Turner Ethical Dilemmas

As the summer was drawing to a close, my summer internship with Turner Operating could not have been going any better. However, one day while performing the normally mundane task of measuring the water cut of the wells in Rocking T Ranch, I opened an overpressured well and spilled what appeared to be a barrel of oil and produced water. Observing a storm brewing on the horizon, I loaded the contaminated soil and rocks into the back of the company truck and covered the pile with tarps to prevent contamination of the surrounding area. When I explained the situation to Joe, the field hand in charge of supervising me, he advised me to keep quiet about the spill to avoid endangering my likely return offer. Though I want nothing more than to receive a return offer, I am not willing to compromise my personal and professional ethics to get one. To address this ethical dilemma, I need to report the problem and explain my reasoning to Joe, hoping that my honesty does not cost me a job at a company I love.
I cannot just pretend the spill never happened to secure a return offer because that would involve “attempt[ing] to obtain employment … by improper or questionable methods” (citation). Hiding the spill from Mr. Turner would also constitute a “deceptive act” (citation). Furthermore, I respect Mr. …show more content…
If Joe were to continue to dismiss my concerns, I would decide whether the incident “endanger[s] life or property” (citation) and use that to determine whether I should notify a higher authority. The high pressure found in the well where the incident occurred could potentially cause injuries and property damage and any contaminants left behind could impact the cattle farm. Therefore if Joe rejected my concerns, I would call Lucas and leave a detailed voicemail regarding the incident and send an email with the same information as well as the pictures I