Ethical values in an
organization are important and should be up held by everyone, but when the
phrase “everybody is doing it” comes out, does that change the standard? It
should not change the standard, which people function in an organization but it
does, which leads to a slippery slope and before someone realizes it, chaos and
trouble has become front and center. I work in a position where money, honesty,
and accountability are front and center each day because I work alongside the
Department of Veterans education, I do not work for them, but I work with them.
The Department of Veterans, in any capacity makes headline news quite frequently
for unethical business practices, fraud, and various other issues that are
brought to light.
When working with the
education side of the VA and money is involved, errors can and do happen.
However, returning money to the VA for over payments made on their end is not
always easy and can become stressful, agonizing, and frustrating; most days it
will make someone feel crazy. When the situation happens and I argue with the
VA back and forth the money does not belong to the school, it takes an enormous
amount of effort to get them to take the funds back.
From my perspective, it
would be easy to say “Oh, well” and keep the money. Except that is not right
and using the phrase, “I tried, they won’t take it”, will lead to a slippery
slope of unethical practices of not returning money to the department it belongs.
My Boss does not even toe the line of the slippery slope and ensures we do
everything and anything to return the money, regardless of how difficult it is.
With persistence and effort in the most difficult of situations, the money is
returned to the VA.
Gallagher (2013) provided
an example in the video how easy it is to hide or be dishonest about money, the
example was when he wanted to take his wife out, and the bill was more than he
expected. If he lost the receipt and the itemized bill, no one would know who
was at dinner and the bill could be wrote off as a client meeting. When an
individual does this once, what will stop them from doing this again? If one,
is willing to compromise their standards one time, what prevents them from
doing it a second time?
Once
an individual steps over the line of unethical business practices, regardless
of how small or the consequence, the chance of repeating the behavior or going
a step further the next time becomes a little easier each time. This is why in
my job an active approach to handling money and returning funds to the
department is imperative each time, regardless of how difficult it can be. This
ensures that one does not become complacent and justifying their actions which
leads to unethical practices.
Gallagher, C. (2013,
January 27). Business Ethics Keynote Speaker - Chuck Gallagher - shares
Straight Talk about Ethics! [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUJ00vNGCPE
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