Professional Workplace Dilemma. Mary Cordova. Gen/480. October 21, Dr. Allison Cressy Wilson

Transcription

1 Professional Workplace Dilemma Mary Cordova Gen/480 October 21, 2013 Dr. Allison Cressy Wilson

2 Professional Workplace Dilemma There are many ethical dilemmas affecting the professional workplace that can affect an employee s conscience. Decisions to report workplace dilemmas is never easy for an employee, especially if the dilemma involves a supervisor or manager. Ethical dilemmas are usually something an individual has discovered in the day-to-day operations of a business when he or she believes there is a conflict of interest or illegal activity happening ("Ethical Dilemmas: What Would You Do?" n.d.). The situation discussed in this paper involves concerns about a bingo manager and his adult children removing funds from the bingo hall to an outside area. Workplace Experience The ethical dilemma occurred during a Wednesday night bingo game at a local nonprofit organization. I am the finance officer for the organization and my duties entail the handling of all funds and oversee the flow of cash. On the day of the occurrence, I was volunteering to help in the bingo hall. During the night, I noticed workers leaving the bingo hall with money in the aprons assigned to them. These workers went into the bar area to make purchases and outside the building. This action was a clear violation of the bingo hall rules. American Legion Post 509 bingo volunteer number one rule, If you are selling bonanzas, double action, pull tabs or any other paper on the floor. Do not take money out of the bingo hall. Floor workers must wear an apron in the bingo hall. If floor workers need to leave the bingo hall for any reason, he or she must remove his or her apron regardless if it is empty and place it on the table near the register with the cashier (Post 509, 2013). Analysis of Dilemma Upon analyzing the situation, the decision to report this violation was the right thing to

3 do. Previously other workers had made complaints of the bingo manager allowing his children to run bingo and violating rules. Workers never filed written complaints but verbally informed other members of the executive committee. The executive committee members who received the complaints never mentioned them to other executive committee members. The executive committee members ignored the complaint and according to "How To Motivate Ethical Behavior In The Workplace" (2013), Don t ignore inappropriate actions. They may be uncomfortable to address but if left unchecked they may cause serious problems for your company or drive away hardworking employees (para. 13, Warning). Workers wondered why there was no action taken to solve the problem. Some of the violations reported were the workers removing funds from the bingo hall, allowing underage students to sell bingo cards, and leaving cash register unattended. I believe the reason the complaint was not reported was because the bingo manager was also the post commander, and the violators were his children. It is understandable that a person in the unenviable position as manager will be making difficult decisions, as a manager and parent he or she are under increased stress, which can lead to poor judgment ("Supervisor, Beware: Ethical Dangers In Supervision, 2007). Recently I heard about the violations from workers and my witnessing the violation of the bingo rules, convinced me there was truth to the complaints, and to report the situation. One of my fundamental principles as a finance officer is to uphold my integrity. According to "Ethical Dilemmas: What Would You Do?" (n.d.), Integrity, you need to uphold your integrity by addressing the matter there is a need to be straightforward and honest (case study 2, p. 2). Evaluation of Outcome

4 Reporting the ethical dilemma proved to be a decision that was unpopular with a majority of the executive committee members. Many of the executive committee members did not see a problem with the workers taking the apron outside the building. This was similar to an affinity group member who may be blind to unacceptable behavior. I cannot believe that he would do anything wrong and if he did do it, surely he did not really mean it. ("Dealing With or Reporting unacceptable Behavior," 2009). I reminded them that their actions were violating the rules and possible bring harm to them by going outside with money. During a meeting, the bingo manager became angry and no longer talked to me. He eventually quit his position and made an ultimatum to the post. The ultimatum was that I was not to be in bingo any more or he would not return. The outcome was very surprising to many of the executive committee members because the manager became so angry. It is understandable that the manager was protective about his children, but no one accused the workers of doing anything wrong with money, just the violation of the rules. Some executive members remarked that the committee was accusing the bingo manager s children of stealing. No one accused anyone of stealing nor was it mentioned in anyway. The issue was workers must follow the rules, and this includes family members. Any thought about stealing was from the bingo manager and his children. In reviewing this ethical dilemma, my education had no affect on my decision to report this situation. Conclusion Every employee will be faced with an ethical dilemma some time in the workplace. Often times employees do not report them if the violator is a manager. Ethical dilemmas involve a person s behavior toward a moral standard and a person s conscience. Sometimes reporting ethical dilemmas can become a bigger issue when members of same organization disagree on a

5 correct decision. I believe my actions were correct and I know I cannot solve all ethical dilemmas but not reporting something only creates a bigger problem. Ethical decision- making is an important part of every employee s job. At no time should an employee be willing to compromise his or her professional judgment and integrity by not reporting ethical dilemmas to other management.

6 References American Legion Post 509, A. L. (2013, August 1). Bingo Volunteer Rules. Unpublished manuscript. Anaejionu, R. (2013) How to Motivate Ethical Behavior in the Workplace. Retrieved from Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA). (n.d.) Ethical dilemmas: What would you do? Retrieved from NAL.pdf Dewane, C.J. (2007, July-August). Supervisor, beware: Ethical dangers in supervision. Social Work Today. 7(4)/ 34. Rowe, M., Wilcox L. & Gadlin, H. (2009). Dealing with or reporting unacceptable Behavior. Journal of the Internal Ombudsmen Association. 2(1). Retrieved from