1. Do you think it was right for Cyndie to tell the Japanese tourist that “her coworker had to go home early because he was sick?”

2. Cyndie decided to speak with Jeffrey. From an ethical perspective, do you think Cyndie made the right decision as opposed to speaking directly with either Sarah Hoffman or David Cohen? Would you have done the same thing? Why or why not?

3. During their discussion, Jeffrey tells Cyndie that he has an alcohol problem. Lately, it’s gotten to him really bad. That’s why he’s left early—to get a drink and calm his nerves. Jeffrey also explains that this is the real reason he was demoted. He had been warned that if one more incident occurred, David would fire him. He pleaded with Cyndie to work with him through these hard times. How would you react to Jeffrey’s request if you were Cyndie? Would your answer change if Jeffrey was a close personal friend instead of someone who gave you the creeps? Why or why not?

4. Assume that Cyndie keeps quiet. The following week, another incident occurs. Cyndie gets into a shouting match with a customer who became tired of waiting for his coffee after 10 minutes. Cyndie felt terrible about it, apologized to the customer after serving his coffee, and left work that night wondering if it was time to apply to graduate school. The customer was so irate that he contacted David and expressed his displeasure about both the service and Cyndie’s attitude. David asks to meet with Jeffrey, Sarah, and Cyndie the next day. What are Cyndie’s ethical responsibilities at this point?

Better Boston Beans is a coffee shop located in the Faneuil Hall Marketplace near the waterfront and Government Center in Boston. It specializes in exotic blends of coffee, including Sumatra Dark Roast Black, India Mysore “Gold Nuggets,” and Guatemala Antigua. It also serves a number of blended coffees, including Reggae Blend, Jamaican Blue Mountain Blend, and Marrakesh Blend. For those with more pedestrian tastes, the shop serves French Vanilla, Hazelnut, and Hawaiian Macadamia Nut varieties. The coffee of the day varies, but the most popular is Colombia Supremo. The coffee shop also serves a variety of cold-blended coffees.
Cyndie Rosen has worked for Better Boston Beans for six months. She took the job right out of college because she wasn’t sure whether she wanted to go to graduate school before beginning a career in financial services. Cyndie hoped that by taking a year off before starting her career or going on to graduate school, she would experience “the real world” and find out firsthand what it is like to work a 40-hour week. (She did not have a full-time job during her college years because her parents paid for the tuition and books.)
Because Cyndie is the “new kid on the block,” she is often asked to work the late shift, from 4 p.m. to midnight. She works with one other person, Jeffrey Levy, who is the assistant shift supervisor. Jeffrey has been with Boston Beans for three years but recently was demoted from shift supervisor. Jeffrey reports to Sarah Hoffman, the new shift supervisor. Sarah reports to David Cohen, the owner of the store.
For the past two weeks, Jeffrey has been leaving before 11 p.m., after most of the stores in the Marketplace close, and he has asked Cyndie to close up by herself. Cyndie feels that this is wrong and it is starting to concern her, but she hasn’t spoken to Jeffrey or anyone else. Basically, she is afraid to lose her job. Her parents have told her that financially she is on her own. They were disappointed that Cyndie did not go to graduate school or interview for a professional position after graduating from college.
Something happened that is stressing Cyndie out and she doesn’t know what to do about it. At 11 p.m. one night, 10 Japanese tourists came into the store for coffee. Cyndie was alone and had to rush around and make five different cold-blended drinks and five different hot-blended coffees. While she was working, one of the Japanese tourists, who spoke English very well, approached her and said that he was shocked that such a famous American coffee shop would only have one worker in the store at any time during the workday. Cyndie didn’t want to ignore the man’s comments, so she answered that her coworker had to go home early because he was sick. That seemed to satisfy the tourist.