Today, sociologists and philosophers have classified moral theories into three main categories: meta, normative, and applied ethics (Zaidi 2013). The history and significance of ethical principles are extensively researched in meta-ethics, which also seeks to determine if they are limited to societal interventions or encompass more than just human emotional expressions. The meta-ethical responses to these inquiries place a greater emphasis on questions relating to God's will, the role that reason plays when making ethical decisions, and universal truths. On the other hand, normative ethics comprises of the articulation of the good habits that people should strive to acquire and the potential consequences of people's behaviours on others (Zaidi 2013). It sets to determine the moral standards that can be used in regulating the right and wrong conduct. Finally, applied ethics aims at examining the various common controversial issues such as nuclear war, homosexuality, abortion and capital punishments in the society and the world at large.
Meaning and Examples
Ethics refers to a set of moral aspects or issues that determine whether a specific action or behaviour by an individual or a group of people is right or wrong (Swanton 2013). According to the philosophers, whatever is thought of as being good is considered as right while that which is bad automatically becomes wrong. The concepts of a particular behaviour being right or wrong are highly systemized, defended and recommended in the field of ethics. There are numerous examples of ethics that are common in the society and the country at large. Firstly, the issue of commercial exploitation which involves matters to do with the unfavourable working places, slavery, forced prostitution and child labour are highly debated in the social media regarding their rightness or wrongness in the community. Discrimination based on gender and skin colour is another example of ethics in United Kingdom whereby most of the people have come out in large numbers to address this form of ethical issue. Again, the practice of honesty and integrity at the workplace is an excellent example of ethics in the labour sector (Swanton 2013). Lastly, child negligence and bullying both at home and in schools in most of the countries in the United Kingdom and across the world form excellent examples of ethical behaviour.
An Ethical Dilemma and Key Issues surrounding it
Many are the times when people find themselves in situations in which they have to choose between two options that require the use of ethics to make the right decisions. One of the ethical dilemmas that most of the managers and employers in small and big companies face is balancing the expense control of their firms with the various existing health and safety interests of the employees (Barad & Patel 2012). Today, numerous issues surround maintenance of health and safety standard for the workers at their respective places of work. It is regrettable that most of the employers have failed to embrace ethical practices such as meeting the federal requirements on health and safety of the workers. That has resulted in devastating effects on the employees who become the victims of such immoral and unethical business practices (Soskolne 2011). Majority of the employers prefer spending little money on important issues that affect the welfare of the employees such as training workers on how to use dangerous working equipment and putting into place adequate safety control measures. Such actions are highly unethical and contribute to a lot of suffering for the workers in the long run.
Legislation and Policies
The health and safety regulation in the United Kingdom dates back to the 19th century. The 1974 Act on health and safety of the employees at work continues to form the foundation on which the current health and safety system of United Kingdom is based and has managed to stand the test of time (Gilbert 2010). According to this Act, the individuals involved in creating risks at the workplace are always the same people who are in the best position to control them. The existing local authorities are tasked with enforcing health and safety laws at the commercial workplaces across the Great Britain while the health and safety executive is responsible for the industrial working places.
Comparing Different Views
Both individuals and organisations have continued to provide their opinions and concerns about the ethical issue of health and safety of the employees while at the workplace. Trade unions in most of the countries in the United Kingdom and across the world have come out in open to fight for the health and safety rights of their members with a majority of them suggesting the introduction of health promotion initiatives at the working places. That has been common especially in companies and factories where the employees are required to engage in physically demanding work or where they have to use dangerous equipment (Kasemsap 2011). Moreover, human rights activists have persistently defended the rights of the workers who have become disabled or even lost their lives as a result of accidents at the workplace that are highly facilitated by lack of reliable health and safety standards. They have highly suggested the implementation of the risk assessment programs at the workplaces to help eradicate the occurrence of the unethical health and safety events that contribute to sufferings of the employees. On the other hand, companies and organisations have tried to defend themselves by claiming that some of the employees have developed the habit of becoming reckless while working with the motive of suffering from intentional accidents so that they can massively be compensated (Kasemsap 2011).
Evaluation and Conclusion
The use of programs such as health promotion initiatives at the workplace is going to help in eradicating the incidents of ethical dilemmas at the workplace since the employers will be aware that it is compulsory for them to ensure their employees work in safe working conditions. That way, they will not have to struggle on deciding whether to put into place health and safety measures in the workplace or not since this ethical consideration will already be part of the budget (Targoutzidis 2010). Moreover, the practice of risk assessment at the workplaces as advocated for by the human rights activists is going to be of great use in eradicating incidents of health and safety challenges at the workplace but will need to be well monitored (Targoutzidis 2010).
Conclusively, it is essential for people to handle ethical decisions with a lot of wisdom given the likely consequences of such decisions and how devastating they are expected to be on the affected parties (Soskolne 2011). The employers should take upon themselves the duty of ensuring that no unethical practices are present in their companies and businesses and that all the legal aspects and requirements that form part of the set and recommended business ethics are followed at all times.
References
Swanton, C. 2013. The Definition of Virtue Ethics. The Cambridge Companion to Virtue Ethics, 21(1), 315-338. doi:10.1017/cco9780511734786.015
Kasemsap, K. 2011. The Role of Ethical Leadership in Ethical Organizations. Contemporary Issues Surrounding Ethical Research Methods and Practice Advances in Knowledge Acquisition, Transfer, and Management, 4(2), 135-168. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-8562-8.ch006
Soskolne, C. L. 2011. Ethical, Social, and Legal Issues Surrounding Studies of Susceptible Populations and Individuals. Environmental Health Perspectives, 105, 837-902. doi:10.2307/3433291
Barad, K. B., & Patel, S. V. 2012. Ethical Dilemma. SSRN Electronic Journal, 2(1), 125-209. doi:10.2139/ssrn.2111055
Gilbert, R. 2010. The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSW Act) and what it Means. A Quick Guide to Health and Safety, 2(1), 29-36. doi:10.1016/b978-1-84569-499-9.50004-9
Zaidi, S. H. 2013. Ethical Theories and Metaethics. Ethics in Medicine, 2(1), 23-73. doi:10.1007/978-3-319-01044-1_2
Targoutzidis, A. 2010. Incorporating Human Factors into a Simplified “Bow-Tie” Approach for Workplace Risk Assessment. Safety Science, 48(2), 145-156. doi:10.1016/j.ssci.2009.07.005
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