Working Ethics Series...Further Practical Ideas

At a2ethics.org, we have been trying to put in perspective our ramble through the community to talk with various 20 to 30 something locals and people who have left but still consider themselves locals to the Ann Arbor area. Here are some rambling thoughts intended to give some practical ideas to our friends and fellow a2ethics.org networkers.

1. We have been very interested to see what people say about what ethics is in general. We haven't really been very stringent about defining ethics for anyone...the study of right and wrong, for example, is as far as we get in any one interview. Yet, we have found the people we interviewed are quite aware of the broad sweep of ethics and of ethical issues in their work.

They know there are 'just once in a great while' issues they have to deal with, perhaps memorable because they are big, but they also told us about their daily concerns, the little issues that can sometimes become big ones.

For example, in the big issues realm...Chelle Kilmury, the Head Groomer and partner-in-business at Groom N Go, told us her biggest ethical issue was what she eloquently called, the responsibility for acknowledging "The Final Groom." We had asked her what the least favorite part of her work was: she did not hesitate. For her it was the last time she could responsibly groom an old dog, one who was arthritic and for whom even a bath was painful. These are often the dogs she has groomed since they were pups. And for her, it is always an ethical quandary, because she was having to impart bad news to the owner, and to say goodbye to a dog she had cared for over many years.

In the small, but constant ethical concern realm...Caroline Kerr, the former Assistant Director of College Counseling at Ann Arbor Greenhills School felt that one of the small but common ethical issues in her field of admissions work is the narrow search problem, where a student and a family has in their minds that only the top schools, listed in the popular "U.S. News & World Report" annual rankings, are the schools to apply to. Caroline sees one of her responsbilities then as educating her students and families about expanding their horizons without denying them their dreams.

2. In the seven interviews, one value or concept cut across all fields of work. This is the concept of trust. All of our interviews included some discussion of how vital trust was in establishing an ethical identity and credibility for their work. For Jack Bridges, the photojournalist, the very essence of the project at the Robert Taylor Homes in Chicago, began with developing trust with the subjects of his photographs. And sometimes we found out later, this trust does not exist or begins already frayed, as Kelton Graham, Coach of the Huron High Boys' Swimming Team pointed out to us straightforwardly. He told us that he encountered kids who had been let down by adults. And that as a result, much of his time is spent not on going over stroke techniques, but instead on making sure his athletes have reason to trust him. The coach is earning his athletes' trust and not the other way around.

So, these are just a few of the ideas we came away with in talking with these thoughtful people. We can't say that we touched nerves; our questions were not intended to be confrontational. To be sure, we know it is necessary in ethics to take the critical stance and to question where it is appropriate. But we are not interested in this approach to the extent that it chills conversation or makes people unwilling to think for themselves.

To continue our talk about the ethics of work, we have some books you might want to search out listed below. It is just part of the archive we want to keep on the ethics of work. Where possible, we will try to find local sources and resources. For now, here are some overviews.

Books about reflections on work life and excellence

1. Making Good: How Young People Cope with Moral Dilemmas at Work by Wendy Fischman, et. al.

2. The Craftsman by Richard Sennett

3. The Reflective Practitioner by Donald Schon

3. The Artist of the Beautiful by Nathaniel Hawthorne (fiction)

4. The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (fiction)

Please feel free to comment on your impressions of the Working Ethics Series in the forums.