Opting to Blow the Whistle or Choosing to Walk Away
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Opting to Blow the Whistle or Choosing to Walk Away
By ALINA TUGEND
Published: September 20, 2013 FACEBOOK TWITTER GOOGLE+ SAVE E-MAIL SHARE PRINT SINGLE PAGE REPRINTS WHISTLE-BLOWERS have been big news lately — from Chelsea Manning, formerly known as Pfc. Bradley Manning, to Edward J. Snowden. Yet, for most people, the question of whether to expose unethical or illegal activities at work doesn’t make headlines or involve state secrets.
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Daniel Rosenbaum for The New York Times
Stephen Kohn, of the National Whistleblowers Center, says true whistle blowing is when people report seeing something that is against the law.
But that doesn’t make the problem less of a quandary. The question of when to remain quiet and when to speak out — and how to do it — can be extraordinarily difficult no matter what the situation.
And while many think of ethics violations as confined to obviously illegal acts, like financial fraud or safety violations, the line often can be much blurrier and, therefore, more difficult to navigate.
According to the Ethics Resource Center, a nonprofit research organization, the No. 1 misconduct observed — by a third of 4,800 respondents — was misuse of company time. That was closely followed by abusive behavior and lying to employees.
The findings were published in the organization’s 2011 National Business Ethics Survey, which interviewed, on the phone or online, employees in the commercial sector who were employed at least 20 hours a week. It has been conducted biannually since 1994.
But offensive behavior that creates a hostile work environment, although often not thought of as unethical behavior, is the leading reason people leave their jobs, said Patricia J. Harned, president of the center. “Abusive and intimidating behavior by supervisors and managers creates a toxic work environment.”
So does lying to employees. Lester, who asked that I use only his first name to avoid
Opting to Blow the Whistle or Choosing to Walk Away
By ALINA TUGEND
Published: September 20, 2013 FACEBOOK TWITTER GOOGLE+ SAVE E-MAIL SHARE PRINT SINGLE PAGE REPRINTS WHISTLE-BLOWERS have been big news lately — from Chelsea Manning, formerly known as Pfc. Bradley Manning, to Edward J. Snowden. Yet, for most people, the question of whether to expose unethical or illegal activities at work doesn’t make headlines or involve state secrets.
Enlarge This Image
Daniel Rosenbaum for The New York Times
Stephen Kohn, of the National Whistleblowers Center, says true whistle blowing is when people report seeing something that is against the law.
But that doesn’t make the problem less of a quandary. The question of when to remain quiet and when to speak out — and how to do it — can be extraordinarily difficult no matter what the situation.
And while many think of ethics violations as confined to obviously illegal acts, like financial fraud or safety violations, the line often can be much blurrier and, therefore, more difficult to navigate.
According to the Ethics Resource Center, a nonprofit research organization, the No. 1 misconduct observed — by a third of 4,800 respondents — was misuse of company time. That was closely followed by abusive behavior and lying to employees.
The findings were published in the organization’s 2011 National Business Ethics Survey, which interviewed, on the phone or online, employees in the commercial sector who were employed at least 20 hours a week. It has been conducted biannually since 1994.
But offensive behavior that creates a hostile work environment, although often not thought of as unethical behavior, is the leading reason people leave their jobs, said Patricia J. Harned, president of the center. “Abusive and intimidating behavior by supervisors and managers creates a toxic work environment.”
So does lying to employees. Lester, who asked that I use only his first name to avoid