Accounting technicians scheme west africa
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- C.2.2 Why some managers behave unethically
| C.2.1 Ethical issues in Business These are general issues with respect to the values and ethical standards that should be used by managers to guide their decisions. Areas of considerations as they affect ethics and which must be addressed are i) Bribes ii) Honesty of records keeping iii) Misappropriation of corporate assets iv) Confidentiality of corporate information v) Political contributions vi) Conflict of interest vii) Customer/supplier relationships Other issue include (a) Employees: The wages, recruitment process, conditions of service, retrenchment and welfare package should be fair and just. bi Labour unions: There should be honesty in honouring agreements, good strategies in handling negotiations and industrial action. c) Trade associations: Loyalty and faithfulness in honouring agreements. d) Dealers: Honesty in honouring agreements, engagement and disengagement processes. e) Customer: Product safety, value proposition, truthful advertising. f) Suppliers: Honesty in honouring agreements. g) Competitors: Fair versus unfair competition. hi Shareholdersi: Insider trading, truthful stewardship and conflict of interest. 46 ii Creditorsi: Payment for supplies. j) Government: Tax evasion, economic sabotage and truthful disclosure. k) The society at large Environmental concerns. l) The firm itself: Confidentiality, loyalty and obedience. C.2.2 Why some managers behave unethically An unethical behaviour would be defined as one that is not morally honourable or one that is prohibited by the law. Many behaviours will fall in the classification including corruption, mail and wire fraud, discrimination and harassment, insider trading, conflicts of interest, improper use of company assets, bribery and kickbacks, compliance procedures, ethical relations with others, disciplinary action, fraud, illegal business donations, patent infringement and product liability (Barrcus & Near, 1991), Today, the most common ones are false communication, collusion, conflicts of interest, gifts and kickbacks, insider trading, discrimination and harassment, and embezzlement. Dedicated employees, who are usually honest, sometimes behave unethically because of four rationalizations namely, a) that no one will ever find out b) that the behaviour is not really illegal c) that it is in the best interest of the organization, and d) that the organization will protect them. Although the costs of unethical behavior are hard to measure, they can add, according to research, more than 20% to the cost of doing business. The costs will include low wages, unemployment, and poverty. If top management wants to improve organizational performance, they must stand firm that ethical methods are the only ways business should be done. Download 3.37 Mb. Share with your friends:
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