BUSINESS COMMUNICATION

3rd year/ IE Course 4

Business Ethics and Communication

1.
2.
3.
4.

What is ethics and business ethics?

Unethical behavior in business
Language and discrimination
Ethical dilemmas

1. What is ethics and business

ethics?

Ethics learning what is right or wrong, and then

doing the right thing values moral values
respect, honesty, fairness, responsibility (statements
around how these values are applied are called
moral or ethical principles);
Business ethics knowing what is right or
wrong in the workplace and doing what is right
in regard to effects of products / services and in
relationships with the stakeholders;

 Codes

of ethics

Ethics

committees

Policies
Ethics

and procedures

training

Values
Honesty
Truth
Fairness
Integrity
- > the only way to succeed in business

Making decisions based on the needs of

employees, customers, stakeholders and the
community requires a good leader.
What do good leaders do in order to achieve
ethical standards?

On-the-job ethical conflicts

Conflict of interest
Loyalty vs. Truth
Honesty vs. Integrity
Whistleblowing

2. Unethical Behaviour in Business

Whistleblowing is the term used to define an
employees decision to disclose information to an
authority figure (boss, media, government official);
Dumping of toxic waste
Violating laws about hiring and firing
Violating laws about workplace safety
Violating health laws which lead to documented
illness and even death

 When

should an employee blow the whistle?

When should he/she keep quiet?
Guidelines for whistleblowing:
Magnitude of consequences
Probability of effect
Temporal immediacy
Concentration of effort

 Corruption
Bribery
Industrial

espionage
Blackmarket sales
Creative accounting
Discrimination

3. Language Discrimination
Direct

discrimination is treating one

person less favourably than another because
of particular attributes: race, colour, sex,
sexual preferences, age, disability, medical
record, marital status, pregnancy, family
responsibilities, criminal record, trade union
activity, political opinion, religion, social
origin, etc.

 Indirect

discrimination is treating
everyone the same but in a way that ends up
being unfair to a specific group of people.
(when the design of a workplace prevents a
person with a disability from accessing the
equipment needed to do the job)

 Language

and age: - negative attitudes

towards older people who are often seen as
being rigid in their views, unable to learn new
things;
- attitudes towards age
are conditioned by the rapid technological
changes taking place in our society (people
past the age of 40 are deemed to be no
longer employable);

Language and cultural diversity:

- racism
- Stereotyping in speaking and writing means attributing
particular characteristics (temperament, academic potential,
linguistic abilities, cultural practices to all members of an
assumed group):
Coloured alludes specifically to skin colour
An alternative approach would be to emphasize geographical
origin or cultural background and use terms as Afro-Caribbean,
or of South Asian origin or of African origin.

 Language

and disability: - when speaking

or writing to or about people with disabilities,
positive attributes are all too often
overlooked.
Handicapped, mentally deficient, slow learner
A wheelchair user is not confined to or bound to
their wheelchair, it is an aid to their mobility
and freedom.

 Language

and gender: - the so-called

generic terms he and man (along with men
and man) are still heard and read across a
range of workplace settings: all businessmen
Alternatives are available: people or human
beings instead of man or they instead of
generic he.

4. Ethical Dilemmas
What would you do???
A

customer asked for a product from our

company today. After telling him our price, he
said he couldnt afford it. I know he could get
it cheaper from a competitor. Should I tell him
about the competitor or let him go without
getting what he needs? What should I do?

fellow employee told me that he plans to

quit the company in two months and start a
new job which has been guaranteed to him.
Meanwhile, my boss told me that he wasnt
going to give me a new opportunity in our
company because he was going to give it to
my fellow employee now. What should I do?

 You

work in the quality control division of a

company. You have rejected some of the
parts that have come through your
department because they did not meet
company standards. Your boss tells you that
you should ignore the low standard parts.
What should you do?