Shouldn’t Employees Already Know the Difference between Right and Wrong?

A belief associated with the good/bad apple idea is that any individual of good character should already know right from wrong and can be ethical without special training— that a lifetime of socialization from parents and religious institutions should prepare people to be ethical at work. You probably think of yourself as an individual of good character, but does your life experience to date prepare you to make a complex business ethics decision? Did your parents, coaches, and other influential people in your life ever discuss situations like the one that follows? Think about this real dilemma.

You’re the VP of a medium-sized organization that uses chemicals in its production processes. In good faith, you’ve hired a highly competent scientist to ensure that your company complies with all environmental laws and safety regulations. This individual informs you that a chemical the company now uses in some quantity is not yet on the approved Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) list. However, it has been found to be safe and is scheduled to be placed on the list in about three months. You can’t produce your product without this chemical, yet regulations say that you’re not supposed to use the chemical until it’s officially approved. Waiting for approval would require shutting down the plant for three months, putting hundreds of people out of work, and threatening the company’s very survival. What should you do?

The solution isn’t clear, and good character isn’t enough to guide decision making in this case. As with all ethical dilemmas, values are in conflict here—obeying the letter of the law versus keeping the plant open and saving jobs. The decision is complicated because the chemical has been found to be safe and is expected to be approved in a matter of months. As in many of today’s business decisions, this complex issue requires the development of occupation-specific skills and abilities. For example, some knowledge in the area of chemistry, worker safety, and environmental laws and regulations would be essential. Basic good intentions and a good upbringing aren’t enough.

James Rest, a scholar in the areas of professional ethics and ethics education, argued convincingly that ‘‘to assume that any 20-year-old of good general character