portant part of an ethics program is just increasing awareness levels. Companies with ethics programs find that many “unethical” decisions are not of deliberate commission, but of ignorance. An effective ethics program can be an important tool in an organization because as employees learn to use this tool, they become more confident in the self-regulating atmosphere of the new workplace. A clearly explained code of ethics plays a pivotal role in employee empowerment by clearing up any questions on their own. Codes of ethics are suggested means for institutionalizing ethical behavior. A code of ethics is a formal document that states an organization's primary values and ethical rules it expects employees to follow. It has been suggested that codes should be specific enough to show employees the spirit in which they should do things, yet loose enough to allow freedom of judgment. Human Resources must be careful when establishing a code of ethics. In order for the code to be effective, HR should be careful not to omit important issues such as personal character matters, product safety, product quality, environmental affairs, or civic and community affairs. Ethics are becoming more and more important, and HR must continually revise the code of ethics to address issues that come up in the changing workplace. Corporations must ensure the code of ethics is used effectively and not just as window dressing. Their effectiveness depends heavily on whether management supports them and how employees who break the codes are treated. When management considers them important, regularly affirms their content, and publicly reprimands rule breakers, codes can supply a strong foundation for an effective ethics program. However, winning the ethics battle isn’t only about how an organization punishes those who engage in unethical behavior, but how the company rewards both good and bad behavior. For example, a company can provide ethics guid...
