HRM/427
Dr. Donovan Lawrence
September 5, 2010
Human Resources professionals are responsible for several roles in the workplace, including implementing and managing policies, recruiting and retention, and training and development. The HR department is responsible for making sure that organizations conduct business ethically and that shareholders are treated ethically. The HR department must be able to monitor compliance with federal and state laws and regulations as well as monitor the conduct of the organization. Implementing and managing policies is just one piece of the HR and ethics relationship, the HR professional must also conduct themselves in an ethical manner. This paper will examine the role that human resources plays in organizational ethics, and how important HR functions are to organizational ethics.
In business ethics can define as the ability and willingness to reflect on values of an organizations decision-making process, and determine how the values of the organization and the decisions of the organization affect stakeholders. Human Resources Management primary responsibility is to develop practices that will enhance an organization’s competitive advantage over other organizations in the same market. Human Resources also have a responsibility to ensure that their organization conducts business ethically and that shareholders are treated ethically. Business decisions, and policies that are implemented have ethical consequences and HR should have input in all business transactions. Human Resources professionals have many roles concerning ethics in the workplace, monitoring: observing actions of the organizations members, investigation: investigating complaints concerning ethical issues, and spokesperson: ethics advocate, leading by example.
“Ethics is integrally related to the contributions of HR because wherever two people exist in a relationship, ethical issues are present” (Losey,
References: Dubois, W. (2001, December). HR departments should play a more prominent role in ethics management. Retrieved from http://www.smeal.psu.edu/news/latest-news/dec01/hrdepts.html Losey, M, Meisinger, S, & Ulrich, D. (2005). The Future of Human Resources Management. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.