Engaging Ethics Through Blogging

Engaging ethics through blogging has been interesting for me in these last nine weeks. I have enjoyed the project much more than I initially anticipated and have learned a great deal in the process. In an effort to pause and consider what I have learned, I create a top ten list of the things I learned while blogging about ethics over the last nine weeks:

10. I found the technology much easier to use than I anticipated.  I have to admit that I am not entirely new to blogging, but this go-round made an attempt to use more of the features available through ‘blogger’ and other links to technology. I have a love-hate relationship with technology in general and have found that sometimes the simplest things are the most difficult for me. I was overjoyed this wasn’t the case during this term and hope this confidence and experience can help me continue to learn and try more!

9. I found it fairly interesting to write about things that are interesting to me – but there is no way I’d want to be a professional blogger! I enjoyed this opportunity to blog about ethics because in some way the sky was the limit in regards to what I wrote about. As long as the topic related to ethics in public administration in some way, it was fair game. This freedom meant it was easy for me to find a topic that I could engage and enjoy writing about. With that said – I do not understand how professional bloggers do it! Unless you’re writing about personal experiences and you have an extraordinarily interesting family, I do not know how people have the time to have a life/job/hobby/whatever AND then also blog about it.

8. I enjoyed being able to add interest to my posts with photos. Since google has been “a thing,” I have found it fascinating that you can type anything or any name into the search bar and google (or any other search engine) will attempt to find a photo related to your search. Searching for photos related to this blog was fun and entertaining and lead to many sites on the internet and information I might not have found otherwise. I enjoyed finding everything from school projects to silly pictures and memes to serious political cartoons and info graphics.

7. Being able to link to articles and other sites is a huge benefit. Yes, the same information I covered in this blog could have been presented (in a more formal matter) in a research paper but one of the things that is so cool/helpful/obvious about the internet is how everything is connected. Because of the ease of using the technology, I could easily connect links on this blog to related content elsewhere on the internet. I think this adds interest and validity for readers.

6. Blogging made me want to read other blogs. It was nice to be able to read other blogs of students taking advantage of the same opportunity this term and compare writing styles, blog design, and content. So yes, I wanted to read more about ethics in public administration  - but I also found myself wanting to read other blogs about things I care about including foster care, adoption, non-profit work, social work in general, same-sex parenting, and other combinations of these! I found professional and non-professional blogs to be interesting and helpful in a variety of ways.

5. At the beginning of this term I realized I really needed to spend some time and energy deciding what kind of blog I wanted to write. As a result of the “skies the limit” freedom, I could have done a variety of things with this blog. I am glad I spent time on the front end thinking about formatting, style, and content so that I had a sort of road-map through the experience. I decided variety would be important to me in this experience and chose to write about a variety of topics from a variety of readings, movies, sites, and discussions.

4. Blogging helped me consider many aspects of public administration. I actually learned a lot about a variety of aspects of public administration and ethics as a result of this experience. I am sure that is the objective – but it happened!

3. Don’t be offended when no one reads the blog…So it was a strange feeling to write something that I was sure no one would actually read. There were some opportunities for me to share with friends, family, or colleagues that I was blogging about ethics, but for the most part I recognized no one was sitting at home anxiously waiting for my next post.

2…but assume they will. It was nice to have comments from students and others on several of my posts. It was an engaging conversation that helped me regain some energy about writing. I also learned a lesson about writing things and putting them on the internet that you’re not quite ready to be public information. Specifically, in one of my posts I mentioned my partner and I were planning to be married soon. That is something that people generally knew but no one knew we were planning a sort of elopement/destination wedding with just a few close friends and family. That ceremony took place not long after I wrote about it on the blog. Because of the connections between this blog and my gmail account, people who know my email account could easily see and read my blog. I hadn’t thought about that! I know that nothing is private – especially posted on the internet – and now know to never assume no one is reading it!

And the number one thing I learned through this experience of engaging ethics and public administration through blogging is…

1. I enjoyed blogging through this process much more than I would have enjoyed a research paper!

At-Will Employment

This week I had the opportunity to do some reading related to at-will employment – specifically as it relates to ethics in public administration. I was delighted to have an opportunity to read more specifically about this topic because it was something I knew very little about – but hear about on a regular basis at work. Until I began working at my current place of employment I am sure I had never heard the phrase “at-will employer.” I heard it thrown around – almost in a joking manor – not long after I started working. I heard others at the non-profit where I work say things like “well I can quit anytime I want to since they’re an at-will employer” or “I wouldn’t even have to work two weeks since they’re at-will.” Now, I don’t want to give the wrong impression – I work at a lovely place where hardly anyone ever quits! These conversations usually take place on Monday morning – or Tuesday morning after a long weekend – when no one really wants to be at work. I began to understand a little more about the phrase and meaning when I began to supervise others two years ago. As a supervisor I am responsible for things that typically come with a supervisory role. I have to do annual evaluations and also handle disciplinary matters when they arise. In instances where we have had to address issues with employees, I have heard other managers and directors talk about the importance of documenting things as they happen – but then at the same time make reference to the fact that “Georgia is an at-will state so that isn’t totally necessary.”

So – since most of what I knew and thought I understood about at-will employment has very little to do with the actual reasons for and history behind the concepts I was thankful for some better information.

I found the history of employment at-will doctrine to be interesting and helpful in fully understanding. Because my experience (and I would imagine my generation) I would never had made the connections between merit-based civil service and at-will employment. I do see how history and changes in culture and priorities have led to the role of a public employee being no different than others found in business.

The reading I did also emphasized applying the ethics triad to at-will employment. Considering how at-will employment doctrine might be viewed through three different ethical lenses shines new light on application, pros, and cons. When applying the triad one would consider results related to (1) a rules based approach, (2) a results based approach, and (3) virtue based ethics. It is important to consider the emphases of each of the three parts of the triad when thinking of pros and cons of at-will employment – as it is important when using the triad to consider any issue. Each of the three approaches holds arguments for and against at-will employment. The material I was reading suggests that even after considering all three pieces of the triad it is hard to see how an employment doctrine that can cause harm could be considered ethical. The lack of responsibility to the employee on the part of the employer places many things at risk.

In conclusion, this week I learned a great deal more about at-will employment doctrine but then end realize I have a great deal of learning left to do. I will spend some time reading and learning and asking others and trying to see how these ideas can be best applied – or ignored -  depending on my conclusions!