Is employee disclosure of illegal unethical or illegitimate practices on employers?

Abstract

Whistleblowers have usually been treated as outcasts by private-sector employers. But legal, ethical, and practical considerations increasingly compel companies to encourage employees to disclose suspected illegal and/or unethical activities through internal communication channels. Internal disclosure policies/procedures (IDPP's) have been recommended as one way to encourage such communication. This study examined the relationship between IDPP's and employee whistleblowing among private-sector employers. Almost 300 human resources executives provided data concerning their organizations' experiences. Executives in companies with IDPP's reported a significant increase in the number of internal disclosures by employees after implementation. Respondents also reported a significant decrease in the number of external disclosures after implementation of their IDPP. When the level of employee disclosures in companies with IDPP's was compared to those in companies without IDPP's, the overall level of internal disclosures was significantly higher among employers who had the internal policies/procedures. Respondents also reported a marginally significant association between the responsiveness of management to employee-voiced concerns and the level of internal disclosures by employees. Possible interpretations of these results are discussed, and their implications for private-sector employers are addressed.

Journal Information

The Journal of Business Ethics publishes original articles from a wide variety of methodological and disciplinary perspectives concerning ethical issues related to business. Since its initiation in 1980, the editors have encouraged the broadest possible scope. The term 'business' is understood in a wide sense to include all systems involved in the exchange of goods and services, while 'ethics' is circumscribed as all human action aimed at securing a good life. Systems of production, consumption, marketing, advertising, social and economic accounting, labour relations, public relations and organisational behaviour are analysed from a moral viewpoint. The style and level of dialogue involve all who are interested in business ethics – the business community, universities, government agencies and consumer groups. Speculative philosophy as well as reports of empirical research are welcomed. In order to promote a dialogue between the various interested groups as much as possible, papers are presented in a style relatively free of specialist jargon.

Publisher Information

Springer is one of the leading international scientific publishing companies, publishing over 1,200 journals and more than 3,000 new books annually, covering a wide range of subjects including biomedicine and the life sciences, clinical medicine, physics, engineering, mathematics, computer sciences, and economics.

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Journal of Business Ethics © 1993 Springer
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29.Employee disclosure of illegal, unethical, or illegitimate practices on the employer’s part is called______.a.acknowledgmentb.turningc.informingd.profferinge.whistle-blowing

30.Statements that define fundamental values and reference organizational responsibilities, quality ofproducts, and treatment of employees are often called ______.

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31.A recent poll found that nearly _____ percent of people say that executives make decisions basedprimarily on advancing their own careers.

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32.Researchers have generally found a(n) _____ relationship between ethical and socially responsiblebehavior and a firm’s financial performance.

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