The ethical context of HRM

Personnel management concerns the planning of the workforce and development-related activities in the organization. We can say that it is this branch of management, where ethics really matter, because it deals with human problems, especially issues of remuneration, development, production relations and health and safety issues. However, there is sufficient disagreement with the various circles. There are different seminaries of thought that differ in their views on the role of ethics or ethics in the development of human resources. The group of leaders of public opinion believes that since in markets manage organizational interests and that these interests are satisfied by people, people are therefore most at risk. They believe that markets require profit on behalf of participants and, if we do not have rules, standards and procedures, the same will turn into a demon controlling markets and crushing human capital, Personnel ethics became compulsory.

“All human practices have an ethical basis. HR deals with the practical consequences of human behavior”

(Rose, A 2007 cited in Johnson, 2003).

There is another ethical group inspired by neon-liberalism that believes there is no business ethics except to realize higher profits through the use of human resources. They argue that the use of optimal human resources is more value for shareholders, the organization and society, and those employees, as they are part of a company or organization, benefit indirectly.

The nature of the market system influences business and personal ethics; the latter will thus be the subject of negotiations. In those occupations where market conditions do not favor workers, government and trade union intervention is needed to monitor potential exploitation. In the free market system, workers and employers are almost equally capable of negotiating creating win-win situations for both sides. The actions of the government or trade unions become harmful.

Of all organizational problems or problems, ethical issues are the most difficult to solve or solve. There are problems related to employment, wages and benefits, industrial relations and health and safety.

Figure 01. HR Ethical Issues    
                    

   Cash and Compensation Plans :-  There are ethical issues regarding salaries, executive preferences, and annual incentive plans, etc. The HR manager is often under pressure to raise a group of basic salaries. Increasing pressure on the HR function to give more incentives to top management and the justification for this is the need to preserve the latter. Other ethical issues arise in the HR area when long-term compensation and incentive plans are developed in consultation with the CEO or external consultant. When deciding on the payment, there is pressure to represent the interests of the management in relation to the interests of other employees and interest groups.

Privacy issues: -  Every person who works with an organization is an individual and has a personal side of existence that he or she requires, that needs to be respected and is not allowed to intervene. The employee wants the organization to protect their privacy. This personal life can cover things like his religious, political and social beliefs and so on. However, certain situations may occur that may affect the behavior of the employer. For example, scanning emails is one of the activities used to track the activities of an employee who is believed to be engaged in activities that are not in the best interests of the company.

There are also ethical issues related to health and safety, restructuring and layoffs, as well as the responsibility of human resources.

Ethics and Production:- 

Ethics in production is a subset of business ethics designed to ensure that a production function or activity does not harm the consumer or society. As with other ethical standards, there is a specific code of conduct or standards that must be followed, but ethics enforcement is often difficult. One of the most important features of a business today is that there is a great deal of interdependence between different business functions. The production can not be done without marketing and sales and vice versa. In order to survive in competition, companies try to reduce the costs associated with production processes. This economy is sometimes achieved at the expense of quality. Bad processes and technologies reduce costs, especially for small businesses that cannot afford economies of scale.

There are ethical issues arising from the use of new technologies harmful to health, safety and the environment. Technological advances, such as genetically modified foods, mobile phone radiation, medical devices, etc., are less of a problem but dilemmas.

Defective services and products or products that are inherently harmful, such as alcohol, tobacco, fast cars, military actions, chemical production, etc.

The testing of animals and their rights or the use of people with economic or social disadvantages for tests or experiments is another area of ​​industrial ethics.

Ethics of transactions between the organization and the environment leading to pollution, global warming, increased water toxicity and reduced natural resources.

Dilemma of Ethics in Production :-    There are certain processes associated with the production of goods, and a small mistake in the same condition can seriously degrade the quality. For some products, the risk is higher, is a small error can reduce quality and increase the risk of exponential consumption or use. Therefore, the dilemma is to determine the degree of admissibility, which in turn depends on a number of factors. The Bhopal Gas tragedy is one of the examples of when a poisonous gas was created due to negligence on the part of the leadership. As a rule, many manufacturers are engaged in the production of the same goods. You can use the same or different technologies for them. A standard in heterogeneous technologies is often very complex. There are many other factors that contribute to the dilemma, such as the involvement of workers, working conditions, raw materials used, and so on.

When considering Ethical Dilemma, in a business environment, managers are reviewed if they need to solve the ethical dilemma problem. Often, certain situations are not covered by procedures or an official code of conduct, and then managers feel the heat. The problem of ethical decisions is that the decision itself cannot be made in a vacuum; one solution involves many other solutions, and the key is to achieve a balance to ensure a win-win situation. but all of us should know the principles which is When making ethical decisions, there are three basic principles that can be used to solve the problem. These three principles are the principles of intuitionism, moral idealism, and utilitarianism. The principle of intuition is based on the assumption that the character or HR manager is competent enough to understand the importance of the situation and act accordingly, so that the final decision will not harm anyone directly or indirectly related to it.

Ethics Management Programs:- Ethics management programs are developed by the organization or the employer as an attempt to create formalized structures to ensure that the organization is perceived as honest, honest, responsible and fair. Ethical programs around the world are designed considering four factors.

     1)      Consider yourself and the organization as part of a larger social structure.

     2)      As far as possible to take into account the development and well-being of others (internal and external customers).

     3)      Respect for traditions / rituals (organizational diversity) of others.

     4)      Evaluation of objectivity and its significance.

Ethical programs therefore benefit organizations in many ways, help them to set standards of behavior, and second, help them communicate clearly. This prevents the employee from begging on the condition that he does not know that he is not a member of a board that contains policies and procedures that are barely known to employees. Now organizations have recognized the importance of having ethics management programs. Contrary to the belief previously expressed that it only helps the employee, it is believed that ethical programs are equally useful to organizations. Not surprisingly, more and more organizations are implementing these programs for the greater benefit of their employees, employees, and most of all, relationships with employees. As well as topic of ethics can be described with other factors also.like decision making, Myths of Business Ethics, and etc. That proves the word of ‘Ethics’ very important in HRM.  

 

Post Author : Heshanga Amarasiri

 Reference :

managementstudyguide.com (2018) Ethics in Human Resource Management. A study[online] Available at: https://www.managementstudyguide.com/ethics-in-human-resource-management.htm. [Accessed on :7^th June 2018].

Rose, A. (2018) Ethics and Human resource Management. s3.amazonaws.com[online] Available at: https://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/33967033/EHR_C02.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1530214378&Signature=V6msWrn4wPNdhYPcXl1VFdZ0B64%3D&response-contentdisposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DEHR_C02.pdf. [Accessed on:  7^th june 2018].