PowerPoint Presentation by Charlie Cook The University of West Alabama 1 Human Resource Management ELEVENTH EDITION G A R Y D E S S L E R © 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. Ethics, Justice, and Fair Treatment in HR Management Chapter 14 Part 5 | Employee Relations

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–2 Ethics and Fair Treatment at Work The Meaning of EthicsThe Meaning of Ethics  The principles of conduct governing an individual or a group.  The standards you use to decide what your conduct should be.  Ethical behavior depends on a person’s frame of reference. Ethical DecisionsEthical Decisions  Normative judgments- Good bad, right wrong, better or worse.  Morality- Society’s accepted standard of behavior.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–3 FIGURE 14–1 The Wall Street Journal Workplace- Ethics Quiz Source: Wall Street Journal, October 21, 1999, pp. B1–B4. Reproduced with permission via Copyright Clearance Center. Note: The spread of technology into the workplace has raised a variety of new ethical questions, and many old ones still linger.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–4 TABLE 14–1Specific Observed Unethical Behaviors Abusive or intimidating behavior toward employees 21% Lying to employees, customers, vendors, or to the public 19% A situation that places employee interests over organizational interests 18% Violations of safety regulations 16% Misreporting of actual time worked 16% and Internet abuse 13% Discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, age, or similar categories 12% Stealing or theft 11% Sexual harassment 9% Provision of goods or services that fail to meet specifications 8% Misuse of confidential information 7% Alteration of documents 6% Falsification or misrepresentation of financial records or reports 5% Improper use of competitors’ inside information 4% Price fixing 3% Giving or accepting bribes, kickbacks, or inappropriate gifts 3% Source: From 2005 National Business Ethics Survey: How Employees Perceive Ethics at Work, 2005, p. 25. Copyright © 2006, Ethics Resource Center (ERC). Used with permission of the ERC, 1747 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Suite 400, Washington, DC 2006, Reprinted in O. C. Ferrell, John Fraedrich, and Linog Ferrell, Business Ethics (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2008), p. 61.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–5 Ethics and Fair Treatment at Work (cont’d) A behavior may be legal but unethical. A behavior may be illegal but ethical. A behavior may be both legal and ethical. A behavior may be both illegal and unethical. Ethics and the Law

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–6 Ethics, Fair Treatment, and Justice Distributive Justice Interactional (Interpersonal) Justice Components of Organizational Justice Procedural Justice

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–7 JUSTICE: Fairness – Results – Assumed or implied balance of fairness and equality Commutative Justice – Attempting to give all parties equal treatment without unique differences being considered. Distributive Justice – Allocation of justice that takes into consideration individual differences Example: ADA – American’s with Disabilities Act – passed in 1990

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–8 FIGURE 14–2 Perceptions of Fair Interpersonal Treatment Scale Source: Michelle A. Donovan et al., “The Perceptions of Their Interpersonal Treatment Scale: Development and Validation of a Measure of Interpersonal Treatment in the Workplace,” Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, no. 5 (1998), p. 692.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–9 What Shapes Ethical Behavior at Work? Individual Factors Organizational Factors Ethical Behavior At Work Ethical Policies and Codes The Boss’s Influence The Organization’s Culture

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–10 FIGURE 14–3 How Do My Ethics Rate? Source: Adapted from A. Reichel and Y. Neumann, Journal of Instructional Psychology, March 1988, pp. 25–53. With permission of the authors.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–11 TABLE 14–2Principal Causes of Ethical Compromises Senior Mgmt. Middle Mgmt. Front- Line Supv. Prof. Non- Mgmt. Admin. Salaried Hourly Meeting schedule pressure Meeting overly aggressive financial or business objectives Helping the company survive Advancing the career interests of my boss Feeling peer pressure Resisting competitive threats Saving jobs Advancing my own career or financial interests Other Note: 1 is high, 9 is low. Sources: O. C. Ferrell and John Fraedrich, Business Ethics, 3rd ed. (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1997), p. 28; adapted from Rebecca Goodell, Ethics in American Business: Policies, Programs, and Perceptions (1994), p. 54. Permission provided courtesy of the Ethics Resource Center, th Street NW, Washington, DC:

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–12 Employees and Ethical Dilemmas Questions employees should ask when faced with ethical dilemmas:Questions employees should ask when faced with ethical dilemmas:  Is the action legal?  Is it right?  Who will be affected?  Does it fit the company’s values?  How will it “feel” afterwards?  How will it look in the newspaper?  Will it reflect poorly on the company?

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–13 What Is Organizational Culture? Organizational cultureOrganizational culture  The characteristic values, traditions, and behaviors a company’s employees share. How is culture is revealed?How is culture is revealed?  Ceremonial events  Written rules and spoken commands  Office layout  Organizational structure  Dress codes  Cultural symbols and behaviors  Figureheads

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–14 Human Resource Management’s Role in Promoting Ethics and Fair Treatment Ethics Training Reward and Disciplinary Systems HR’s Ethics and Compliance Activities Selection Performance Appraisal Workplace Aggression and Violence HRM–Related Ethics Activities

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–15 FIGURE 14–4 U.S. Data Trust Web site Source: Reprinted with permission of U.S. Data Trust Corporation.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–16 Employee Discipline and Privacy Clear Rules and Regulations An Appeals Process Fair and Just Discipline Process A System of Progressive Penalties

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–17 Restrictions on Workplace Monitoring The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)  Restricts employer interception and monitoring of oral and wire communications.  “business purpose exception”  “consent exception” Common lawCommon law  Provides protections against invasion of privacy.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–18 FIGURE 14–8Sample Telephone Monitoring Acknowledgement Statement Source: Reprinted with permission from Bulletin to Management (BNA Policy and Practice Series) 48, no. 14, Part II, (April 3, 1997), p. 7. © 1997 by The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–19 The Plant Closing Law WARNA - Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (1989)WARNA - Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (1989)  Requires employers of 100 or more employees to give 60 days notice before closing a facility or starting a layoff of 50 people or more.  The law does not prevent the employer from closing down, nor does it require saving jobs.  The law is intended to give employees time to seek other work or retraining by giving them advance notice of the shutdown.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–20 Layoffs and Downsizing Bumping/Layoff ProceduresBumping/Layoff Procedures  Seniority is usually the determinant of who will work.  Seniority can give way to merit or ability.  Seniority is usually based on the employee’s hiring date, not the date he or she took a particular job.  Companywide seniority allows an employee in one job to bump or displace an employee in another job.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–21 Layoffs and Downsizing Alternatives to DownsizingAlternatives to Downsizing  Voluntarily reducing employees’ pay.  Concentrating employees’ vacations.  Taking voluntary time off.  Releasing temporary workers.  Offering early retirement buyout packages.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–22 Adjusting to Downsizings and Mergers Reduction in Force GuidelinesReduction in Force Guidelines  Identify objectives and constraints.  Form a downsizing team.  Address legal issues.  Plan post-reduction actions.  Address security concerns.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–23 Adjusting to Downsizings and Mergers (cont’d) Guidelines for treatment of departing employees during a merger:Guidelines for treatment of departing employees during a merger:  Avoid the appearance of power and domination.  Avoid win–lose behavior.  Remain businesslike and professional.  Maintain a positive feeling about the acquired company.  Remember that how the organization treats the acquired group will affect those who remain.

© 2008 Prentice Hall, Inc. All rights reserved.14–24 K E Y T E R M S ethics ethics code distributive justice procedural justice interactional (interpersonal) justice organizational culture nonpunitive discipline Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) dismissal wrongful discharge unsatisfactory performance misconductinsubordination termination interview outplacement counseling exit interviews bumping/layoff procedures downsizing