Running Head:
ETHICS PAPER
Brent Wade
SWK 5113 – Generalist Practice with Groups, Organizations, and Communities
January 28, 2016
CARRIE JANKOWSKI, MSSW, LCSW
ETHICS PAPER
In the case example “Truth-Telling and Whistle-Blowing”, the employee is faced with a
dilemma. She has proof that her boss who is also the director has been stealing funds from the
agency where they are both employed. She is unsure what to do because not only is the person
the director, she is also her mentor and the person that hired her. She understands if she does in
fact blow the whistle it “could do irrevocable harm to her career, the reputation and survival of
the organization, the well being of the community it serves” (Reisch & Lowe, 2000, p. 35) and to
her career. The other side of the dilemma is if she doesn’t blow the whistle she could be held
legally liable for the missing funds. She is the person that has to sign off on the financial
documents and is ultimately responsible to ensure the documents are true and factual.
Since the employee was the with agency since her practicum, the only real professional
relationship she has is with the director. She views the director as not only a boss but as a
professional mentor as well. These factors make it harder for her to make a decision about what
to do. Since she is new to the social work field, she believes she needs all the professional
contacts she can and if she does decide to turn her boss in, the could be black balled in the social
work community. On the other hand, being that she is new, this could possibly help her career
because she could be seen by her new employer as trustworthy and accountable.
Lack of integrity by the director is one of the major value conflicts that is stated in this
case. As a social worker we are to live by the core values and once we don’t do that, the other
values start to suffer. Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking and if this director
has been taking money, she could possibly be doing other things that are more sinister. Since the
director has been stealing funds, this could possibly jeopardize the service the agency is able to
provide the consumers they serve. The employee has to show integrity as well and report the
director to the proper leadership. Even if it cost her the job as a social worker, we can not forget
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ETHICS PAPER
the values we supposed to be live by. I would also question the competence of the director
because the case mentions the stealing of funds but has she also not been doing her duties
correctly at the agency? The director is also not respecting the other employees at the agency.
She is not valuing the importance of human relationships. The values in the code of ethics are
not single values one can pick and choose to follow. They are values that go hand in hand with
one another and must be followed in order to become an effective social worker.
Since there is no protection of life involved in this scenario, the two most conflicting
values are truthfulness and full disclosure. The director is in direct violation since she has
stealing the funds from the agency for years. She is also not being truthful with her employee
and trying to minimize the significance of what she’s been doing. It appears as if the manager
cares more about the money than her professional colleagues. The employee will need be
truthful and disclose the information she’s uncovered to the proper management as well.
The employee must follow all ethical standards. According the National Association of
Social Worker Code of Ethics, 2.11 “social workers should take adequate measures to
discourage, prevent, expose, and correct the unethical conduct of colleagues.” (National
Association of Social Workers, 2008). Based on this it is her duty to report what the director has
been doing. If this does lead to a dispute among colleagues the code of ethics should be used to
resolve such a conflict. These principles or norms must be followed and accepted because they
are the standards all social workers are to follow. All social workers should be on the same page
when it comes to ethics because we owe that to the people we are fighting for. When we forget
about those ethics and principles it results in unethical practices such as stealing funds from an
agency.
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ETHICS PAPER
References
National Association of Social Workers. (2008). Code of ethics of the National Association of
Social Workers. Washington, DC. NASW Press.
Reisch, M., & Lowe, J. I. (2000). “Of Means and Ends” Revisited: Teaching Ethical Community
Organizing in an Unethical Society. Journal of Community Practice, 7(1), 19-38.
doi:10.1300/j125v07n01_03
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