Employee Behavior for the Morally Challenged

With Election Day looming large, the last few weeks have been filled with fiery talk about ethics.

Long after the politicians have jubilantly attained office or retired to lick their wounds, employees will be dealing with everyday matters of ethics in the workplace. Some companies, including Texas Instruments Inc. and Levi Strauss & Co., have made ethics education a key piece of their human resources programs.

Unethical decisions by employees come in a variety of packages, notes Personnel Journal, a trade magazine geared to human resources professionals.

There’s the employee who conducts personal business on company time. The line worker who fails to report a product flaw so that a deadline can be met. The manager who accepts a gift from a customer and then puts a rush on the customer’s order.

None of these alone is enough to threaten the organization’s existence. But taken in combination, they can be evidence of a moral vacuum--an attitude that unethical behavior is all right as long as it helps the bottom line.

In a survey by the Ethics Resource Center in Washington, nearly a third of the respondents said they felt they had been pressured to violate company policies to achieve business objectives.

Some examples of issues that can come up:

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Dear Ms. Work Wise: There are some ethical problems at my company that are getting harder and harder to ignore. My bosses regularly instruct me to lie to clients about when projects will be ready and when fees will be paid. My job pays well and I want to keep it. My conscience, however, is working overtime. May I reasonably request not to be required to tell business fibs?

--Forlorn in Florence

Dear Forlorn: If you’re feeling brave, try confronting the supervisor directly, since end runs can be messy. In a diplomatic way, note that you must be able to respect and admire the people above you. Reiterate your loyalty to the company. Point out that you understand why he wants you to do these things but tell him: “I don’t think I can do it well. I’m uncomfortable, and it would interfere with my effectiveness.” Remind him, also, that lying to clients could backfire. Once burned, they will take their business elsewhere.

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Dear Ms. Work Wise: Several of my colleagues spend hours every week downloading pornography from the Internet. I’m disturbed by this, not just because, as a female, I find pornography sexist and demeaning, but also because these guys are wasting valuable company time. What can I do about it?

--Teed-Off in Temecula

Dear Teed-Off: Surfing the Internet for pornographic materials is a growing problem in corporate America, says Glenn Coleman, manager of ethics communication and education at Texas Instruments in Dallas. At TI, employees in recent months have contacted Coleman’s office to complain about colleagues who abuse their online capabilities.

Perusing porno on the Net is viewed as a direct violation of TI’s company values. Moreover, it can raise questions of illegality. If someone is idly surfing the Internet, to which contract is that person charging his or her time? If it’s a government contract, that person could be breaking the law.

Coleman suggests using “the grandmother test.” Would you still be doing what you’re doing if your grandmother were looking over your shoulder? A more sober “ethics quick test” consists of these questions: Is the action legal in the United States and other countries where the company operates? Does it comply with company values, or give you a knot in your gut? Will you feel bad if you do it? Does it pass the openness test--i.e., how would it look in the morning newspaper?

TI encourages whistle-blowers to confront the offending colleague--unless they fear retaliation. It sometimes works to just say, “Come on, knock it off.”

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Dear Ms. Work Wise: I work at an entertainment company where creative ideas are the currency. Lately, a female colleague has been trying to worm her way onto one of my best projects. I fear that when I head out of town on business, she will seize that opportunity to present my ideas as her own. What should I do?

--Anxious in Arcadia

Dear Anxious: You might try what worked for Karen Salmansohn, a former New York advertising writer-turned-author of a guide for women in the workplace called “How to Succeed in Business Without a Penis.” Before she headed out of town on business, she photocopied her ads and gave them to a colleague, asking that they be kept in a locked file cabinet. Sure enough, after another female colleague claimed credit for the work, Salmansohn was able to produce proof that the work was her own. The credit-grabbing colleague, by the way, escaped with a reprimand--apparently because she was having an affair with one of the account supervisors, but that’s a whole other can of worms.

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Dear Ms. Work Wise: I am secretary to a man who--believe it or not in this age of harassment lawsuits--is pressuring me to provide sexual favors. I’m a single mother and I really need this job. I don’t want to go so far as Lorena Bobbitt, but I do want him to leave me alone. Can you help?

--Beleaguered in Long Beach

Dear Beleaguered: Most companies recommend a direct approach for men or women in your situation. They suggest telling the offending individual in a firm voice that the behavior constitutes sexual harassment and that you will not tolerate it. That stops a lot of it immediately. But since you are in a boss-subordinate relationship, you run a risk. In that case, you should look to the company’s human resources office. Explain the situation and ask for aid. You might also look into getting a transfer to a different supervisor. If none of that works, you could always contact a labor attorney. But that’s a serious step that could open you to a costly, long battle. Make sure you’re up for it and that the situation warrants such extreme action.

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Dear Ms. Work Wise: I’ve applied to go back to business school to get a master’s degree but haven’t yet heard whether I’ve been accepted. Now it turns out that my company is thinking of posting me to London, a position I would love to have if I don’t get into my preferred university. I’m torn. What obligation do I have to tell my company about my school application?

--Morose in Malibu

Dear Morose: That depends. Are you planning to come back to the company after you finish your degree? Has your boss been a trusted mentor? If so, you should level with him or her sooner rather than later. Another factor: Are you jeopardizing teammates by not being open about your situation?

If your relationship has not been that wonderful, you might consider saying this when the prospect of the overseas job comes up: “I might not be the best person for that assignment at this time.” Keep mum on the school part.

Here’s a guideline that Barry J. Nalebuff, a professor at the Yale School of Management, uses to assess his own responses to such situations: Is this something I would be proud that other people knew about?