Ethics statements and ethics codes
Many companies are drafting policies in regards to ethics. When these policies are summarised into a few sentences that give general guidelines they are called ethics statements. When they are itemized in a multi-page list that covers many specific situations, they are called ethics codes.
Their purpose is to give employees guidance in ethically ambiguous situations. This should create consistency. It may or may not raise the level of behaviour, depending on the ethical standands of individual employees relative to the new codified standards.
Not everybody is happy with their use. Some claim that many ethical situations are better dealt with by giving individuals discresion and leting them use their best judgement. Many are also skeptical, claiming the main purpose of ethics codes is really to limit the companies legal liability. In case of a law suit the company can claim that the problem would not have arisen if the employee had followed the code properly.
There is often a dissonance between code and practice. Frequently the code will say one thing, but the established practice in the organization is something quite different. This puts the employee in an untenable situation.
To be successful a code of ethics should:
- have the support of top management
- be followed by top management
- be clearly explained to all employees
- be practical and realistic
- include penalties for disobeyance
- be continuously implemented by a "watchdog committee" that has authority to take disciplinary actions
