Improve Yourself And Gain Further Skills - Mechanisms For Ethics Advice And Support - Artur Victoria Research And Studies

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This would cover the need to establish, within your organization, various mechanisms which will foster ethical behavior and allow individuals to seek advice on dilemmas, get support for difficult decisions etc. This might include:

Ethics Contact Officers

The establishment of a structure and process for advice giving, which is outside the normal hierarchical relationships between people. This must provide a focal point (or points) for enquiries / advice and uphold absolute confidentiality. It's continued depends upon a track record of trust.

Responsibilities may include:

• Global accountability for developing and directing an organization's ethics, compliance, and business conduct function for the total corporation or organization,

• Providing leadership, oversight, and expert advice to ensure appropriate development, interpretation, and implementation of ethics and compliance strategies, policies and programs,

• Accountability for all program activities relating to standards of conduct including ethical relationships with employees, customers, contractors, suppliers, shareholders, and other stakeholders,

• Providing leadership in the development of a compliance risk management program to assess, prioritize, and effectively manage legal and regulatory compliance,

• Accountability for the organization-wide confidential reporting program (such as a Hotline)allowing employees, customers, suppliers, and other stakeholders to report violations of the organization’s ethical standards, violations of law or corporate policy, without fear ofretaliation,

• Setting the strategy for and administering the organization’s annual or periodic ethics and compliance training, and regular communications around ethics, compliance and conduct
Issues,

• Conducting investigations into alleged violations of organisational ethics, compliance or conduct practices and making recommendations for resolution of misconduct - including disciplinary action,

• Measuring and assessing organisational performance in compliance and ethics arenas, and, providing comprehensive reports to the CEO and any committees, the Board of Directors etc.

Ethics Committees

Roles can include a spectrum from advisory (no hands-on) to very hands-on involvements, as follows. This will depend upon the organizational culture, nature of the business, tolerance for control of compliance outside traditional hierarchical structures etc:

• Develop and regularly review standards and procedures

• Resolve conflicts between competing ethical requirements

• Suggest behaviors’ that reinforce the organization’s ethics guidelines

• Assume responsibility for overall compliance

• Act as a court of last resort re: interpretations of standards and procedures

• Define how the organization balances the rights of individual employees against the organization’s needs

• Solicit stakeholder input regarding how standards and procedures are defined and enforced

• Develop and disseminate the organization’s standards, policies and guidelines on ethical decision making

• Oversight an Ethics "Hot Line" as a mechanism for seeking guidance and reporting suspected wrongdoing and to protect employees' privacy

• Serve as the primary agent for enforcement and discipline

• Ensure that offences are not repeated, through direct action

• Provide a forum to foster communication among ethics committees at large

• Monitor and audit overall compliance

• Undertake or commission research projects on ethics issues relevant to the organization

Whistleblower procedures and protection

Three Polarized Views of Whistle blowing

• The worst possible disloyalty an employee can perpetrate - "ratting' on others, or on the organization;
• An unfortunate but necessary evil, to be avoided at all costs, but ultimately may be necessary as the only option; and
• An expectation that it must happen - that everyone has the responsibility to blow the whistle - that it is a public duty. The organization needs to emphasize and assert where it stands on this and what it expects of its managers and leaders. Managers should ask themselves

Does my organization have clearly documented procedures for receiving and investigating a public interest disclosure from internal or external sources ?

Does my organization have appropriate safeguards to preserve confidentiality ?

Does my organization have trained investigators who can impartially perform investigations ?

Does my organization have a process for proper recording of public interest disclosures and the action taken on them?

Does my organization have documented procedures to protect staff who may be the subject of a reprisal because of a public interest disclosure ?

• Do my staff have a clear understanding of their ethical obligation to report fraud, corruption and maladministration of which they become aware ?

• Do my staff have a clear understanding of what a public interest disclosure is, how to make a public interest disclosure, and what they should do if they receive a public interest
disclosure in their role as a supervisor 7

The various types of whistleblowing:

Internal Whistle blowing

• Disclosure to someone within the organization itself.
• Is this ethical if it is "required" of employees ?
• Which loyalty takes precedence - that to the organization or to the cause at hand ?

Governmental Whistleblowing

• Unauthorised disclosure of actions and/or information relating to the activities of a government or its employees. Personal Whistleblowing
• Reporting the actions of another which we regard as injurious to us personally

Impersonal Whistleblowing

• Reporting the actions of another which we regard as injurious to others (not us personally). When is whistleblowing morally defensible. An hierarchy of conditions upon which whistIeblowing may be, or become, morally defensible:
• If the actions/practices contemplated for disclosure are very likely to do "serious and considerable" harm to individuals.
• If the actions/practices have been reported to the person or group immediately in authority (eg: the disclosing employee's supervisor).
• If the person, or group in authority, does nothing about the allegations and if the employee
has exhausted all reasonable channels.
• If there is clear evidence which is accessible, can be documented, and which would be sufficient to prove a case to any reasonable empirical observer.
• If the employee believes that the disclosure may change how the situation is being handled
(eg: operating procedures), ie: there is a reasonable chance of a successful outcome.

The Whistleblower's Checklist!

• Ensure the situation really warrants it (eg: is the potential harm of disclosure warranted, above the potential harm of non-disclosure)
• Examine your motives. What is your real reason for considering blowing the whistle ?
• Gather evidence, verify it and document your information. Determine exactly the behavior you are reporting and to whom it will be reported.
• State allegations appropriately, specifying exactly the type behavior being reported, who is being adversely affected, and how.
• Just the Facts. Avoid slander, and immoderate language. (This helps to avoid retaliation eg: litigation)
• Decide whether the whistleblowing will be open or anonymous.
• Decide whether you can disclose this information while still a member of the organization
or whether you should leave first.

Protection of Whistleblowers

• Can Whistleblowers EVER really be protected?
• Is it ethical if there is no such requirement?
• Which loyalty takes precedence (to the organization or to the fellow employee) ?

External Whistleblowing

• Disclosure to someone outside the organization itself.

-Harassment
-intimidation and victimization
-job-loss
-Threats
-personal injury
-discrimination
-property damage/loss
-physical abuse
-defamation suits

Rewards and Sanctions

Processes need to be put in place to ensure that there are visible, reliable and consistent rewards for high ethical behavior and penalties for non-compliance to organizational values