HRM Ethics Case Study Analysis

Instructions:

1. Carefully read the assigned case.

2. Identify the stakeholders involved in the case.

3. Suggest possible solutions to the issues described in this case.

4. Identify challenges that various stakeholders may encounter with your suggested alternatives.

5. Assess the suggested alternatives using the ethical theories and principles discussed in the readings.

6. Use the questions after the "Assessing Alternatives Ethically" section to determine which of your alternatives will result in ethical solutions.

What Is the Ethical Issue?

Who Are the Stakeholders?

What Are the Possible Courses of Action?

Identify the Problems With Each Alternative: Utilitarian Theory, Rights Theory, Distributive Justice Theory, Caring Theory and Virtue Theory.

Case :

The Best Person for the Job After 25 years, Art is finally ready to retire and take it easy. Art teaches accounting and general business courses at Youngstown Community College. The business department at Youngstown offers business administration classes transferable to State University as well as professional and technical programs that culminate in a certificate after one year of study or an associate's degree after two years of study. Youngstown has a dual enrollment agreement with State, and as a result, many business students at Youngstown are also enrolled at State.

Art teaches several of the business transfer classes at Youngtown, but his real love is the non-transfer professional accounting program. He was part of the faculty that created the program, and over the years he has taught hundreds of accounting students and helped them obtain internships and find employment in the community. Art's golfing buddy sometimes jokes that every bookkeeper in town has been through Art's accounting classes.

Besides the regular accounting classes and internships, Youngstown maintains an accounting lab where students can get tutoring help if needed. The current lab tutor is David, who was hired two years ago when Dianne retired after nearly 10 years as the accounting tutor. David is a former student of Art's and holds an associate's degree from Youngstown and a bachelor's from State. The lab job is part-time, Which works out perfectly for David, leaving him plenty of time to pursue his MBA in accounting at State. David wants to teach accounting at Youngstown when he completes his MBA.

As a tutor, David has brought the accounting lab to life. He relates well with students, is an excellent tutor, and the faculty sees him as a valuable member of the department. In the two years he has worked in the lab, David has become good friends with Evan, the business department dean. They frequently have lunch together and even socialize with their wives outside of work. Last summer the families went camping together over the 4th of July, and this year they expect to do the same.

Evan is chair of the committee to find Art's replacement. The committee consists of Evan, two additional faculty members, an administrator from another department and Mary, the department chair for business and accounting. On Monday morning, Mary met with Evan to plan out the recruitment process.

"I know HR requires us to job search," said Evan, "but even so, there's no reason why we can't move David into Art's position. He relates well with our students, knows all the ins and outs of the college, and is well liked by the faculty.

" Mary is surprised at Evan's suggestion. "David is a nice guy, and we all like him," she said, "but he's not qualified. This position requires a master's degree, and he's only got a bachelor's."

"He doesn't need a master's degree to teach in the professional/technical program," said Evan. "He's perfectly qualified for that, and we have plenty of other faculty that can teach the transfer program. David is in school anyway. He'll get his MBA next year, and until then, we'll just schedule him for the professional/technical program, and we'll fit the other classes into other faculty members' schedules."

"This is not how we normally replace faculty," said Mary. She was particularly disturbed that Evan's attitude indicated it was a done deal.

"It's no problem," said Evan. "Recruitment is just an HR exercise anyway. I'll have the paperwork ready for your signature by tomorrow."

The paperwork, marked "confidential," was in Mary's mailbox the following morning. It contained all the documents necessary for HR to launch a full-scale recruiting plan, including a new job description written by Evan. Instead of the customary broad-based job description for a faculty member qualified to teach university-transferable and non-transfer classes, Mary found a job description that described David exactly.

"This is a set-up," Mary mumbled to herself. She knows that even with five members on the hiring committee and the required selection process, the actual hiring decision is left to the dean. "It looks like David's got the job no matter what. What good is Youngstown's ethics committee when the deans have the power to act as they pleases anyway?"

What should Mary do?

Assessing Alternatives Ethically Utilitarian Theory

1.Which action will do the most good and the least harm for everyone who is affected?

2. How did you determine what is "the most good" and "the least harm"? Did all team members agree?

3. Explain your choice.

Rights Theory

1.Which action protects and furthers the rights of the stakeholders?

2.When stakeholder rights are in conflict, how do you decide whose rights take precedence?

3.Which action would you want done to you if the roles were reversed?

4.Would you want to live in a world where everyone engaged in the action in question? 5.Explain your answers.

Distributive Justice Theory

1.Which action produces a fair distribution of benefits and costs for all stakeholders?

2.How do you determine what is fair? Who decides?

3.What action provides stakeholders with equal liberty and equal opportunity?

4.Explain your choices.

Caring Theory

1.What action cares for those individuals with whom you have a special relationship? 2.Which action helps those who are vulnerable and dependent on you?

3.Explain your choices.

Virtue Theory

1. What action(s) displays virtuous character traits (e.g., integrity, honesty, fairness, loyalty, etc.)? What virtues are displayed?

2. What action(s) displays vices (e.g., dishonesty, deceit, selfishness, etc.)? What vices are displayed?

3. Explain your answers.