Occupational Safety and Health Administration - Research Proposal Example

Occupational Safety and Health Administration: ethical and social justice This paper is dedicated to analyze Occupational Safety and Health Administration, providing the necessary background and pointing out the major ethical challenges as well as conflict of competence. The major ethical theories were utilized in order to examine the relevant ethical issues. The paper also features an overview of effective recommendations, rationale for them and proposes a discussion of the relation between the ethical issues and major social justice themes. Introduction One would make no mistake suggesting that living in society is closely connected to being engaged in economic activity. Indeed, the majority of the citizens are employed, participating actively in the economy of the country. However, it must be noticed that the place of work should also be safe for the person. This paper will analyze the activity of Occupational Safety and Health Administration, paying particular attention towards the ethical challenges that it faces as well as its relation to the notion of social justice, utilizing major theory concerning ethical behavior as well as providing several recommendation for this particular organization. Background of the organization Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a widely known agency that operates with in the United States Department of Labor. It was established by the Congress after the Occupational Safety and Health Act was signed by President Richard Nixon into law in 1970. The administration in question is dedicated to make sure that all the workers are able to perform their professional activity in healthful and safe working conditions. This organization also makes sure that the whistleblowers are able to avoid the negative consequences after they disclose some information about an organization which violates the applicable rules and regulations. One would make no mistake that the setting which should be taken into account while considering the activities of the administration in question include the conditions in which a person works and the way his or her health is protected by the employer. Another point which should be mentioned in particular is the enforcing of prosecutions of the organizations which fail to comply with the safety standards. In other words there are two major directions of the activity of this administration: the one puts a bigger emphasis on the conditions in the work place which is manifested in issuing safety standards and the other is more employer oriented such as persecution of the violators. One of the most typical examples of ethical issues which are largely addressed by the administration in question focused on the idea what substances should be considered to be harmful and what the permissible exposure limit is. For example, there was a discussion about the nature of formaldehyde whether is contributes to the emergence of cancer or not. Thus, people who work in this organization should make an objective judgment about the effect that a certain substance has on the health of a worker and limit exposure to it accordingly. Another important ethical issue that should be taken into account circles around the compensation for the harm which a person was exposed to. It is clear that all the workers who work in harmful areas are entitled to a certain amount of compensation, but there are instances when no amount of money is enough to compensate the damage that was done. That is why the issue of balance between the possible compensation and the actual negative effects is one of the most debatable ones when it comes to analyzing the activities of Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The issues which are related to the notion of social justice are also applicable to the organization in question. To begin with, one might point out that all the workers who perform their professional duties within the legal framework are entitled to various rights which might be used to protect their health, income, honor and other aspects of their social being. The administration in question is in charge of protecting rights of the workers who may be regarded more vulnerable if compared to those who work in less harmful conditions. Thus, while legal representatives might be overly concerned with the rights of the office employees, people on factories should feel that their legal interests might be protected with the same level of efficiency. In addition to that, as has been noted before, a part of the activities which are performed by Occupational Safety and Health Administration is concerned with bringing to justice the employers who violated safety rules and regulation. As in case of any punishment, it should fit the crime which was committed. Thus, the administration in question is often criticized for designing fines which are not effective and enforcing a rather small number of criminal prosecutions. In other words the activities of this organization are closely connected to the idea of social justice. Philosophical theories about ethical issues Now it would be rather important to employ several philosophical theories in order to analyze the ethical issues that Occupational Safety and Health Administration is facing. The first approach which will be utilized is called Virtue ethics. According to it, the process of deciding whether the material is a harmful one is closely connected to whether the people will be willing to accept the risks for a particular job. In addition to that, the compensation for the damage that they will be exposed might also be negotiated as different people might estimate the harm in different ways. The next approach which should be engaged while considering the significance of the ethical issues is Deontological Ethics. It clearly states that all the subjectss should be guided by the duty to behave in a certain way. In other words, if a material is known to have a negative effect on the organism of a person, the employers should not allow people to work with it and not discuss the permissible limits of its exposure. A similar thinking might be utilized while considering the issue of compensation: Deontology argues that there is not extent to which the harm should be compensated as the employer or the government should eliminate all the harm that it caused regardless of the cost of such action. Finally, there is one more approach which is referred to as Utilitarianism. It is one of the most controversial theories as instead of providing a universal approach, similar to the previous one, it argues that the morality of a particular action largely depends on the consequences of it. In other words, whether a material is a harmful one should be decided by the necessity to use it in the industry. Similarly to it the question of compensation is resolved: the workers may be compensated in the amount which is thought to be effective, meaning it should not be exaggerated Ethical challenges and conflicts of responsibility The next important point of analysis included ethical challenges as well as conflicts of responsibility which may be observed on individual or organizational levels. Since Occupational Safe and Health Administration heavily relies on individual inspectors, the latter should be considered to be the most vulnerable people for various unethical behavior. For example, an employer might offer a gift, anticipating that an inspector will make a better report. In spite of the fact that the society may regard gifts as individual acts of kindness or virtue”, they clearly violate Ethics in this particular case as they are used as tools of manipulation (Schultz, 2010, 163). One of the most important points to consider here is the image of an inspector as a public person, but a private individual (“Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), n.d.). In addition to that there might also be a conflict of responsibility present. For example, a person who works in Occupational Safety and Health Administration may be willing to find an additional job. In this case it is an imperative that such a person is engaged in the field which is not affected by his first place of work as it is will unethical for the same person to carry out duties on both occupations. What is more important is that the very organization in question also faces similar ethical challenges and conflicts of responsibility. For example, one of the most significant problems that it might be challenged with is the corruption. In spite of the fact that the government of the United States of America shows a rather high score in various corruption rankings, it is clear that rare occasion still might occur (“Transparency Internations”, n.d.). What is more important is that various rules and regulations are dedicated to fight all manifestations of the above mentioned negative phenomenon, explicitly stating what items might be considered to be inappropriate gifts (“National Conference of State Legislatures”, 2013). As for the conflicts of responsibility that might occur between Occupational Safety and Health Organization, one should point out that not all workers who are employed in areas which are considered to be dangerous are entitled to the protection of the above mentioned organization. For example, those who work in mining industry or members of flight crews are subject to be protected by the Mine Safety and Health Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration respectively. Summary of the strategies Speaking of the strategies that the organization in question is actively employing in order to achieve its goals, one should point out the following. First of all, as it has been mentioned previously, it is able to impose a fine in case an employer is not able to comply with the safe rules and regulations. Secondly, Occupational Safety and Health Administration is able to enforce criminal investigation of different cases when the employer is proved to be responsible for death of a worker. Finally, the administration in question encourages whistleblowers to step out and expose the malpractices of the organizations, promising them protection from their employers Recommendations Thus, it would be logical to recommend that Occupational Safety and Health Administration addresses the above mentioned ethical challenges in the following way. It would not be a mistake to suggest that the scientific progress is developing rapidly and the traditional ways might be proven to be negative ones. That is why the organization in question should make sure that all the employers are able to adhere to the new standards and introduce changes into practices in terms of exposure of the workers to harmful materials. In addition to that, science might provide new ways to restore the damaged health of the individuals which might be rather effective. Speaking of rationale behind these recommendations, one can hardly dismiss the fact that what people consider to be harmful and what they use to make their life better is largely conditioned by the technological process which develops all the time. That is why it is not the tradition which should determine whether the practice should be regarded as harmful or not, but the scientific facts that prove it. A similar approach might be utilized while considering compensation. While money may be though to be a just compensation for the harm a person was exposed to, various rehabilitation programs might feature better results, restoring health of a person better than additional financial funds. The recommendations which were presented in the paragraphs above might be rather effective as they are based on the criterion which is not stable, but is constantly improving. In other words, the possibility that the tradition will prevail over proven facts is relatively small. In addition to that, these recommendations feature of broad spectrum of application which does not put any limit on their effectiveness. Finally, the concept of guerrilla government employees should be noted while considering the application of these recommendations. It is beyond any doubt that the “subtle and sophisticated power of guerrilla government” might serve as a significant amplification of the policies which are performed by the organization (OLeary, 2014, 47). The reason for it is simple: “decision makers and others within organizations can easily become imprisoned in, and blinded by, their own thoughts and feelings about dissent” which results in ineffective management of the performance (O’Leary, 2010, 17). That is why guerrilla government employees should be viewed as an essential ally in the question of dealing with various ethical challenges as they will be able to make sure that the policies which were designed work properly. Factors that would affect the implementation of the recommendations There are several factors that affect the implementation of the above mentioned recommendations. First of all, it is strict compliance with Ethics codes performed by the employees which represent all the levels of the organization (Gilman, 2005). Indeed, the positive effect of any change might be diminished by improper actions of managers who fail to comply with the newly designed conditions. In addition to that, from the point of view of ethical decision making, the final resolution concerning any aspect of the activity of the administration in question should be guided by principle of greatest good. Indeed, since the number of people who are involved is extremely big, it would not be logical introduce changes that benefit only a small part of the people who are affected by it. Outcomes of the recommendations As for the outcomes of the recommendations which were previously addressed, one might make the following assumptions. It would not be a mistake to suggest that if Occupational Safety and Health Administration reevaluates some of the materials which the workers are currently exposed to, this might lead to the necessity of introducing various changes into the applicable rules and regulations which the employers are likely to oppose to as that will have a negative impact on their performance. However, the damage to the human organism may be reduced. As for the compensation, it is rather probable that science will come up with more effective ways to restore health of the workers and the latter would be willing to participate in such programs rather than accepting money which can hardly cover the cost of treatment. Relation to major social justice themes Finally, one might benefit from analyzing the issues which were discussed in this paper through prism of major social justice themes. For example, the idea of human right finds its explicit manifestation in the entitlement of the employees to effective protection against harmful materials and bringing the employers to justice. With this regard it would be rather logical to mention about theme, namely equality. Indeed, the work contract is concluded between the parties who are equal and, therefore, their liability should be equal too. In other words, Occupational Safety and Health Administration is strives to make sure that the balance of responsibility is maintained. In addition to that, the people who are employed in dangerous areas should feel the same kind of protection as the workers who are engaged in other, less harmful fields of activity. Speaking of the relationship between liberty and the raised ethical concerns, it is important to articulate the following idea: according to the current economic conditions, people liberty to work in any field of activity; that is why it is particularly important that all the occupations, including the most dangerous ones features the same level of protection of the employees so that no one would be hesitant to take any kind of occupation. As a result, the society will witness a more balanced distribution of the human capital and make sure that various people will be able to express themselves in different areas of activity. Finally, it is quite clear that justice is the theme which is considered to be directly involved in the issues which were mentioned above. Since this abstract concept is thought to be guiding human interactions on every level in the society, there is no wonder that it finds a particular manifestation in work related interaction. What is more important is that the society which bases its life on justice is likely to prosper as it will not be exposed to the risk of dissatisfaction of a considerable part of the population. That is why justice is an essential element which ensures the harmony in the societal interaction. Conclusion Having examined all the points which were discussed in the paragraphs above, one is able to come to the following conclusion: Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an important government organization which was designed to ensure the people that are engaged in various fields of activity, including some of the most dangerous ones are able to be protected by the applicable legislation and to work in conditions which are not harmful or at least reasonably harmful to their health, supposed that there is adequate compensation for the negative impact and the employers who violate the standards are punished for misconduct. References Gilman, S. C. (2005). Ethics codes and codes of conduct as tools for promoting an ethical and professional public service: Comparative successes and lessons. Retrieved from http://www.oecd.org/mena/governance/35521418.pdf National Conference of State Legislatures. (2013). Ethics: Legislator gift restrictions overview. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.ncsl.org/research/ethics/50-state-table-gift-laws.aspx OLeary, R. (2010). Guerrilla Employees: Should Managers Nurture, Tolerate, or Terminate Them? Public Administration Review, 70(1), 8-19. OLeary, R. (2014). The ethics of dissent: Managing guerrilla government (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: CQ Press. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (n.d.). Ethics codes and codes of conduct in OECD countries. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.oecd.org/gov/ethics/ethicscodesandcodesofconductinoecdcountries.htm Schultz, D. (2010). Ethics regulation across professions: The problem of gifting. Public Integrity, 12(2), 161172. Transparency International. (n.d.). Research. Retrieved November 19, 2013, from http://www.transparency.org/research U.S. Office of Government Ethics. (2000). A brief wrap on government ethics. Retrieved from http://www.oge.gov/uploadedFiles/Education/Education_Resources_for_Ethics_Officials/Resources/bkbriefwrap_00.pdf Read More