Shortage of Integrity and Ethics in the Workplace
Just a modest change in the records, harass him until he quits, or pad this month’s sales figures—just a little bit.
Welcome to the world of workplace morality; a dilemma of ethical quandaries, where everyone is in competition and people are scared that if they slow down, or don’t do whatever is expected, they’ll get fired? The pressure to produce immediate results may be fostering dishonesty in the workplace. Does this mean we’re condemned to the deterioration of morality in the workplace?
Not according to Debra J. Williams, who taught the “Integrity and Professional Ethics in a Climate of Change” workshop at the California Association of Equal Rights Professionals’ 29th Annual Training Conference in Palm Springs, CA, June 8, 2005.
Other workshop titles included: Sexual Harassment, Preventing Hate Crimes in the Workplace, Our Changing Workplace and Legal Updates. Founded in 1976, CAERP has become a statewide network for individuals representing private industry, government and education.
Williams is an author and sought-after speaker on business training, diversity, equal employment, ethics and morality in the workplace. She has written many workbooks on business training and ethics, and is the President of Higher Ground International, Inc.
Williams has worked on contracts for large companies like The Department of Water and Power and The International Longshore Worker’s Union, among others. She currently provides training and facilitation services through a number of departments within Los Angeles County.
In 1998, Mrs. Williams was recognized by the Los Angeles County Commission for Women, and in 1997, she was named Black Woman of Achievement by the Black Women of Achievement Committee and the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund.
The Ethical workshop covered the Basics of Business Ethics, How to Recognize and End Unethical Behavior, and The Importance of Managing Ethics in the Workplace. Online, you can review a free presentation and guidelines for managing ethics in the workplace at www.highergroundintl.com
According to Williams, “Personal integrity is possible in spite of systemic corruption. While you don’t always have control over the “what,” you’re undeniably in charge of the “how.”
Will training guarantee perfect outcomes? Bluntly states, Williams, absolutely not! Although office ethics are an emerging discipline, establish your line and stand, no matter what!
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