Merging Diversity and Ethics, Essay Example

Diversity is interrelated to ethics, because it leads to stereotypes and discrimination. As discrimination is considered to be unethical, it is proven that diversity in workplace, government and health care is an ethical issue. Diversity should be approached in an ethical way. Ethical guidelines state that virtues are compassion, caring and sympathy. That means that the individual should be trying to understand the values of the other person, irrelevant to their belief, religion or values.

In the Diversity, Ethics and Peace Pub (registered in 2012), the mission statements states that the organization has a main aim of protecting and understanding the deep diversity evident in today’s world. They use a modern ethical approach to diversity.

The Working Ethics website (online) connects ethics and diversity on a different level; they state that “on the other hand, facilitates the discernment of what is right and wrong”. The approach used by the source is based on ethical relativism; (Macklin, 1999) The author also states that an absolutist approach of ethics led to Holocaust; not accepting different values and ethical standards and believing that “exceptionless ethical rules exist” is wrong. When connecting diversity with ethics, this is the most important statement to keep in mind.

Yahoo’s article (2010) states that inclusion is the answer to creating an ethical approach to diversity. The author recommends companies to create a definition of business ethics and build a strong diversity program around it.

Related to work diversity, companies focus more on the elimination of stereotyping and discrimination. Judging people based on their sex, skin color or belief when making a decision about their abilities, promotion prospects or salary should not be allowed, according to Working Ethics. The ethical principle; “respecting others” should always be used and fairness on a level of diversity means judging people based on their qualities related to the decision to be made.

References

Working Ethics Website. Online. < http://workingethics.com/valuesanddiversity.html>

Macklin, R. (1999) Against Relativism. Oxford University Press.

Hopkins, W. E. (1997) Ethical Dimensions of Diversity. Sage

Leadbeater, A. Decisions to Promote Inclusion – Business Ethics in Diversity. (2010) Yahoo. (online)< http://voices.yahoo.com/decisions-promote-inclusion-business-ethics-in-     7224780.html?cat=3>