Diama, Irene A.

4 BAC

Utilitarian Principle
Utilitarianism , at its most basic, states that something is moral, or good when it produces the greatest amount of
good for the greatest number of people. It's a theory of normative ethics that asks whether a specific action is good
or bad, moral or immoral.
Utilitarianism answers this question with an economic analysis that focuses on human lives and says that those
actions that make people happy are good. For example, a utilitarian may ask whether it's moral for politicians to
spend billions of dollars on campaign ads. He or she would examine how the money is spent and whether the ads
directly resulted in improving people's lives, or if that money could have been better spent on something else.

Machiavellian Principle
Machiavellianism is the use of the general principle of 'the ends justifying the means'. This means the Machiavellian
person considers their goals to be of prime importance and that any method may be used to achieve them.
The more extreme the Machiavellianism, the greater the harm the person will be ready to indirectly (or perhaps
directly) inflict on others to achieve their own goals.
The Machiavellian approach includes using deception, manipulation, theft and, in the extreme, even physical
coercion or murder.

Kantian Ethics
For Kantians, there are two questions that we must ask ourselves whenever we decide to act: (i) Can I rationally
will that everyone act as I propose to act? If the answer is no, then we must not perform the action. (ii) Does my
action respect the goals of human beings rather than merely using them for my own purposes? Again, if the answer
is no, then we must not perform the action. (Kant believed that these questions were equivalent).

Kant’s theory is an example of a deontological moral theory–according to these theories, the rightness or wrongness
of actions does not depend on their consequences but on whether they fulfill our duty.

Moral Positivism
The theory that claims there is no natural law, and therefore no natural right. All human rights, it holds, are derived
from the state, from contracts, from each person's freedom, or from custom.

Socrates Philosophy
Socrates developed a system of critical reasoning in order to work out how to live properly and to tell the difference
between right and wrong. He and his followers, Plato and Aristotle maintained an unwavering commitment to the
truth, and between them they organized and systematized most of the problems of philosophy.

Aristotle Philosophy
Aristotle’s philosophical writings can be divided into five categories: logic, science, metaphysics, ethics and
rhetoric. We must also keep in mind that anywhere from one-half to two-thirds of his writings are now lost. His
logical works teach about deductive and inductive arguments, how to use those arguments and the place of those
arguments in dialectic and disciplinary studies. He also promoted the idea that all of our knowledge starts with our
senses.

Identify Ethical Issues and Problems at the corporate world

Sexual Harassment

Ethical Implications of Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
From: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/ethical­implications­sexual­harassment­workplace­15391.html

Sexual harassment constitutes acts such unwelcome sexual advances which affects an individual's employment. The
ethical implications of sexual harassment are concerned with questions of what is acceptable and unacceptable
within the workplace from the perspective of both women and men.
 Discrimination
Sexual harassment constitutes a form of workplace discrimination .An example of sexual harassment which
constitutes discrimination includes when an employer refuses to offers promotions to employees who decline his
sexual advances. Victims of sexual harassment may bring a complaint against a perpetrator based on discrimination.
Reasonable Woman
According to the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons, men and women may have different perceptions of
what constitutes sexual harassment. A behavior may continue, unless the victim clearly informs the perpetrator that
his acts are unacceptable. Courts apply the reasonable woman or reasonable person test to assess if an act attains the
threshold of what constitutes sexual harassment. If a reasonable woman or person in a stable state of mind would
view the act as harassment, then it is likely that the perpetrator committed sexual harassment.
Responsibility and Reporting
An employer has the responsibility of preventing workplace sexual harassment and taking action before it happens.
Employers accomplish this by establishing sexual harassment and reporting policies. If an employer fulfills this
obligation, he may not be liable if harassment occurs. However, some states such as California require an employer
to take responsibility of harassment acts by his managers. Yet, a victim of sexual harassment often face the dilemma
of reporting and risk losing her job or not reporting and to be accused of condoning the acts.
Work Environment
The acts of one perpetrator of sexual harassment can create sexually hostile environment. This means that both
female and male employees will be wary of losing their jobs unless they give in to sexual advances by employers or
managers. Employees who perpetrate sexual harassment against others also put indirect pressure on others to either
leave the job, to report their acts or to tolerate these acts. Adverse sexual harassment such as discrimination and
sexual favoritism can demoralize otherwise hardworking employees.

Gift Giving and Bribery

From: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140716125123-14373257-the-ethical-dilemma-in-business-gifts-giving-or-
bribery

The premise of giving gifts is an ancient way to express gratitude, appreciation and love. Giving in itself is fairly
innocuous and it is based upon the philosophy of reciprocity which is commonly articulated by phrases such as
“what goes around comes around" or “what you sow, you will reap”. While gifts are often given as a gesture of
goodwill, overly generous business gifts tend to put pressure on the recipient to extend more than just goodwill to
the giver. Thus, not surprisingly, the line between sincere giving and bribery is becoming increasingly distorted.
Gifts, even those of nominal value, can create the perception of undue influence. So what are gifts and bribes?
Defining gifts and bribes may seem like a simple-minded activity, but, try posing the question another way and you
will see why this is an important issue in business and professional ethics: What is the difference between a gift and
a bribe? A gift is something of value given without the expectation of return; a bribe is the same thing given in the
hope of influence or benefit. Gifts and bribes can be monetary, actual items or they can be tickets to a sporting event,
entertainment, travel, rounds of golf or restaurant meals.

Policies and practices on handling gifts and invitations to special events vary from company to company. For some
the potential harm to an organisation's credibility is not worth the risk and they ban all gifts to employees, excluding
personal gifts from friends and family. Other organisations accept gifts, but when received, donate them to a non-
profit organisation. Then there are some organisations where gifts received must be declared and it is maintained in
registers. In other organisations, unsolicited gifts are shared with all employees. If everyone benefits equally, it may
lessen the perception that the gift was intended to influence the action of a single employee.

The giving of gifts or doing favours to influence outcomes and without transparency of your intent ultimately
undermines trust in business relationships - whether it is in your company or outside. If you are the gift-giver, find
out what gift-giving policies your target companies have. When dealing with organisations from different countries,
find out what their gift-giving customs are. Find out what it is that they would appreciate and value and what might
be offensive. You will show that a lot of thought went into the gift. Gifts that would remind the recipient of your
country would be valued. Find out what it says in the code of ethics of your target organisation or profession.
Discrimination
From: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/ethical-discrimination-workplace-14708.html and
https://www.aseanlip.com/philippines/general/legislation/bill-of-the-antidiscrimination-act-of-2017/AL33118

It's never ethical to discriminate in the workplace. In the United States, however, discrimination against people
based on their ethnicity, racial or cultural orientation is strictly forbidden under federal and state laws in all sectors,
including the employment sector. According to research conducted by the National Conference for Community and
Justice, approximately 70 percent of Americans accept that there are racism issues in the workplace. Ethical
discrimination may result in the breeding of ill feelings at work, as well as reduced productivity. To eliminate these
ramifications, small-business owners need to put forth increased effort in curbing ethical discrimination in the
employment sector.

Discrimination Policies
Discrimination based on a person's ethnicity, race or culture may manifest itself in a number of ways in the
workplace. For example, when the policies for a business discriminate against persons of certain ethnicities or races,
or when an individual receives unequal treatment due to his ethnicity, this is known as disparate impact and
disparate treatment, respectively. This may include grouping employees based on race and having differing
standards on promotions, punishment, and hiring and placement of employees based on ethnicity, race or cultural
orientation.

Philippine Laws
The 1987 Philippine Constitution under Article III, Section 1, 2, 4, 8, 12 states that every person has the right to life,
security of person and privacy, right to be free from torture, arbitrary arrest and detention, the right to be free from
discrimination and the right to freedom of expression, and the right to organize associations. Furthermore, under
Section 11, the State values the dignity of every person and guarantees full respect for human rights.

Hence the of the Anti-Discrimination Act of 2017 was passed which addresses the long standing problem of the lack
of definition and penalty for unjustly discrimination on the basis of ethnicity, race, religion or belief, sex, gender,
sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, civil status, medical condition, or any other status.

Conflict of Interest
From: https://www.thebalance.com/conflict-of-interest-1918090

A conflict of interest arises in the workplace when an employee has competing interests or loyalties that either
are, or potentially can be, at odds with each other.

A conflict of interest causes an employee to experience a struggle between diverging interests, points of view, or
allegiances.

Conflicts of interest are generally forbidden in company codes of conduct and/or employee handbooks.

Conflicts of interest can cause an employee to act out of interests that are divergent from those of his or her
employer or coworkers. In workplaces, employees want to avoid any behavior or choices that could potentially
signal a conflict of interest. They are bad news for the employee's reputation, integrity, and trustworthiness in the
eyes of management.

Conflicts of interest are difficult to describe in a definition, so the following examples will illuminate the range of
behaviors and actions that can fall within the definition of conflicts of interest. They are as diverse as the work
settings in which they occur and involve people interaction, employee actions, and personal benefits taking
precedence over what is in the best interests of the employer.
Examples of Potential Workplace Conflicts of Interest

These are examples of situations in which an employee might experience a conflict of interest. They illuminate the
true nature of what a conflict of interest really means.

 A relative or close friend reports to a supervisor who affects their job responsibilities, salary,
and promotions.

 A male manager dates a female employee who reports to him or vice versa.

 A lawyer represents a client in a civil dispute while accepting fees from litigants who hold the opposing
point of view.

 A purchasing agent hires his brother-in-law to provide vending services to the company lunch areas.

 An employee starts a company that provides similar services to similar clients as those of her full-time
employer. This is especially a conflict of interest when an employer has had her sign a non-compete
agreement.

 An employee who is a member of a company employee selection team fails to disclose that he is related to
a job candidate whom the company team is considering for a position.

 A manager provides paid consulting services on the weekend to a company customer or supplier.

 An employee works part-time in the evening for a company that makes a product that competes with the
products of his full-time employer.

 A member of the company board of directors accepts fees and provides advice to a company that is in direct
competition with the company on whose board of directors he sits.

 An HR director decides to investigate a formal charge of sexual harassment, using internal resources that
she controls, against a fellow corporate executive whom she has known and worked with professionally for
years. This would not constitute a conflict of interest if she hired an external employment law firm
to conduct the investigation and recommend disciplinary measures.

 A purchasing agent accepts trips and gifts from a vendor and then selects the vendor's products for purchase
by the company.

 An employee accepts free gifts and free products from a training and development company and then
recommends the purchase of these products without comparing them to comparable products from other
vendors.

 A CFO negotiates an agreement in his employer's best interests for a stock option plan from which he will
directly benefit.

 A trainer is paid to provide training classes that teach customers how to use the company's software
products. He puts up a website that offers his same training on the products as a for-profit enterprise in his
spare time. Why would he ever again direct customers needing training to his company's classes?

 The manager of a marketing department dated a coworker who is also a manager in the same department.
They part ways over time but when he is promoted to the marketing department director role, she found
herself reporting to him. The company was forced to change the reporting chain of the department she
 managed even though the manager and director were no longer dating. The existence of the former
relationship created a potential conflict of interest especially in the eyes of coworkers.

 An employee sets up a personal website on which he sells his employer's software products.

Corporate Culture

Corporate culture refers to the beliefs and behaviors that determine how a company's employees and management
interact and handle outside business transactions. Often, corporate culture is implied, not expressly defined, and
develops organically over time from the cumulative traits of the people the company hires. A company's culture will
be reflected in its dress code, business hours, office setup, employee benefits, turnover, hiring decisions, treatment of
clients, client satisfaction and every other aspect of operations.