What is ethics? We all know that everyone has their
own perception about ethics.
Some people might say:
"Ethics has to do with what my feelings tell me
is right or wrong."
"Ethics has to do with my religious
beliefs."
"Being ethical is doing what the law requires."
"Ethics consists of the standards of behavior
our society accepts."
According to BCC, ethics doesn't always show the right
answer to moral problems. Indeed more and more people think that for many
ethical issues there isn't a single right answer. Ethics just like a set of
principles that can be applied to particular cases to give those involved some
clear choices. Some philosophers go further and say that all ethics can do is
eliminate confusion and clarify the issues. After that it's up to each
individual to come to their own conclusions.
Ethics can be in many types. Supernaturalism makes
ethics inseparable from religion. It teaches that the only source of moral
rules is God. So, something is good because God says it is, and the way to lead
a good life is to do what God wants. Another type of ethics is consequentialism.
This is the ethical theory that most non-religious people think they use every
day. It bases morality on the consequences of human actions and not on the
actions themselves. There also an ethics called situation ethics. Situation
ethics rejects prescriptive rules and argues that individual ethical decisions
should be made according to the unique situation. Rather than following rules
the decision maker should follow a desire to seek the best for the people
involved. There are no moral rules or rights because each case is unique and
deserves a unique solution.
For my personally, I never think that ethics can be
so deep to think until I taking Contemporary Ethics and Corporate Citizenship in
BERJAYA UCH. Before I study ethics, I will use my religious beliefs to define
my ethical behavior. When I studying this subject, I found it is more than
that. We need to think a lot of areas. For example, I’m a Christian and
according to my religious beliefs, I can’t lie at all. No matter whether it is a
white lie or not, I still can’t lie. I must tell the truth. Then many people would
say that I’m stupid or how can I survive in future when I come to work as the
world is full of unfairness and so on.
Tell lies never be easy unless used to it. Telling
the truth is not always easy. It can be uncomfortable and scary when it comes
to certain situations at work. In fact, lying on the job is pretty common these
days. Why people would like to tell lies in the workplace? They’ll think how if
I say the truth and get fired without giving me second chance? Or even I say
the truth but no one believes in me? Or do colleagues still accept who I am
after I revealed the truth? People lie for many reasons. They lie because
they’re trying to please customers or because they don’t want to get punished
for making a mistake. They lie because they’re ashamed, or because they’re
trying to manipulate a situation to their favor.
I work as a part-timer in Purple Cane Company.
Purple Cane is a company selling all sorts of Chinese tea from Yunnan, China. Purple
Cane located at Shaw Parade which is behind Berjaya Times Square. There are two
Purple Cane shops in Shaw Parade, one located at Ground Floor, and another one
located at First Floor. One day, the officer of ground floor asks me to take some
expensive green tea sample from 1st floor. I asked the officer, how
if the officer of 1st floor asks me why I need to take the sample?
The officer told me to say it is for customer tea tasting. Actually the sample
is us, the staffs to drink the tea. I struggling that time because I don’t want
to tell lie due to my religious belief and if I tell the truth, I will get
scold by the officer and maybe get fired. When I went up to the 1st
floor and took the sample, the officer of 1st floor asked why I took
the expensive green tea sample. She also asked me whether it is for staffs to
drink or customer to taste. I didn’t answer the question and she just let me to
take the sample. I’m not sure whether I telling lie or not but at that moment,
I feel very guilty. As like what I mentioned, I’m a religious person, even
human may not know but God knows what I’m doing.
From this experience, I really need to think what I
need to do for my future career. Will I tell lie because I need to keep my job
or I just tell the truth and has the possibility to get fired. I believe if I
do my best in career, with honesty and integrity, I can build my reputation in
the eyes of people.
“Honesty is the first chapter of the book wisdom.” ―
Thomas Jefferson
“Honesty and integrity are absolutely essential for
success in life - all areas of life. The really good news is that anyone can
develop both honesty and integrity.” ― Zig Ziglar
