Resolving Right versus Right Dilemmas

3.20 Resolving Right versus Right Dilemmas

Cases: 3.9, 41, 4.3, 6.10 An ethical dilemma is typically cast as a “right” versus “wrong” situation. Yet

there are occasions, perhaps more than we realize, when the choice is choosing one “right” over another “right.” These situations can be equally troubling. Consider the choice that Lt. Col. Oliver North had to make about “telling the truth” about the Iran-Contra arms-for-sale deal in the 1980s. In his mind, if he told the truth, lives would be lost in Nicaragua because the Contra rebels would be unable to defend themselves. He decided that the right thing to do was to protect lives rather than to tell the truth.

Although perhaps less dramatic, local government officials can find themselves in a “right” versus “right” dilemma. Consider the case of the city manager in a com- munity of 25,000 residents. To save money and avoid layoffs, the council unani- mously voted to cross-train police officers to serve as fire fighters to supplement the fi re department. Alas, the fire fighters union adamantly opposed the measure and with support of the state fire fighter’s union filed recall petitions against four of the seven council members with the promise to “get the other three” when they come up for reelection. The union also vowed to support candidates who would get rid of the city manager.

Th e city manager felt strongly that these measures, if successful, would cripple the city economically and force laying off police officers at a time the city was

experiencing a significant increase in crime. He believed he had a commitment to promote the public interest and began to consider his options:

1. He could do nothing and thereby maintain his commitment to political neu- trality—a right thing to do.

2. He could quietly support and assist the council members who are the target of the recall initiative because he believes that the public interest would be better served if they stayed in office—another right thing to do.

3. He could speak out about the issues and thereby educate the public about the merits of balancing public safety needs with fiscal realities.

4. He could resign and speak his mind.

Discussion Questions

1. What should he do?

2. How should he sort through this dilemma? Should he invoke a principle, make a decision based on a virtue, treat the matter as a duty?

3. Should he seek the counsel of his best friend? Spouse? Professional code of ethics?

78 ◾ Ethics Moments in Government: Cases and Controversies

Commentary by Author

Once the city manager crosses the line to support, covertly or overtly, council mem- bers targeted for a recall he has moved into the political arena with eyes wide open. Th ere will be no turning back. His future is now in the hands of opponents and

proponents of the recall. If he ends up on the winning side, his reputation as a pro- fessional is in jeopardy in his community as well as in other communities where he might become a candidate for another city management job. If he ends up on the loosing side, his career as a city manager may be permanently ended. This is a “lose- lose” proposition from the manager’s perspective. Perhaps the best thing to do is to stay politically neutral. Does this mean that he has compromised himself by not promoting the public interest? Possibly, but given the vagaries of what constitutes the public interest and the unknowns of the future, does he have any other choice?

Chapter 4

Encouraging Ethical Behavior

It takes many good deeds to build a good reputation, and only one bad one to lose it.

Benjamin Franklin

Why do “good” people who want to be ethical sometimes find themselves in an unethical situation? Could it be that they don’t know what the bright lines are that define (un)ethical behavior? Perhaps there are no bright lines, or they are fuzzy at best. So, the important question becomes, what can be done to encourage ethical behavior and discourage unethical behavior? These challenging questions are likely to be asked for many years to come. Does this mean that there are no answers? No. It means that our understanding of (un)ethical behavior is incomplete at best and very inadequate at worst. Still, there is no shortage of efforts to encourage behavior that is deemed acceptable and ethical. One significant way for managers to encourage ethical behavior is to serve as a role model. Kenneth Ashworth (2001, 166) advises that while there is some risk in “attracting attention to yourself or appearing stuffy, you should not be reluctant to see yourself as a model of ethical behavior.”

Th e cases and controversies in Chapter 4 illustrate in part why good people can fi nd themselves in an ethical quandary and why many tools and practices (codes, standards, rules, performance evaluations, and just common sense) intended to encourage ethical behavior are not always successful in doing so.

80 ◾ Ethics Moments in Government: Cases and Controversies

The concluding case in this chapter is an excellent example of how public officials in a progressive county are all too often unaware of the ethical dimensions of an issue until they are mired in an ethics swamp. One could say that they suffered from ethical illiteracy. Another case presents a city manager with the challenge of advocating against a statewide referendum that would cut taxes and necessitate a reduction in city services. Does advocacy go beyond the pale of acceptable profes- sional behavior? Other cases deal with religious expression in the workplace, the behavior of a city employee who finds himself in a nasty quarrel with a neighbor, going along to get along with the boss who wants to put the best face on a difficult situation, a decision by a city manager to accept or reject a pay raise that exceeds the raise of city employees, strengthening the ethics culture of the organization by adding an ethics component to employees’ annual evaluations, and the development and implementation of a policy to ban married employees in the sheriff’s office from engaging in extramarital affairs. Could the sheriff be accused of trying to manage the morality of employees? Do police officers have a right to privacy in how they conduct their private lives?

The cases in Chapter 4 are cross-listed in a matrix with the ethical compe- tencies in Appendix 2. The matrix cells enable the reader to identify specific cases with specific competencies. For example, the competency “be aware and informed of relevant professional codes of ethics” is highlighted in two cases: 4.3 “Information or Advocacy—Is There a Difference?” and 4.9 “Mired in an Ethics Swamp.”