Role of Ethics in Appointing a Suitable Candidate for the Post of a Receptionist in a Dental Practice - Term Paper Example

The role of ethics in appointing a suitable candi for the post of a receptionist in a dental practice Introduction: Ethics is an extremely important factor to be taken account in everyday life whether it is for a social, political, economic or business activity. Many theories and arguments have evolved over the years regarding the use of ethical considerations in all spheres of life. A dental practice is planning to hire a receptionist and a total of five qualified and competent candidates have been shortlisted. Each of these candidates has some attribute that stand out, which could become crucial in the person’s appointment for the post. This paper is primarily aimed at an ethical selection of the right candidate with considerations on the attributes which are varied in nature. It will explain why the candidate was rejected and why one of them was chosen for the post. The candidates and their attributes (age in brackets): 1. Ms A (35) belongs to the controversial Osho International accused of questionable moral and religious practices 2. Ms B (30) – pleasant face and personality, but has a large and noticeable birthmark on the left side of the face. 3. Mr C (61) – Could be too old for the job. 4. Ms D (42) – Very obese, but otherwise very good. 5. Mr E (30) – Openly shows his gay preferences Ethics and ethical theories: The problem with a discussion on ethics is that it could cover a diverse area that includes personal beliefs, religious beliefs, social practices, and legal statutes and provisions. In most instances, ethics is about making choices. According to Devettere, ethics is choosing the good over the bad in a particular situation. So, “ethics is not concerned with what people do accidently or unintentionally, even if these behaviours cause bad things” (Devettere 2000, 1). The consequences of an accidental or unintentional act cannot is not relevant in such instances. There are also other who identify ethics with morality. What is moral is ethical and anything immoral is unethical. So, a conscious and intentional decision as in this case of appointment of receptionist has ethical dimensions. A decision, whether it is ethical or not, may turn out to be easy in most circumstances. But in this instance (for appointing the receptionist), the attributes do not have a clear identity as to what is good and bad. For example being obese or having certain religious preferences cannot be considered good or bad unless it is harmful for the self or others in the society. The concept of absolutism may be no longer relevant in a democratic setup. It deals with the divine right of kings as opposed to general ethical behaviour. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and the rule of law and democracy prevails even though the country is headed by a Queen. Absolutism is also related to autocratic behaviour in the sense that an employer can behave in any way he likes to his employee. Even though this is possible here, there are many laws and statutes that an employee can resort to in case of unethical behaviour by an employer. Utilitarianism, a concept primarily developed by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill state that a decision should have more advantages than disadvantages and should benefit the maximum number of people (Johnson 2004, 130). Determinism on the other hand takes a fatalistic or pessimistic view on the ability of the human race in general. It states that every event or decision is based upon past events, experiences, and antecedents. Another relevant offshoot of this line of thought is concept of economic determinism as developed by Marx and Engels. They bring in a new dimension to the concept by stating that every activity and decision by human beings is based on economic consideration. This in essence will lead to exploitation of the masses by rich capitalists. Kantian ethics also is grounded in the concept of morality and duty. Each person’s actions should be based on moral principles and his or her duty in social and professional life. This approach towards morality and duty can cause conflicts with one’s emotions and the former should prevail. Aristotle also states that any action must be for the good of the society and the consequences of one’s actions should always be good and moral. Ego is another factor that has influenced human decisions over the years. In this context, it would be worthwhile to consider the concept of ethical egoism which is a combination of ethics and ego. Ethical egoism states that any activity or decision by a person “should seek as an end only that individuals own welfare” (Ethical egoism 2009). But this line of thought adds that egoism need not be harmful to the ‘other person’ in spite of being a selfish act or decision. If a person thinks that the welfare of others is beneficial to one’s own welfare, he or she can make decisions that is mutually beneficial or those that are symbiotic in nature. So, a person is being ethically egoistic if he provides a job to an applicant who is financially disadvantaged even though other qualified candidates are available. There are aspects like male chauvinism, patriarchy and racism to be considered with regard to work ethics. Women and members not belonging to the white community could be the subject of discrimination on the basis of their gender or colour (LaFollette 2002, 452). According to this author, in an experiment conducted by the University of Princeton, interviewers spent less time with black candidates than white applicants. There is also a feeling among many that women need to perform much better than men to get the same level of appreciation. The issue of gender dominance and discrimination arises from the concept of patriarchy in society. Even thought the basic meaning of patriarchy is about men being the head of a family unit, the word has more relevant connotations in a social context. The Merriam Webster dictionary defines this concept as a “social organization marked by the supremacy of the father in the clan or family, the legal dependence of wives and children, and the reckoning of descent and inheritance in the male line; broadly: control by men of a disproportionately large share of power” (Patriarchy 2009). During primitive times, men became the protector and the food provider due to his superior physical strength. Over the ages practice, acquiescence (by women), and helplessness, made it so that even in modern times, men are automatically referred to as the head of the family and also seen as dominant. There are many dimensions in a patriarchal society (which still exists strongly according to many authors) that show male dominance. According to the book ‘Ecofeminist Philosophy’, in a patriarchal society, even language can be termed as a ‘sexist-naturist’ one. Over the years attitudes towards women employees were primarily affected through such outlooks. There may some areas where women are unsuited due to biological and security reasons. For example, construction workers may require activities that need brute physical strength. Again some jobs might be more suited for females than men. Conflict resolution and nursing could be cited as examples. Women also need time off during pregnancy and this might deter some employers because of the lost working hours. But this again is not valid because growth and survival of the society is dependent on this and employers should take this into consideration and make allowance for lost hours willingly. There is also a mistaken conception that women are prone to hysteria. According to Stella Tamang, who holds the Chair of a United Nations department, studies show that women are better able to handle the tension in conflict situations and are better at negotiation in such cases. Religion and law also provide for ethical behaviour. Practically every accepted religion in the world has similar views on ethics and morality. None of them ever seek to promote unethical behaviour and the many problems seen today is perpetuated by certain sections for various selfish interests. There are also laws and statutes in most countries aimed at encouraging and ensuring ethics, especially in business. In the UK, the following statues are examples that protect employee rights in various areas (What are your employment rights? 2009). The Employment Equality Act (Age) Regulations 2006 provides protection against discrimination of hiring people above fifty years of age. The Disability Discrimination Act (1995) protects the rights of applicants who have any physical disabilities. The Race Relations Act is aimed at removing discrimination regarding race and religious beliefs. Discrimination due to gender can be resolved through the Sex Discrimination Act. While these statutes are welcome additions in promoting rights, it may prove to be difficult in assessing ethical beliefs of employers. This aspect will be discussed in the final section of this paper. Selection and rejection criteria of applicants with regard to ethics: It should be mentioned here that each of the rejected candidates can take recourse to law in the United Kingdom if the contents of this paper be made available to them. But a decision has to be made taking into consideration their attributes and the selection of a single candidate among them is inevitable. According to the personal view of this employer, there is also no question of bias or discrimination based on gender, colour or religious beliefs. It should also be noted (again) that all the five candidates are equally qualified to hold the job except for their specific attributes. Determinism is not a major factor since past experience has shown that a particular candidate who is qualified for the job can only be judged by actual performance. Economic determinism will be a factor in this selection since this clinic is not a charitable organization and has economic factors to be considered. Ethical egoism is also a factor in selection since there is an element of selfishness (looking after own welfare) involved. Finally, ethical theories state that any decision has to be taken with regard to maximum benefit for the people of the society. In this instance, the majority who benefits from the post of the receptionist are the customers. Their views and opinions will have to be taken into consideration in this instance. Each of these candidates will be reviewed separately and the selected employee will be discussed last. Ms B, (age 35) – unappealing birthmark: Economic determinism and ethical egoism disqualifies this person for the job. A receptionist has to face people all the time and customers should be a person who has acceptable appearance. The birthmark on this candidates face stands out too much for the job at hand. Moreover, customers are the biggest beneficiaries of this clinic and the rejection supports the views provided by most ethical theories. In other words, a decision should benefit most people and not a minority. Mr C (age 61): Ethical egoism and economic determinism disqualify this candidate for the job. He is also not really suited for the job considering the volume of work involved. This is a full time job and involves dealing with many patients six days a week. It would be difficult for person of this age to handle his duties effectively. Moral considerations (as per Kantian ethics) also have a part in this decision since it would be too much of a physical strain on the candidate. Ms D (age 42) – obesity: The same argument above holds good for this candidate also. Mr E (age 30) – Openly gay: This candidate is rejected on moral and ethical rounds along with the belief that maximum number of people should be benefited according to ethical theories. The fact that he is gay is not an important factor even though it is against most social/religious orders and beliefs. The word that stands out is ‘openly’. Since he does not hide his sexual preferences, it is the clinching factor for rejection. It would not be appealing to male or female customers of the clinic to face a person with such an attitude. Ms A (age 35) – fringe religious beliefs – (selected): This candidate has questionable moral and ethical beliefs since she belongs to a particular controversial fringe religious group. But she does not profess or promote her beliefs to others. She is also pleasant and has a pleasing personality. Since the customer are most important for the clinic, ethical aspects like duty, and benefit to most people is taken into consideration, ignoring other factors. So, Ms A is the chosen candidate for the post. Conclusion: In this instance, the decision has to be made, not on qualification or ability, but on other factors or attributes and it has been a difficult decision to make. The main factor to be considered is, benefit to most people, in this particular case, customers of the clinic. There were five equally deserving candidates, but with certain outstanding attributes or beliefs. Ultimately the one which is most beneficial with regard to physical appearance, age, behaviour and attitude towards the clinic and its customers was chosen. References Devettere, R 2000, Practical decision making in health care ethics: cases and concepts, 2nd edn, Georgetown University Press Ethical egoism 2009, Lander University, Viewed 30 October 2009, Johnson, C.E 2004, Meeting the Ethical Challenges of Leadership: Casting Light Or Shadow, 2nd edn, Sage Publications LaFollette, H 2002, Ethics in practice: an anthology, 2nd edn, Wiley-Blackwell Patriarchy 2009, Merrian-Webster, Viewed 30 October 2009, < http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/patriarchy> What are your employment rights? 2009, About equal opportunities, Viewed 30 October 2009, < http://www.aboutequalopportunities.co.uk/employment-rights.html>. Read More