The rules and codes of conduct on which ethical behavior is based

A code of ethics is a set of principles and rules used by individuals and organizations to govern their decision-making process, as well as to distinguish right from wrong. They provide a general idea of the ethical standards of a business or organization. However, people can have their own personal code of ethics as well. Keep reading for a more thorough explanation of a code of ethics, as well as several code of ethics examples.

code of ethics example

Several professions have a code of ethics that exists independent of any particular employment. For instance, a doctor or lawyer is always bound by the code of ethics for their profession, regardless of whether they work for a large organization or are in private practice. These codes constitute the basic expectations of these jobs and guide them when making decisions.

Lawyers, paralegals and other employees of the legal profession are bound to a general code of ethics. A few of these governing ethics include:

Confidentiality - Lawyers must maintain their clients' confidence at all times.
Competence - Legal professionals must represent their clients with a high level of competence.
Professional Courtesy - Lawyers must treat their colleagues with fairness and courtesy.

The American Medical Association imposes a code of ethics on physicians. It addresses everything from interpersonal relationships with other staff members to information on patient care. For instance:

Trust - Doctors must instill a sense of trust between themselves and their patients.
Do No Harm - Doctors cannot engage in any activity that would cause harm to their patients.
Privacy - Doctors cannot share the details of their patients' medical treatments or histories without permission.

Corporations and have codes of ethics to help workers decide if certain behaviors are appropriate and acceptable when dealing with clients and outside agencies. Many organizations require employees to attend yearly training on ethics and, in some cases, to sign statements promising to adhere to all ethical guidelines laid out by the company.

Examples of ethics in the business world include:

Integrity - Employees should maintain honesty and clear communication in the workplace.
Teamwork - Members of a professional organization should work together to get the job done.
Objectivity - Employers should not make career decisions based on whom they like best or with whom they have personal relationships.

Teachers and other education professionals are role models to their students. Their code of ethics not only protects their students against mistreatment, but it also protects their sense of fairness itself. Some code of ethics examples in education include:

Consideration - Teachers should put the needs of their students first.
Growth - Educators need to pursue professional growth.
Communication - Teachers work with parents as a support team for each student.

Individual codes of ethics can originate from religion, secular philosophy or rules of social behavior derived from upbringing and experience. They are typically in line with the rest of one's society, but one may have stricter or more relaxed personal ethics as well.

Society at large assumes that certain ethics, morals and values can be expected regardless of religion, geographic location or nationality. The classic example is the Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Other examples of societal ethical behavior include:

Respect - Citizens must respect another's property, choices and lives.
Loyalty - People put their family and friends' needs before their own.
Honesty - Individuals tell the truth to community members and authority figures.

Certain codes of ethics, such as religious codes of ethics, apply only to members of select groups. They are based on morals shared by tenets and members of that religion. Examples of religious codes of ethics include the Ten Commandments of Judaism, the Beatitudes of Christianity, the Five Pillars of Islam, and the Noble Eightfold Path of Buddhism.

Some shared ethics in these religions include:

Value of Life - Do not kill your fellow human.
Pursue Peace - Avoid violence when possible.
Do Not Steal - Don't take things that don't belong to you.

Personal codes of ethics do not require religion, however. Immanuel Kant's categorical imperative and the Utilitarian rule of the greatest good for the greatest number are both ethical codes that do not require any religious basis. Some of these ethics may include:

Sustainable Living - Live in a way that doesn't waste unsustainable resources.
Care for the Vulnerable - Those who are medically or economically disadvantaged should have priority of care.
Benefit the Greater Good - Make sure that your decisions help others rather than just yourself.

A code of ethics is only effective if it corresponds to a set of behaviors that uphold those ethics. The terms code of ethics and code of conduct are often used interchangeably; however, there are some key differences between them.

A code of ethics details the general ethics that a person or employee should uphold.
A code of conduct details the way that a person or employee should behave in order to uphold the code of ethics.

While a code of conduct may not always correspond to a code of ethics, a code of ethics must have a corresponding code of conduct. For example, if an organization includes honesty in its code of ethics, its code of conduct may include something like "Employees will come to their supervisor with any problems before discussing it with outside members of the team." A business that values safety in its code of ethics would set very specific safety rules in its code of conduct.

Codes of ethics are present at all levels of society, as well as in business and individual behavior. Many are codified in writing and enforced with penalties, while others are more malleable and dependent on the individual's perception of right and wrong. For further study of ethics and their place in the world, have a look at these examples of rights-based ethics.

Staff Writer

What's the Difference Between Ethics, Morals and Values?
Have you ever deemed someone’s behavior to be unethical? Have you ever questioned their moral code or the values upon which they base their decisions? When our minds wander to these places, the terms ethics, morals and values tend to feel very similar, but they are not quite the same. Keep reading for explanations and values, ethics and morals examples to learn how they are different.
Examples of Unethical Behavior
What is unethical behavior, exactly? Unethical behavior is an action that falls outside of what is considered right or proper for a person, a profession or an industry. Individuals can behave unethically, as can businesses, professionals and politicians. However, one's definition of "unethical" depends on their own ethical standards and the standards of their society. Take a look at different unethical behavior examples that are generally agreed upon as unacceptable.

Business Ethics, An Introduction

Chapter 40

Ethics: Moral principles and values applied to social behavior. A reasoned set of principles of conduct. Usually has a religious underpinning, which is logical.

Business Ethics: Moral principles and values applied to situations arising in a business setting.

In other words, the fairness, rightness, or wrongness, if you will, of an action.

If you have ever seen the movie “Wall Street” with Michael Douglass, you probably recall his character Gordon Gekko, who basically espoused that “Greed is Good.”

You might question his approach to ethics.

Than again, maybe you wouldn’t!

Unfortunately, companies have conflicting duties: to make a profit, to work efficiently, and still stay within the law or suffer dramatic consequences. As you might imagine, it is sometimes like putting a square peg into a round circle.

For example, a company can make a higher profit if it uses overseas labor or raw materials, but what about the legality and ethics of such a decision?

It would seem in recent years there has been an emphasis on the bottom line, rightly or wrongly.

Questions generally asked by companies:

Is the proposed action:

profitable? If so, is it:

Legal?

Ethical?

Notice the ordering.

Legal Behavior: many actions are clearly legal or illegal, but many items also fall into a gray area.

While legal compliance is achieved, i.e., a minimum accepted standard, what about

Advertising- how far can we stretch the truth and get away with it and attract new customers?

Product Misuse? Are we responsible for the foolishness of consumers?

How can a company defend itself when pushing the limits?

General “rule”: if the company can demonstrate that it has acted in good faith and responsibly, it has a good opportunity to defend its actions.

So, following the law makes many ethical decisions for us.

èThis is often called the “moral minimum”

Well, just because it is legal, does it make it ethical? Lets see:

Ethical behavior: even when a contemplated action is legal (or even illegal), business decision makers must also consider whether the action is ethical.

Certain guides are available to meet or exceed the moral minimum (usually legal compliance).

General Guides for such compliance:

· Corporate or professional codes of ethics.

· Optimizing (making the best) versus maximizing (making the most) behavior (more on this later)

· Public opinion and sentiment- i.e, the general public, what does it want or perceive?; and

· Personal Morality ( Gordon Gekko??)

Let’s get back to the conflicting “duties” of the company previously noted above.

So, just what are the priorities among the various folks involved?

· Shareholders: Their concern is profits and return on their investment. And, they want a “good” company.

Versus:

· Employees: they are concerned about their wages, jobs and benefits. They want to work for a “good” company.

Versus:

· Consumers (advocates): those vocal groups who are upset when products are introduced that hurt the user, environment or other similar such situation. Recall the boycotts of Exxon during Exxon-Valdez mess in Alaska.

Query:

What if a toy company produced a product that might have dangerous fluid in a teething ring, but yet no one had ever complained or been injured? Should they stop, fix, recall or remove the product? Or should they wait?

What about the book’s example of selling glue – as you might recall, some users were misusing the product and causing injury to themselves. That isn’t the intent of the product. Are they responsible?

· Under utilitarian approaches, all that matters is what is the best for the most matters. Here the item wasn’t illegal.

· Contrast: under the duty based Kantian approach, it is hard to defend any product that hurts people, even if due to misuse by the persons using it.

Business Ethics- Duty versus Outcome

Duty based Ethics: based on underlying concept of duty regardless of consequences of action taken. Usually arise from religious belief and/or philosophic reasoning, i.e., compassion, basic rights.

· Recall è Kantian: moral- each of us is unique. If treated as a means to an end, people become objects. Therefore, if even one person is/could be hurt, there needs to be corrective action.

Compare: Outcome based ethics: Ethics based on the consequences of action taken or foresworn, without regard to any underlying concept of duty or morality- situational ethics.

Outcome based ethics = Utilitarianism dictates that a decision to act or not act should be directed towards producing the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Occasional “injury” to individuals is therefore an acceptable risk.

This, of course, is a cost benefit analysis. In other words, who will be affected by the action; the cost/benefit of such an action, and a choice among alternative actions that produces the greatest return or social utility.

Is it right to allow (non-voluntary or without the subject’s knowledge) drug testing on people if it helps many people?

Doesn’t this fly in the face of human individuality and rights? Similar to the Nazi’s in the concentration camp?

So, how does a business consider the issues from a more common perspective- its profits?

Maximum vs. Optimum Profits

Maximum profits implies maximum return without considering other factors, such as legality and morality.

Optimum profits implies the maximum return you can achieve within legal and moral constraints

Example: you could make huge (maximum) profits selling a controlled substance illegally. You would make optimum profits selling the same controlled substance following all rules and ethical considerations.

Thus in summary:

Is it Profitable?

Legal?

Ethical? Really, it depends on the first two questions.

Some common elements, forgetting a moment about the Legality of the situation:

· Sexual harassment- who has the responsibility- the company or the individual? More on this in the labor section.

· Downsizing (laying off) of persons- is your severance notice via e-mail or voice mail ethical? What about giving you 10 minutes or less to pick up your personal effects before you are escorted out of the building?

· Consumer Welfare (Sales activities)

o Product misuse (change of the buyer beware to seller beware)

o Duty to warn (except where open and obvious- like a knife)

So, what is ethical? All I can say is that the standard is constantly evolving, and you will be part of that changing target!

Other “ethical issues”/laws

Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: A law to prevent the paying of bribes to foreign government officials, a practice that was once common. Established in 1977. Sometimes called the Internal auditors job enhancement act.

Foreign Suppliers employment issues (recall Nike?)