Values and Ethics in Formal Organizations Whistleblowing Advocacy

Values and Ethics in Formal Organizations Whistleblowing & Advocacy

Ethical issues in formal organizations (as specified in the NASW Code of Ethics) include: • • • Relationships between workers and clients. Relationships between administrators/supervisors and workers. Relationships among colleagues. Ethical issues in conducting research. Confidentiality (client records). Client self-determination. Responsibility of individual social workers to advocate for improvements in policies, services, and resources for clients. Responsibilities of social workers to engage in and promote culturally competent service delivery. Responsibility to intervene when colleagues are unethical or incompetent. Payment for services/conflicts of interest. Responsibilities of social workers to the broader society.

Values in social work: • Are derived from the principles of social justice and fairness. • Identified in the code of ethics. • Can be defined as principles about how people should act or interact with one another.

According to Lowenberg and Dolgoff (1996, p. 21): • Values are concerned with what is good and desirable. (Ideals for achievement) • Ethics deal with what is right and good. (guidelines for taking action to apply these values).

Some of the Values in the Code include: • • Service Social justice Dignity and worth of the person Importance of human relationships Integrity Competence Self-determination Equality

There a number of ethical issues can be especially problematic in organization practice: • • Reporting unethical conduct or harassment. Sexual relationships with co-workers. Accepting goods and services from clients. Advocacy on behalf of clients when agency practices are oppressive or otherwise detrimental to clients. • Internal or external advocacy on social issues when the worker’s position varies from the organization.

Social workers may seek consultation on ethical issues from: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) Beneficiaries of Social Change Processes Peers Agency Supervisory Staff Board Members Mentors Professional Organizations

Ethical issues faced by administrations that are not covered by the code of ethics include: • Acceptance of funding from sources with who represent different values or who have different agendas from the organizations. • Involvement in protest activities that are not sanctioned by the organization or by society. • Hiring and firing staff. • Providing services to clients who may be members of social stigmatized groups.

The decision to advocate is especially problematic for many social workers. It may involve risks to the social worker or the intended beneficiaries. • Lack of resources with which to advocate. • Rigid or inadequate rules or policies limit one’s ability to advocate. • Losing one’s job, a promotion, or benefits. • Social ostracism/lack of support from co-workers • Harassment of or harm to intended beneficiaries. • Burn-out or demoralization of advocate. • Limited results

Benefits of Advocacy include: • Achieving positive change. • Personal feelings of empowerment or competence. • Achieving a sense of hopefulness • Educating/empowering clients to advocate for themselves. • Reducing burnout.

Advocacy can be either: • Internal advocacy: Changing policies or procedures in the agency. Improving service quality. Helping clients obtain services. Improving working conditions for staff. • External advocacy: Changing government policies or legislation. Helping groups of people improve community quality, gain political power, lobby for legislation, or obtain civil rights or resources.

Types of advocacy practice include: Case advocacy Helping individual clients obtain resources Self-help advocacy Providing training so that clients can advocate for themselves Group or Class Advocacy on behalf of or in partnership with people who have a common problem. Legislative and Policy Advocacy Analyzing or developing policies. Lobbying public officials to change laws and policies Participation in Political Campaigns Election to office, volunteer on campaigns, voter registration Social Action Demonstrations, social movements, civil disobedience

Decision-making Frameworks Can be Used to Make Ethical Choices They can also be used to weigh benefits of advocacy vs. costs.

One tool for making ethical choices relies on the social work code of ethics: Lowenberg & Dolgoff (1996) have developed an ethical rules screen based on the principles in the NASW Code of Ethics. • • Principle #1 Principle #2 Principle #3 Principle #4 Principle #5 Principle #6 Principle #7 Protection of Life Equality and Inequality Autonomy and Freedom Least Harm Quality of Life Privacy and Confidentiality Truthfulness and Full Disclosure (p. 63).

Reisch & Lowe (2000) have identified an appropriate problem-solving model that social workers can use to address ethical dilemmas: • Identify the ethical principles that apply to the situation at hand. • Collect additional information necessary to examine the ethical dilemma in question. • Identify the relevant ethical values and/or rules that apply to the ethical problem. • Identify any potential conflict of interest and the people who are likely to benefit from such conflicts. • Identify appropriate ethical rules and rank order them in terms of importance. • Determine the consequences of applying different ethical rules or ranking these rules differently (p. 26).

Whistleblowing: • Can be defined as action taken to notify others of wrong-doing in the agency. Whistleblowers are usually members of an agency’s staff. People engage in it usually to prevent harm to others or expose illegal or inappropriate financial practices.

Bok (1980 as cited in Reisch & Lowe, 2000, p. 36) offers decision-making criteria for whistleblowers. • Am I acting in the public interest or in my own personal interest? • Do the facts justify the action? • Can harm to my colleague and the organization be kept to a minimum? (However, whistleblowing is the only alternative when there is no other way to resolve the problem, when there is limited time, or the organization is so corrupt that whistleblowers will be silenced).

Advocates must ask themselves: • • What are the risks to myself or others? Is the potential benefit worth the risk? Do I have good or unbiased motives? Can I accept the consequences of taking the action? • Can I live with myself if I don’t take action. • (Greene & Latting, 2004)

Vignette 11. 1 Ernestina has just received her MSW and has started working as a case manager at the Mission Street Anti-Poverty Organization. During Ernestina’s first week at the agency, a client reports that she has been sexually harassed by a male supervisor. Ernestina is reluctant to report this information to the organization’s administrators. There does not seem to be a written anti-sexual harassment policy or a set of grievance procedures. In addition, lines of supervisory authority are so unclear in this organization that Ernestina fears that this supervisor may have some into her performance review and may be able to retaliate against her. A staff member to whom Ernestina has confided also raises an ethical issue: making a complaint could result in unjustly damaging the reputation of an employee who may be innocent. How should Ernestina handle the client’s complaint? She should: 1. Inform her supervisor of the complaint. 2. Go straight to the shelter’s executive director and inform her about the complaint. 3. Get more information from the client. 4. Take no action. Persuade the client to drop the complaint. 5. Advise the client that it is her responsibility to advocate for herself in this situation. Discuss options for resolving the problem with the client. 6. Advocate for the adoption of agency grievance procedures and an anti-sexual harassment policy.