Ethics in Human Resource Management

Ethics in Human Resource Management
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Ethics in Human Resource Management
Overview of the Topic
Human resource management (HRM) is an important part of organizations due to employees' value in attaining business goals. In a business environment characterized by rapid technological and related changes, staying competitive is essential. One of the ways to stay competitive is empowering employees, who are often considered to be the most important assets organizations have. With the primary role of HRM being the management of the employees' affairs, there emerges an essential need to observe human dignity, which brings forth the issue of ethics. From the perspective of HRM, ethics is the moral treatment of employees (Greenwood & Freeman, 2011). As per the stakeholder theory, organizations must respect employees as rational individuals with their own rights (Greenwood & Freeman, 2011). In this sense, the organization is responsible for its behaviors towards employees. Ethics from the HRM perspective concerns itself with some key issues, including fairness in recruitment and selection, wage discrimination, career development, code of ethics, workforce diversity, and corporate social responsibility (Greenwood & Freeman, 2011; Simões et al., 2018). These are the main aspects that characterize ethics in HRM today.
Fairness in recruitment and selection is a key aspect of HRM ethics. Hiring managers have to adhere to legal frameworks governing recruitment and selection and have to ensure the process is done ethically. Hiring managers must recruit and select ethical employees and do it so that they do not discriminate against other candidates (Villegas et al., 2019). In this sense, therefore, the issue of fairness in recruitment and selection is a major part of ethics in HRM.
Wage discrimination is another issue that falls under ethics in HRM. In this case, the role of the HRM is to ensure that there is fairness in compensation and benefits package. Concerns arise when the rewards systems in an organization discriminate against some employees based on things like gender, country of origin, and race (Fays et al., 2021). In general, any form of discrimination in the workplace falls under ethics as it directly impacts human dignity. Wage discrimination is not only unethical but also illegal. HRM managers, therefore, familiarize themselves with the legal guidelines relating to employment discrimination, which can help them uphold ethical practices in their organizations.
Ethics in HRM also focuses on fairness in career development. One of the biggest roles of HR departments in organizations is to foster career development. Career development opportunities is a major consideration for employees when deciding whether or not to work in an organization. As noted by Simões et al. (2018), one of the most unethical practices in HRM is career development based on friendships with top management. In this case, an individual's friendly relationship with the top management determines career development activities such as participation in research activities, education continuity, increased responsibilities, and promotions. As such, ethics in HRM is concerned with ensuring...