Our situation;
"The treasurer of BuckeyeThon was totaling the accounts after an afternoon of "canning" and realized that the group had reached $5,000 past their $3,000 goal. The treasurer decided to siphon the coins from the collection to use for her own personal use because her parents, whom she had depended on, had passed away and she was left with nothing. Her only source of income is a 3 hour a week bathroom-cleaning job at The Waffle House. She knew she would be the only one totaling the money, and that the coins were often miscounted. She told herself that she would "raise back" the funds that she took before the Dance Marathon, where total funds would be calculated. Is her decision to take the funds and repay them back later, an ethical one?"
Our reaction;
No, her decision was not ethical. It was a short-term fix to a long-term problem, and it she attempted to fix a personal situation with property (in this case, the funds) that was not hers to take. She took an individual over community based stance because she focused on her own personal needs instead of looking at the bigger picture and acting towards the good of the community (BuckeyeThon, in this case). Additionally, she failed to act truthfully or loyally. She was trusted to count the money truthfully, as the treasurer of BuckeyeThon- a job to which she was entrusted with. Also, she put herself above the needs of the organization, showing that she failed to honor her commitment. Although her situation is extremely unfortunately and others may say that her decision is excusable (since she will pay it back), however, she breached the trust of the organization when she intentionally failed to do her job. This made her decision unethical, in our opinion.
This was a very interesting dilemma, and I think you came to a good conclusion about the decision that the treasurer made. There are so many critical problems in her justifications of the actions -- and you address those clearly. I think something else that could be mentioned is that she not only stole from the organization she was working for, but she put their integrity on the line. If it was discovered that the treasurer of Ohio State's biggest philanthropy was mishandling money -- it would discredit all the good work being done.
ReplyDeleteThis person literally failed as an ethical human being. Kidding... but I'm actually not. What makes her think it's OK to do something like this? She cheated her organization, her fellow BTers, and her parents, who definitely wouldn't want her stealing money from a group that works to end pediatric cancer. Your answer was spot on. I like that you said she was creating a temporary fix for a long-term problem. That's exactly it. This girl needs to learn her lesson and hopefully it'll never happen again. We can all take note from this disaster.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. Though, this person is at a very tough period in their lives, it gives them no right to steal. This is completely unethical, and illegal. People worked very hard to raise that money, and she would be no better than anyone else if she decided to take the money. She did fail at her job, and failed her fellow members in the org.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with your groups response. Though this situation tugs at the heart strings, it still does not excuse the treasurer from stealing $2,000. Though this extra money was not immediately needed to the BuckeyeThon team, it was an unethical decision. As a person in a leadership position and a college student the right choice is evident. Her taking the money was exactly a short term fix to a long term problem. She would most likely struggle with earning that $2,000 back and therefore be cheating her school, her team, the sick children, and various others who relied on her.
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