Bob Baxter, the CEO of a battery company in the country of Amazonia, is facing a moral dilemma based upon his drug testing policy with the recent legalization of marijuana. The Human Resources director Sarah contacts Bob and says that marijuana should be removed from the policy and should be treated like alcohol. Sarah also believes that employee retention will be harder with the current policy. Bob understands Sarah’s opinions, but is fearful of customers and potential customers equating a change in policy with a reduction in ability.
Controversial issues that affect the decision making process include the facts that marijuana is now legal (21+), however drug testing and discriminating against (not hiring, dismissal) is still legal. With …show more content…
More people will be more likely to consume marijuana, which could potentially mean a higher chance of impacted performance. Ethically speaking, drug testing is a violation of the right of privacy. What someone chooses to do on their free time should not affect their treatment in the workplace. The employee that smoked marijuana on their vacation two weeks ago would be dismissed if given a drug test, no matter how well-preforming, under Bob’s current policy. The important concept of Utilitarianism, which is a moral theory based upon “the greatest good for the greatest number”, isn’t used to its fullest abilities, as there is a customer satisfying policy yet a disregard for the rights of employees. Potential employees who value freedom may not be the fastest to apply to Bob’s company. On the flip-side, customers will be more confident knowing that the laborers are always in a state of …show more content…
The right of privacy is invaded - but for the sake of complying with the most important ethical principle for a functional society, utilitarianism. It is more important for there to be functional workers, able to produce functional projects that will not fall apart on the businesses that provide services to hundreds of customers due to a simple mistake, than for Bob to try and please say, 10, or even 100 workers instead of potentially thousands of people. However, the laborers are the backbone of his company. With that being said, Bob’s laborers hold the highest value per person in terms of stakeholder; current employees must be happy and able to have a sense of freedom, and it must be an attractive place for future employees to work. Employees want to feel that their job does not interfere with their personal life, creating a more happy, more motivated
Controversial issues that affect the decision making process include the facts that marijuana is now legal (21+), however drug testing and discriminating against (not hiring, dismissal) is still legal. With …show more content…
More people will be more likely to consume marijuana, which could potentially mean a higher chance of impacted performance. Ethically speaking, drug testing is a violation of the right of privacy. What someone chooses to do on their free time should not affect their treatment in the workplace. The employee that smoked marijuana on their vacation two weeks ago would be dismissed if given a drug test, no matter how well-preforming, under Bob’s current policy. The important concept of Utilitarianism, which is a moral theory based upon “the greatest good for the greatest number”, isn’t used to its fullest abilities, as there is a customer satisfying policy yet a disregard for the rights of employees. Potential employees who value freedom may not be the fastest to apply to Bob’s company. On the flip-side, customers will be more confident knowing that the laborers are always in a state of …show more content…
The right of privacy is invaded - but for the sake of complying with the most important ethical principle for a functional society, utilitarianism. It is more important for there to be functional workers, able to produce functional projects that will not fall apart on the businesses that provide services to hundreds of customers due to a simple mistake, than for Bob to try and please say, 10, or even 100 workers instead of potentially thousands of people. However, the laborers are the backbone of his company. With that being said, Bob’s laborers hold the highest value per person in terms of stakeholder; current employees must be happy and able to have a sense of freedom, and it must be an attractive place for future employees to work. Employees want to feel that their job does not interfere with their personal life, creating a more happy, more motivated