our tasks and responsibilities in
a workplace. Being honest is an important value that every worker should have especially when
they observe some inequalities or negative activities of others. They should voice out and tell the
truth to the bosses or those who are in charge of managing the company. Also, every worker has
responsibilities and they should show how responsible they are in doing it all with competence. In
addition, a trait that is important is teamwork. In every company, all the workers must cooperate,
communicate and collaborate with each other in doing all of their responsibilities for the benefit
of the firm and themselves as well. With their unity, difficult tasks can be much easier thus,
teamwork must be observed. In addition, another trait of ethics is the appearance as to which the
workers must show a good etiquette and know how to dress properly within the workplace. We
cannot deny that our appearance can show who we are and what kind of person or worker we are.
That is why the workers should always know how to dress and should have basic etiquette. Attitude
is also important to be observed because a worker should have a good attitude in relating and
communicating with people around the workplace. Basically, they must have respect for each
other.
Furthermore, being productive is also included in the traits of ethics in the workplace. As
the worker knows what their responsibilities are, they must prioritize it to attain the productivity
that is beneficial for the company. Additionally, everything in the workplace must be organized.
Problems may occur in the company and there will always be change since change is the only
constant thing in this world. In relation to that, to keep the organization in the company, there
should be flexibility in handling problems and changes. Moreover, the skills of the employees
should be observed especially their leadership skills for those who are already managers because
they are responsible for ensuring that every employee did their tasks properly for the advantage of
the company. I have also been able to grasp additional ethical behavior in a workplace that must
be observed. Firstly, trustworthiness. Every person who is working in a company should know
how to maintain trust by the clients and to do it, they must be competent enough in fulfilling all of
their duties and doing all of their commitments. Accountability of everybody is also a behavior to
be observed because we cannot deny that no matter how we avoid mistakes, we can still commit
one. However, how we deal with mistakes is more important and so, every employee should take
ownership for the mistakes they have committed. If there are any, fix it and learn from it. In that
way, conflicts can be effectively avoided. More so, transparency is important because
communicating openly with one another is essential to maintain a strong and successful
relationship with each other. We all need teamwork in a workplace and transparency is one of the
keys to have this. Lastly, workers must have integrity wherein they should have a strong moral
code that would definitely help them in making decisions properly.
Aside from ethical behaviors or standards that should be followed by workers, ethical
problems also exist in a workplace. I was able to learn about the 5 common ethical issues in the
workplace that we should take concern with. First issue is unethical leadership wherein those who
have greater authority manipulate numbers in reporting, using the company’s money for personal
expenditures or inappropriate activities, leading with a sense of bullying, accepting inappropriate
gifts from suppliers and asking other workers not to abide by the standard procedure just once.
Toxic workplace culture is also an issue that must be avoided. With the concept of hiring for
“cultural fit”, toxic culture may truly exist and it can be aggravated by continually hiring workers
with toxic mentalities. This “cultural fit” can also lead to discrimination that should not, in any
way, exist in every workplace since equality must be promoted to everyone. With that being said,
discrimination and harassment are problems that must be taken an action immediately. I am certain
that most of us knew already how discrimination that leads to harassment happens. Discrimination
towards race, ethnicity, gender, social status, disability, age and others are rampant. Every
company should look closely among employees if any of them participates in this kind of issue
and take effective action as fast as possible. Moreover, unrealistic and conflicting goals is also an
ethical issue that may exist in a workplace. That is why teamwork and cooperation should be
prioritized since with this, everyone can participate in the goals of the company and cooperate with
each other in attaining all of it. Finally, questionable use of company technology may cause
conflict as well that affects negatively in the company and in the employees. Being responsible in
using what the company owns is important to avoid any conflict and to achieve productivity as we
only use it for work.
In conclusion, ethics in the workplace is significant because it keeps everything organized,
it helps avoid conflicts, achieve high productivity, good relationships with employees and a lot
more. Relative to that, the bosses or managers should know how to train employees to be ethical
with professionalism. It can be done by a written code of conduct with defining ethics to be
maintained in an organization and each employee should have one. Training programs can also
help to impart knowledge and experiences to employees about having ethics. The managers should
also have performance feedback sessions and it should be corrective in nature because in this way,
workers can learn what could be improved by them. Their good behaviors should also be
acknowledged since it will make them realize how important it is. Furthermore, being a role model
is one essential thing that every boss or manager should consider. Since you have more authority,
workers are most likely to follow what you are doing and how you act. That is why if you are
behaving in a morally upright manner, employees can follow and if you, yourself as a senior, does
not adhere to ethical standards then most probably, workers will not give importance to adhering
to ethical standards. Most importantly, communicating ethical values to the workers is essential as
this will help everyone to practice how to deal with situations that are in need of ethical decisions.
Being ethical helps greatly in facing problems arising in the business and solving it also, it
improves efficiencies in the company. Therefore, any organization's basic principle should be
ethics in the workplace.