CHAPTER 8 New

CHAPTER 8:
Ethical
Dilemma
Cristine Moras
Frencess Mae Mayola
What is Ethical Dilemma?
An ethical dilemma is a
situation a person faces in
which a decision must be made
about the appropriate
behavior.
A simple example of an
ethical dilemma is finding a
diamond ring, which
necessitates deciding whether
to attempt to find the owner or
 a situation in which a difficult choice has to be
made between two or more alternatives,
especially equally undesirable ones.
a difficult situation or problem.

Resolving Ethical Dilemmas
In recent years, formal frameworks have

been developed to help people resolve ethical
dilemmas. The purpose of such a framework is in
identifying the ethical issues and deciding on an
appropriate course of action using the person's
own values.
six-step approach in resolving ethical dilem
1. Obtain the relevant facts.
2. Identify the ethical issues from the facts.
3. Determine who is affected by the outcome
of the dilemma and how each person or
group is affected.
4. Identify the alternatives available to the
person who must resolve the dilemma.
5. Identify the likely consequences of each
alternatives.
6. Decide the appropriate action.
Illustrative case: Resolving an Ethical
Dilemma
Bert Cruz has been working for 6 months as a staff
assistant for a law firm, Alvendia and Castro. Currently
he is assigned to the case of Ryan Manufacturing
Company under the supervision of Carlos Reyes, an
experienced senior lawyer. There are three junior legal
of assistants assigned to the case, including Bert, Carlos
and more experienced assistant, Martha Sy.
During lunch on the first day, Carlos says, "I will be
necessary for as to work few extra hours on our own
time to make sure we come in on budget. This case
isn't very profitable anyway, and we don't want to
hurt our firm by going over budget.
We can accomplish this easily by coming in a half
hour early, taking a short lunch break, and working
an hour or so after normal quitting time. We just
won't write that time down on our time report."
Bert recalls reading in the firm's policy manual that working
hours and not charging for them on the time report is a violation
of Alvendia and Castro employment policy. He also knows that
seniors are paid bonuses, instead of overtime, whereas staffs are
paid for overtime but get no bonuses.
Later, when discussing the issue with Martha, she says,
"Carlos does this on all of his job. He is likely to be our firm's next
manager. The partners think he is great because his job always
come in under budget. He rewards us by giving us good
engagement evaluations, especially under the cooperative
attitude category. Several of the other seniors staff follow the
same practice."
Ethical Issue
The ethical issue in this

???
situation is not difficult
to identify. Is it ethical for
Bert to work hours and
not them as hours
worked is this situation?
Who is Affected and How is
each Affected?
There are typically more

people affected in situations
in which ethical dilemmas
occur than would normally be
expected. The following are
the key persons involved in
this situation:
Bert's Available Alternatives
- Refuse to work the additional
hours. - Talk to manager or partner about
Carlos request.
- Perform is the manner requested.
- Refuse to work on the
- Inform Carlos that he will not work engagement.
the additional hours or will charge
the additional hours to the - Quit working for the firm.
engagement.
Each of these options includes a potential consequence, the worst likely one
being termination by the firm.
Consequences of Each Alternative
In deciding the consequences of each alternative, it is essential
to evaluate both the short and long-term effects. There is a natural
tendency to emphasize the short term because those consequences
will occur quickly, even when the long-term consequences may be
more important. For example, consider the potential consequences if
Bert decides to work the additional hours and not report them. In the
short term, he will likely get good evaluations for cooperation and
perhaps a salary increase. In the longer term, what will be the effect of
not reporting the hours this time when other ethical conflicts arise?
Consider the following similar ethical dilemmas
Bert might face in his career as he advances:
A supervisor asks Bert to work 3 reported hours daily and 15 unreported hours each weekend.
A supervisor asks Bert to initial certain procedures as having been performed when they were
not.
Bert concludes that he cannot be promoted to manager unless he persuades assistants to work
hours that they do not record.
Management informs Bert, who is now a partner, that either the company gets a P400,000 legal
fee or the company will change lawyers.
Management informs Bert that the legal fee will be increased P50,000 if Bert can find a
plausible way to increased probability or winning the case.
Appropriate Action
Only Bert can decide the appropriate option to select in the

circumstances after considering his ethical values and the likely
consequences of each option. At one extreme, Bert could decide that
the only relevant consequence is the potential impact on his career.
Most of us would conclude that Bert is an unethical person if he
follows that course. At the other extreme, Bert can decide to refuse
to work for a firm that permits even one supervisor to violate firm's
policies. Many people would consider such an extreme reaction
naïve.
END OF CHAPTER 8

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CHAPTER 8:

a difficult situation or problem.

In recent years, formal frameworks have

The ethical issue in this

There are typically more

Only Bert can decide the appropriate option to select in the

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