Business Ethics Discussion Project on Employees' Rights

Consider the following list of rights which employees might be alleged to have:

a. a right to be fully informed about the terms of their employment, potential hazards, and so on

b. a right to compensation sufficient for a minimally decent life

c. a right to compensation commensurate with their contribution to the firm

d. a right to share in the profits (if any) of the firm

e. a right to reasonable hours and conditions of work (for example: not too many hours in a day or in a week, breaks for meals,etc.)

f. a right to be hired, fire, promoted, etc. without regard to their sex, race, religion or ethnicity

g. a right to be hired and promoted strictly on the basis of competence in the performance of job-related skills and not on the basis of personal connections, 'office politics', or how they behave off the job

h. a right to freedom of speech on the job (i.e., not to be discharged or disciplined for criticizing their employer or otherwise expressing opinions their employer disapproves of)

i. a right to try to organize a union without interference or retaliation from their employer

j. a right to privacy on the job (for example: not to have their desks or lockers searched)

k. a right to some sort of "due process" in the way decisions about their employment are made

l. a right to continued employment

i. as long as they are putting in a good faith effort, or

ii. as long as they are performing satisfactorily, or

iii. as long as their performance is satisfactory and the employer can find some profitable use for their services, or

iv. as long as their performance is satisfactory and the employer can find no other, more profitable use for their salary

m. a right to a workplace which is free of sexual harrassment

n. a right to a workplace

i. which meets minimal standards of safety or

ii. which is as safe as the employer can afford to make it or

iii. which is as safe as is technically feasible (regardless of cost)

o. a right to be treated with courtesy and respect

p. a right to be given reasons for decisions which affect them

q. a right to advance notice of decisions which will affect them seriously, like decisions to close or move facilities, to eliminate or reduce jobs, to change technologies or procedures, and so on

r. a right to have their interests taken into account when such decisions are made

s. a right to participate in decisions which will affect them seriously

t. a right to a democratic workplace in which employees are self-governing, either because they make decisions themselves (direct democracy) or because they elect those who make decisions and/or delegate decision-making authority (representative democracy)

w. a right to have their work designed and organized so as to maximize their opportunities to exercize their skills and creativity and to minimize boredom, alienation., etc. (insofar as this is compatible with a reasonable level of efficiency).

Now try to agree on answers to the following:

1. Try to find an item on the list that you can all agree is a genuine right that employees should have. Try to state your reasons for thinking that employees should have this right.

2. Try to find an item on the list that you can all agree is not a genuine right that employees should have. Try to state your reasons for thinking that employees should not have this right.

Repeat, finding new items that you think are and are not genuine rights, until its time to stop.