Ethics in the Workplace: Wegmans Food Markets, Inc - Essay Example

?Ethics in the Workplace Introduction Wegmans Food Markets, Inc., headquartered in New York, is a family-owned US regional supermarket chain operating with a total of eighty-three stores all scattered in six states, including Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, (Wegmans Food Markets, Inc., “Store Locator”). Wegmans’ indisputable recognition, being ranked as fifth by Fortune Magazine’s 2013 list of “100 Best Companies To Work For,” has been made possible because of its 8.3% job growth, with the creation of new 1,154 jobs from 2012 to 2013, and with a total workforce of 43, 927 employees: 53% of which are women and 19% are minority (“Fortune 100 Best Companies” a). With such a depiction of the physical nature of the company, it can be said that it is undeniably an ultimate firm where everyone, either fresh graduates or old employees, would want to work for. However, in delving into such a concern, one must be able to justify the ethical aspects of an organization to make it viable being deemed as a paradigm of a company to work for. Moreover, I want to become a part of the globally recognized and one among the largest supermarkets chains and work there to enhance my learning about organizational ethics. In this connection, this paper seeks to discuss how Wegmans prevents and responds to problematic and antisocial behaviors, including its ethical culture, the pertinent ethical concepts, and cultural change efforts. Also, in order to fully understand the sustainability of the firm, its ethical organizational and global citizenship will be discussed, along with its social performance and ethical diversity. One can justify, whether he or she would want or not, to work in the firm. Prevention and Response to Problematic and Antisocial Behaviors Motivation is highly significant in business ethics as this correlates directly with organizational commitment and job performance, but the most imperative aspect is its interrelationship between performance and retention of personnel; thus, employee turnover can proffer detrimental effects to the performance of the organization as a whole (Beadles et al. & Campion, qtd. in Rehman 83-84). From this point, one organization must be able to sustain the level of motivation of employees for them to stay in the company, because employee turnover does not just affect the financial stability of the company, but also its operational sustainability. However, Wegmans’ percentage of turnover is exceptionally low at 3.6% (“Fortune 100 Best Companies” a). This posits a positive point, but it could be better if Wegmans would have a record of zero employee turnovers. Further, according to the literature, some of the Anti-Social Behaviors (ASB), which are ultimately problematic in nature, can affect employee motivation of employees, and this can be explained through goal congruence. However, the concept of ASB is referred to aggression, disobedience, violence, and stealing that can become viable grounds for future criminal activity (Rubin et al. 1). Such problematic and ASB can cause adverse effects to the society. Therefore, goal congruence, or the alignment of goals between the firm and its diversified stakeholders, particularly the employees, can affect organizational performance (qtd. in Christensen, Kent, and Stewart 376). In respect to Wegmans, because the company considers the welfare of its customers and all the persons involved in its operations, the company decided to phase out cigarettes and all other tobacco products in its seventy-one stores at the time; this was implemented in 2008 as the company foresaw that smoking plays a very destructive mechanism to health (Fink 1-5). From this idea alone, it can be perceived how Wegmans’ decision would affect its internal customers, the employees. Because protecting the public by mitigating the cause of antisocial behaviors, which in this case can be resulted from smoking, by phasing out cigarettes and other tobacco products in its stores can attract employee retention, then goal congruence is very tangible that Wegmans and all its stakeholders would want a safer environment to live in and a healthy lifestyle. Ethical Culture and Core Beliefs Moreover, according to Buzachero and Gilbert, there are five components of an ethical culture: mindfulness, voice, respect, tenacity, and legacy (4-10). Mindfulness, the first component, is the personal inner voice of ethical wisdom which helps a person to determine which is right and wrong. The core belief of this component is drawn from self-awareness principle that proffers dilemmas and concerns. It can either be an early signal that tells a person that such a decision is invalid. The second component, voice, is the opposite side of mindfulness as the former is the public voice of ethical wisdom. The core beliefs, from which this component are drawn from may include open conversation and enabling ethical concerns become explorable in divergent approaches; these can be in the form of casual conversations, meetings, employee surveys, daily work, or other approaches. When mindfulness is shared, voice is the after-effect, which can also leverage the collective ethical wisdom of the company. The third component, respect, is the skill of listening. This means that the firm must listen to its stakeholders with generosity--it must not be tainted with suspicion. From this point, the core beliefs of respect are drawn from being able to understand and to value the different perceptions of the people. While this component adds to the reputation of the organization, this would also strengthen the organizational ability to respond on ethical concerns as a group despite their individual divergent perceptions. The fourth component, tenacity, is the persistency of purpose whereby an organization must endure the journey for ethical decision-making and ethical behavior. The core beliefs from this component are drawn from shared commitment as the firm will be able to perceive difficult conversations. The organization must be to harness rather than avoid the problems, address predominant concerns and seize with vague circumstances. Lastly, the fifth component, legacy, can be referred to creating ethical decisions with the spirit of management, becoming aware of the implication and the outcomes of behaviors and decisions for everyone who follows, who may comprise customers, employees, and the community at large. The core belief from which legacy is drawn is long-term view, both personal and organizational in nature, whereby the company must be consistent with its corporate objectives, vision and values. Ethical Concepts In the lens of sustainability, ethical concepts must be adapted by firms to propel an organizational success. However, they should first determine the nature of these ethical concepts before adapting them. In the modern literature, there are at least six pertinent ethical concepts that wait for organizations’ adaption to propel organizational sustainability. These pertinent ethical concepts may include Practical, Deontological, Teleological or Consequentialist, Rawlsian, Libertarianism, and Natural Justice (Lawrence 322). Practical Ethics. This concept makes firms to address particular moral queries; solving a query comprises the creation of commitment to action. This theory also creates an appeal to a relevant moral rule, the questioning and the justification of the general moral rules. Moral reasoning usually comprises concise meanings, the assessment of arguments, the discussion of social firms, and the collection of historical information. Deontological Ethics. This concept applies complete normative principles, duties, or standards of moral conduct, despite the emergence of divergent outcomes. Deontological ethics is based on duty, such as those applicable to every condition. Teleological or Consequentialist Ethics. This concept is derived from normative standards of choice. The rightness or wrongness of an effort relies on the outcomes of the effort. In this connection, total good outcomes must outweigh the total bad outcomes. Teleological ethics also support utilitarianism--the greatest good for the greatest number or the public good is the total of all choices. Rawlsian Ethics. This concept supports the right of extensive framework of fundamental freedom. For instance, organizations restrict the freedom for sake or freedom of others. However, in this theory, there is an equal distribution of opportunity among people. The organization strives to protect the resources, but only saving, for the future generation. Hereof, firms can augment the total benefits and mitigate the total cost of the least-advantaged stakeholders. Libertarianism. This concept supports disparity as individuals and their rights may exceed above among others. In this approach, there is a prevalence of public interests over individual rights, but it must be noted that this can minimize the losses of individual rights and freedom. Natural Justice. This concept means that a firm’s decision-making approach must be based on legal principles, whereby it must constitute a methodical parity in managerial decision-making process. This can be applied to an entity with rights at concern. The legal examples may include right to ruling free of prejudice, right to be heard when detrimentally affected, and right to judgment based on proof. Cultural Change Efforts In respect to Wegmans’ business operations, it has fully proffered a work-life balance among its entire people. However, health care and other benefits are neglected by the firm (“Fortune 100 Best Companies” b). The ethical issues involved are the non-full payment of sabbaticals and there is no presence of onsite child care for women workers. It must be noted that the company has about 53% of women personnel, but women are given the benefit of onsite child care by the company. Aside from this, sabbaticals are not fully paid. This may suggest a portion of remuneration, but to think that it is not fully paid, women, upon their pregnancy and labor, may not be provided with fully paid sabbaticals. For these problems to be resolved, Wegmans man change its cultural by supplementing an additional or fully-paid sabbaticals benefits and onsite childcare for their women personnel. In the lens of health benefits, there is also no health-care coverage and onsite fitness center. Despite the subsidized gym membership of the employees, they must be given a hundred percent health-care coverage. Wegmans may have forgotten the health benefits that their workforce would want to obtain more than other. However, despite such ethical issues and cross-relationships among issues presented, the company chooses to change efforts and based it on work-life balance instead of having full health care benefits. In fact, Wegmans has a job sharing program made accessible for its divergent levels of management, offered a compressed workweek, and telecommuting aspects; it has also implemented its nondiscriminatory policy with emphasis on sexual orientation and offered domestic partner benefits for same-sex couples (“Fortune 100 Best Companies” b). With these cultural efforts that the company encountered, it has able to respond well on the ethical issues and dilemmas aforementioned by providing a work-life balance and significant social benefits that outweigh all other insignificant aspects. The components of ethical culture and the pertinent ethical concepts aforementioned are all considered by the firm as its operations would not last longer if not because of its dynamic ethical cultures. Organizational Citizenship / Social Performance Organizational citizenship is the extent to which one’s voluntary support and attitude contributes to the success of the company. People, particularly the employees and customers of Wegmans, have always been very supportive to the company. Wegmans, being a major regional supermarket chain in the United States, has received significant recognitions because of its business performances that protect the welfare of its stakeholders. Wegmans offers quality goods, a variety of preferences, restaurant-quality prepared foods, magnificent stores, lovable displays, and a nearly perfect degree of customer service; these increase the level of customers’ shopping experience. The company offers products with consistent low prices. Being an early adopter of new technology, Wegmans offers customers with electronic discounts and bar-code scanning (Swibel 4). The company also supports charitable institutions to promote healthy lifestyle, reduce hunger, help people succeed, and strengthen neighborhoods. All of these have encouraged people to voluntarily support the company and manifest a behavior that will help propel the organization’s success. Aside from the social performances aforementioned, employees also support the company as Wegmans strongly supports employee benefit programs, particularly scholarship program. This helps consolidate employee retention every year. In fact, people would certainly support and manifest positive behaviors that will contribute to the organization’s success making the company a potentially best in its category not just in the US, but also in the whole world (Wegmans Food Markets, Inc., “Company Overview”). In this conduct, a positive social performance, or the participation of individuals in the success of Wegmans is not possible because the company is well-oriented to the ethical issues and clamor of the entire community. The dominance itself in the United States of the company in the industry where it operates is a proof of its sustainable operations and high level of organizational citizenship. Ethical Global Citizenship and Ethical Diversity The core values of Wegmans are empowerment and trust--they empower their employees to decide on certain scenarios for the benefit of their work to enhance customer experience that will improve organizational performance (Gallo 2-3). Wegmans has strong ethical foundation as viable ground for the company’s competitive advantage. Its code of ethics, sustainable business practices, regulatory framework, corporate social responsibilities, and other activities that are designed to enhance organizational citizenship have significant contributions to the company’s success. In fact, Wegmans can be considered as one of the companies with a very dynamic culture, or ethnically diversified culture as it is based in a country with a very ethnically and culturally diversified nature. From this point, the ethical diversity of the company has been fueled by the differing backgrounds of its workforce who are coming from the different states. Wegmans has promoted the highest of ethical standards; it has implemented and sustained an upright business practices and undertakings that are crucial to the organization’s success, benefit the society, and augment the bar for ethical standards within the industry where it operates. In fact, Wegmans was named as third in “Ethisphere's 2012 World's Most Ethical Companies List” (Natale 1-6). Therefore, it must be noted that Wegmans’ inclusion to the recognition, being third of the world’s most ethical companies, posits that the company has strong industry-leading commitment to ethics and integral dedication. Conclusion The paper sought to discuss the different ethical conducts of Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. from the onset of its business operations until where it stands today in the supermarket industry. Altogether, the discussion has clearly implied that Wegmans is an ethically decoupled organization because from 1916 up to now, it has never a significant ethical standing among its rival firms not until the cessation of the twentieth century. Otherwise stated, the company has fathomed the significance of ethics along its business course in a gradual manner and since the late 1990s; Wegmans has been recognized as an ethical organization, not just in the United States, but also in the whole world. However, for the better improvement of the organization, it must augment employment benefits, such as fully paid sabbaticals and onsite childcare because, in some instances, women will need to leave the company for the reason of pregnancy and labor; it must be noted that the company has 53% of women in the workforce. Also, the ethnically diversified nature of the workforce has been maintained with the company without conflict in the management, and for this to be sustained, Wegmans has to hire culturally and ethnically diversified personnel in the managerial levels to propel goal congruence in the organization. Differing views and opinions will be addressed properly and this will consolidate an efficient communication channel from which all members can freely address concerns to the management. Based on my analysis, the company is well-suited enough to be considered as an ethical company, and therefore, such a recognition by reputable global bodies would certainly prod me to work for the organization. However, based on my core beliefs, the company must have at 30% of minorities in the workforce to promote parity or equality. It must be noted that the company has only 19% minorities. It is in this number that I consider the company being unethical because a college graduate like me would possibly be rejected in the company if we based my qualification on the quantitative nature of diversity of the company. Therefore, I would still want to work for the firm, but they must modify their qualification for applicants like me. 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