Workshop highlights importance of ethics |06 November 2014

A two-day training on ethics in the workplace is being held for trainers, ethic officers and human resource personel of the public service.

Organised by the Public Officers’ Ethics Commission (POEC), the training session was launched yesterday at the ex-National Assembly Hall, National House.

Those attending the training were informed that strict observance of ethical standards and principles is essential for the reputation of an organisation as well as for the respect and trust that the public service should earn from its clients and the public in general.

In her opening remarks, the chief executive of the POEC, Mina Crea, told delegates that service in the government is subject to the highest standards of conduct and integrity in accordance with the Code of Ethics along with the Constitution of Seychelles and the Public Sector Orders.

“Therefore it goes without saying that it is the responsibility of a public officer not to engage in unethical behaviour and also to report such incidence to the relevant authority,” Mrs Crea said.

“The ethical philosophy an organisation uses to conduct business, whether it is by its leaders or employees, can affect its reputation, its productivity and employee retention,” said Mrs Crea.

She said the ethics that an organisation uses to manage its employees may have an effect on the moral and loyalty of the workers. When leaders have high ethical standards, it encourages employees in the organisation to meet that same level.

“And when employees use ethics to guide their behaviour, perform their work with honesty and integrity, it enhances the reputation of the organisation.
Therefore leaders and workers alike should adhere to a code of ethics in order to help create an ethical organisational culture,” Mrs Crea added.

Referring to a quote from the late Martin Luther King Jr: “The time is always right to do what is right”, Mrs Crea said an ethical leader will constantly do what is right, because it is right.

“Right speech, right action, right livelihood and right effort are all about ethical conduct,” she said, while acknowledging that unfortunately many of us may find it difficult to follow values such as honesty and integrity because we have not perceived the benefits that come to us by following these values.

Therefore, Mrs Crea said, in order to win the war against unethical behaviour in the workplace on a lasting basis, a transformation of our attitudes is needed. Public officers should remain determined to protect public resources and to use them prudently and for their intended purposes. Management can also reinforce ethical behaviour in their employees by rewarding those who exhibit the guiding values underpinning their organisations.

The CEO pointed out that the POEC has devised a number of strategies to combat and prevent unethical behaviour and practices in workplaces and that the training programme is one of them.

She also announced that the commission has taken the initiatives to carry out a survey to find out the position of ethics in the public sector where everyone is expected to have a clear picture of the distribution of ethical or unethical behaviour in organisations.