LESSON 3 activities that slow down our internet

connection (e.g. uploading photos) if

Codes of Right Conduct you’re asked to.
“code of right conduct”. A code has value just 2. Conflict of Interest When you are
experiencing a conflict of interest,
like an internal guideline and an external
your personal goals are no longer
statement of corporate values and
aligned with your responsibilities
commitments. A well-written code of conduct towards us. For example, owning
spells out an organization’s mission, values stocks of one of our competitors is a
and principles, connecting them with conflict of interest. In other cases, you
standards of professional conduct. The code may be faced with an ethical issue. For
expresses the values the organization desires to example, accepting a bribe may
promote in leaders and employees. benefit you financially, but it is illegal
and against our business code of
PROVISIONS OF THE CODE: Code ethics. If we become aware of such
provisions are the exact standards of behavior behavior, you will lose your job and
and performance expectations that an may face legal trouble.
organization selects to emphasize and tackle in
the code.

Compliance, Accuracy of corporate

Integrity and Anti- finances and financial
corruption reporting Employee
records and expense
reports Bribes
Political
contributions.
Conflicts of Interest Gifts and gratitude COMMON PRACTICES IN BUSINESS
Political activity ORGANIZATIONS
Family members.
Employee, Client Maintaining records CONDITIONS There are a
and Vendor of and information INCLUDED IN number of
Information Privacy and POLICIES different
confidentiality conditions of
Disclosure of employment that
information. may not be
Employment Equal opportunity prescribed by
Practices Diversity Incentives law, but which is
and recognition. agreed to by the
Internet, Social Internet and social employer and the
Networking and network use at work employee at the
Social Media Prohibited sites and commencement
content Policies of the
regarding posts about employment
company, work contract. Some
products or companies issue
coworkers. policies on such
matters so that
employees are
EMPLOYEE CODE OF CONDUCT clear on what
their rights and
1. Internet Usage Our corporate internet
responsibilities
connection is primarily for business.
are. Conditions
But you can occasionally use our
which may fall
connection for personal purposes as
into this category
long as they don’t interfere with your
include:
job responsibilities. Also, we expect
absenteeism,
you to temporarily halt personal
training,
 promotion, into this category
probation, include: company
performance car, mobile phone
review, (including private
abandonment of use), employee
employment, exit assistance
interviews, programs, salary
termination of packaging, career
employment. breaks, and study
EMPLOYEE There are benefit assistance.
ENTITLEMENTS entitlements BREACH OF A breach occurs
which employees ORGANIZATION’S when one party
accumulate as a POLICY in a binding
result of the agreement fails to
rendering of their deliver according
services to an to the terms of
employer up to the agreement.
the reporting date For example,
and include, but failure to comply
are not limited to, with the
wages and employers’
salaries policies can be a
(including non- valid reason for
monetary termination of
benefits). These employment.
entitlements also DECORUM In ordinary
include: English, this
redundancy pay, word is used to
annual leave, mean the
long service appropriate
leave, parental conventions of
leave, dress and
personal/career’s conduct required
leave, special in specific
leave, vacation situations. The
leave, jury service word “office
and overtime decorum” might
pay. sound heavy and
EMPLOYEE An employer loaded with
may provide a many
number of complexities but
different in reality it is a set
BENEFITS benefits as part of of simple rules
their contract of which you need
employment. to observe while
Sometimes working together
incentives aimed in an
at increasing organization. An
productivity and employee needs
with the intention to observe certain
of attracting and guidelines for the
retaining betterment and
competent and progression of the
qualified office/employees.
employees. REPORTORIAL Most jobs require
Employee REQUIREMENT writing – e-mails,
benefits that fall AND letters, memos,
DOCUMENTATIO reports, analyses, Plato was famous for his discussions on the
N project subject of reality. He believed that
summaries, everything was founded in perception and
product the physical world is the lesser world in
descriptions, and every way. He believed that most of the
the list goes on. greater world was not clear. He hated people
The ability to who place all their faith in physical senses
write well is and not in their intellectual senses for the
essential in intention of collecting insight. “More will be
obtaining a job, in accomplished, and better, and with more
performing the ease, if every man does what he is best fitted
job, and in being to do, and nothing else.” According to Plato,
promoted. each social class must happily perform the
Business reports function for which it is 27 suited like the
can save time and philosopher rules, the warrior fights and the
money, and play worker enjoys the fruits of his labor.
a dramatic role in
the future of your D. ARISTOTLE’S PHILOSOPHY: LET
company PEOPLE SEEK FULFILLMENT
Aristotle remains relevant because he is
chiefly interested in ethical principles of
leadership. Contained in his Nicomachean
LESSON 4 Ethics, Aristotle established that the role of
CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHIES USED IN the leader is someone who must construct an
BUSINESS environment in which all members of an
A. CONFUCIUS’ PHILOSOPHY: organization have the chance to recognize
LIVE A CONTENTED, MORAL AND their own potential. He says that the ethical
HAPPY LIFE. role of the leader is the establishment of the
Virtue and morality are Confucius’ primary conditions under which followers can attain
focus. He is concerned with teaching people their full potential and to enhance his own
about benevolence, generosity, love, power. Aristotle was a great biologist as well
compassion, and sincerity in a as a great philosopher. He based his ethics
straightforward manner. He concentrated on on a psychological theory of human nature,
developing morality and a sense of shame so claiming that people are by nature virtuous,
people will conduct themselves in rational, social and happiness-seeking.
harmonious ways. He also emphasized that E. . EPICURUS’ PHILOSOPHY: THE
in order to govern, one must govern ART OF HAPPINESS
themselves. Epicurus makes a significant distinction
B. SOCRATES’ PHILOSOPHY: HAVE between necessary and unnecessary desires.
THE COURAGE TO DISAGREE. Necessary desires are those which are
Socrates equated knowledge with virtue, essential to generate happiness, like desiring
which eventually leads to ethical conduct. to get rid of bodily pain, or desiring a state of
He believed that the only life worth living inner peace. Only when people are in pain
was one that was carefully examined. He do they sense the necessity to look for
looked for principles and actions that were pleasure, a need which certainly only
worth living by, creating an ethical base produces greater pain. Getting rid of this
upon which decisions should be made. pain-pleasure-pain cycle, people need to
Socrates definitely believed that knowledge cultivate a mindset in which there is no pain.
and understanding of virtue, or “the good,” Therefore, the intention of is not the positive
was enough for someone to be happy. To quest of pleasure. The aim is rather the
him, knowledge of the good was almost reaching of an impartial condition which is
similar to an enlightened state. He believed best described as “peace of mind”. The
that no person could willingly decide to do Greek word which Epicurus uses for this
something damaging or harmful if they were state is “ataraxia”, which plainly means
completely aware of the value of life. “freedom from worry”.
C. . PLATO’S PHILOSOPHY: THE F. PLUTARCH’S PHILOSOPHY: BE A
POWER TO RULE GOOD ROLE MODEL
Plutarch understood that humans are
exceptionally social creatures, who always
watch the people around them and emulate
them. According to him, people
unfortunately, were often influenced by bad
role models surrounded to them. However,
people can be guided by providing them
with better patterns to imitate. The aim of his
book entitled Parallel Lives was mainly
ethical. He strongly believed that if young
people learn the lives of great heroes, and are
trained to reflect on their virtues and flaws,
they will obviously try to be like them and
use them as role models. Plutarch suggests
that people can consciously choose their role
models, in order to cultivate the best sides of
their character, rather than the worst.
G. EPICTETUS’ PHILOSOPHY: BUILD
A FLEXIBLE MINDSET
Epictetus insisted that, though life may be
subject to constant change, human beings are
in the end in charge for how they understand
and react to those changes. He made
emphasis on the superiority of the individual
over circumstance. According to Epictetus, in
order to cope with insecurity, a person must
constantly remind himself what he could
control and what he couldn’t. People can
control their thoughts, beliefs and attitudes,
but everything else is 30to some extent out of
one’s control like other people’s perceptions
and behavior, the economy, the weather, the
future and the past.
H. MUSONIUS’ PHILOSOPHY: KEEP
TRACK OF ONE’S ETHICAL
PROGRESS

Gaius Musonius’ Rufus held that since a

human being is made of body and soul,
people should train both, but the latter
demands greater attention. He believed that
the soul is similarly strengthened by
developing courage through enduring
hardships, and by making it self-controlled
through abstaining from pleasures. He also
argued that since people acquire all good
things by pain, the person who refuses to
endure pain is someone who condemns
himself to not being worthy of anything
good. Lastly, he believed that if people want
to be an ethical individual or an ethical
company, they cannot just study ethics; they
have to practice it, every day, to get into
good habits.