Ethical Dillema: Examples of Ethical Dilemmas Accounting: Your supervisor enters

Question

Ethical Dillema:

Examples of Ethical Dilemmas

Accounting:

Your supervisor enters your office and asks you for a check for 150.00 for expenses he tells you he incurred entertaining a client last night. He submits receipts from a restaurant and lounge. At lunch your supervisor’s girlfriend stops by to pick him up for lunch and you overhear her telling the receptionist what a great time she had at dinner and dancing with your supervisor the night before. What do you do?

Bank Teller:

You have worked as a bank teller for several months when one of the other tellers who has become a good friend tells you that her daughter is extremely ill and that she must have an operation to survive. She also tells you that she has no insurance and the operation will cost $10,000. Sometime later you ask her about her daughter and she tells you she is just fine now. She then confides in you that she took $10,000.00 from a dormant account at the bank to pay for the operation. She assures you that she has already started paying it back and will continue to do so until it is all returned. What do you do?

Computers:

In your spare time at work, you have developed a new spreadsheet program on the personal computer in your office. It is even more powerful, yet easier to use than anything on the market. You share your new program with a friend who encourages you to market it on your own because you could probably make an incredible profit in a very short time. This is a very attractive option, yet you developed it using company equipment and during time that you were at work.

What do you do?

Explanation / Answer

Ethical Dilemmas

Accounting :

This is a really very complicated ethical dilemma as whether to tell this fact to anyone or not. For this type of dilemmas the term of ethical thinking Utilitarianism can be used. Utilitarianism allows people to view the ethics of a situation as black and white because it either helps the greatest number of people or it does not.

In this situation by not telling anyone, you are helping your supervisor in misusing the company's money. Not reporting the incident would also help yourself as because your supervisor would hold a grudge against you if you did report him. However, by letting the supervisor to use company funds personally this time, he will probably continue to do so. This action would obviously hurt the company as whole by draining its resources and therefore all of its employees. Also, since the company has a prestigious reputation a report about internal misuse of funds would easily tarnish that reputation.

Overall, by reporting the incident you are helping the company as a whole and therefore doing the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Thus you should report this fact to the company as soon as possible to avoid misuse of company's funds in future.  

Bank Teller :

In this case there is an ethical dilemma between the truth and loyalty towards your friend. By telling you that she took $10,000 from a dormant account at the bank without permission, she has now made you part of the deception (crime). If anyone finds out about the truth, your job is also at risk.

In this situation you should confront your friend and ask her to report herself to her boss. If she refuses, you should strongly consider reporting her conversation with you to your boss. It may not be easy but doing the right thing is not always the easy thing.

Computers :

This scenario creates a conflict between individual ingenuity and utilization of your employer's time , assets and likely training. It is essentially theft from the company. It should be brought to their attention and the company should have first rights at releasing it. If they choose not to pursue it, then you would need to get permission from them to release it yourself. The new program could legally be considered as property of your employer.

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