Ethical Organizational Profile Executive Summary

Ethical Organizational Profile Executive Summary

MGT/216

December 21, 2009

Introduction

The organization ethics program examined is Taste Wine and Coffee Bar. Moral and ethical issues faced by establishments that serve alcoholic beverages can become extensive. Bars and restaurants have the ethical and moral obligation of serving adults of a certain age depending on the state's legal drinking age. This is not only a moral responsibility, it is a legal obligation. Other legal and moral obligations include limiting patrons when their level of inebriation may become a hazard to themselves or others. When customers are obviously too drunk, employees must "cut-off" the clients for their own safety and the safety of others. The relationship between ethics, morality, and social issues in the legal environment will be explored. One ethical and social issue is the communities need for respect and order. Communities oppose establishments that stay open very late in residential areas with disorderly patrons. Loud and disorderly customers create unethical and moral dilemmas.

Taste will be a fixture in the community that gives back when applicable. Social events for families and neighborhoods as well as community programs may be in conjunction with other businesses a part from the wine bar itself. Taste will require ethics training, monitoring, and enforcement. Employees will attend a class or provided with information on ethical work practices. The class will review how to deal with unruly customers. A formal code will be instituted for ethical business practices. New employees and recruits will receive formal training and a copy of the ethics code for dealing with clients. Managers will review guidelines on how to treat employees equally. Ethical decision-making will be reviewed for a variety of topics. Sexist environments and sexual harassment will not be tolerated and punishment for these actions will be expressed. Discrimination will be reviewed. Checking for identification is a task that is in code of ethics. Ethics will be measured by the actions of the employees and the interaction with customers. Whistle-blowers will be rewarded and given in the form of money or paid time off from work. Open communication lines will be essential for creating an ethical and moral environment. Unethical behavior will be reported to the proper authorities.

Code of Ethics

A Code of Ethics will be used for dealing with any potential or existing ethical predicaments. Taste will have its own formal code of ethics. Local authorities and governments may also have a code of ethics and will be implemented into Taste's code of ethics. The code of ethics will include several topics concerning ethics, morals, and legal issues. Honesty in the workplace will have its' own chapter. Discrimination and harassment will be explicitly described along with the punishments for those actions. Termination will be the applicable punishment. Different cities and states have certain rules specific for businesses that serve alcohol. The Legislature recently gave cities the option of allowing their bars and restaurants to stay open until 2 a.m. If a city does so, each establishment must decide whether to pay the state up to $600 for a license for the extra hour of business (Brandt, 2003). This is an example of city and state government affecting ethics. This example was in Minneapolis. The code of ethics will contain the laws and moral situations that arise in this type of environment. The code has to be conducive for economic success in the particular area of the business. Ethical standards must be upheld. If the code of ethics cannot be adhered to, liabilities, and lawsuits can be a destructive possibility. Ethical standards should help productivity and profits. If these standards hinder productivity and economic success is compromised, restructuring or dismantling of the company should take place. The code of ethics will be in the form of a book. Most of the issues covered will be common knowledge that accompanies decency and moral behavior. Some of the issues questionable and need to be relayed to employees will be available in the form of documentation. Reinforcement of the code of ethics will be done through open communication lines as well as rewarding positive actions that reveal the high standard of ethics that Taste promises to uphold. The code of ethics will also contain the decision-making