state of wyoming ethics

E T H I C S I N T H E S T A T E O F W Y O M I N G / / 2016

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State Of Wyoming

ETHICS

“That branch of philosophy dealing with values relating to hu-man conduct, with respect to the rightness and wrongness of cer-tain actions and to the goodness and badness of the motives and ends of such actions.”

This training brought to you by E-Learning Services, a service of A&I, Human Resources Division.

ETHICS


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Examples of Values: restraint, cleanliness, exercise, tobacco use, honesty, marriage, children, accuracy, advancement, ad-venture, bravery, compassion, hygiene, success at any cost, religion, frugality, activity, dis-covery, relationships, individual-ity, relaxation, responsibility.

Let’s start with an examination of “values.” One definition of a value is:

A principle, standard, or quality considered worthwhile or desirable. For example, many would view “honesty” or “family” as important values.

In general, values are either: PRAGMATIC: Valued because somehow they work for us. They are often the “means” to achieve our “ends.”

PREFERENCE: Valued because they provide us pleasure or happiness.

ETHICAL: Valued because we use them to determine what is “RIGHT”. For example, someone that continues to work at a job that they find unfulfilling or boring because they value his or her family - the job provides a means to an end. A preference

value makes us feel good. For example, this may be vacations, hobbies, exercise, or even sub-stance abuse. Finally, ethical val-ues help us to determine what is “right” and what is “wrong”. We’ll discuss this area in more detail later.

Value: A principle, stan-dard, or quality consid-ered worthwhile or desir-able.

VALUES


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REFLECTION

Carefully evaluate this list of values, and think about which fit into your value system.

Reflect for a moment on the following:

• Do you think others would agree or disagree with your selec-tions? Why?

• How might they differ from others’ selections?• How might these values affect different behaviors in your work

center?• Can you think of a particular incident that arose from a differ-

ence in ‘values’ with a peer, boss, or someone that worked for you? What was the outcome?

• Can you change another person’s value system?

Some things you may not have considered to be a value, are actually values. For example, “success at any cost” has very negative con-notations to most, but it is, indeed, a value. Many people may also see values differently.

restraint cleanliness exercisetobacco usehonestymarriagechildrenaccuracyadvancementadventurebraverycompassionhygienesuccessreligionfrugalityactivitydiscoveryrelationships


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Now that we have an understanding of “values”, let’s turn our attention to “ethics,” and how they can relate to our values.

Ethical values are further divided into domains where we decide some things are “right” and some things “wrong”. The four domains are:

Take a look at the diagram below. This diagram illustrates the four domains of Ethical Values. What are your thoughts on this diagram? Admittedly, there is considerable room for disagreement between the domains of Ethical Values, especially in the Personal, Cul-tural, and Religious quadrants. However, despite the diversity of unique “Values” for each domain in the Personal, Religious, and Cultural areas, hopefully, we can all agree on a set of universal ethical values-values that cut across time, cultures, religions, and individuals. Can you think of some universal values related to ethics?

ETHICAL DOMAINS

Personal:Lifestyle Choices

Ideological Choices

Religious:Sins

Virtues

Cultural:CustomsManners

Traditions

Universal:Not limited to Time,

Culture, or anIndividual

Personal Cultural Religious Universal


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THAT’S JUST THE WAY IT IS

A common problem in today’s ethical environment is the statement, “That’s just the way it is.” To say something “IS” might be accurate, but it does not tell us if something is RIGHT or WRONG - there is no judgment - it’s something that IS. If an alien observed all of us could we describe our personal and organizational values without placing a judgment on them as RIGHT or WRONG? The “That’s just the way it is.” is a rationalization used to reach an illogical conclusion - if something “is” then it must be “right”. Not necessarily. Confusing? Hang on-we’ll sort this out.

Real ethical behavior means sticking to a universal set of ethical values and establishing them as the “norms” of acceptable behavior. The universal set becomes our “prescription” to “get better/stay well” by guiding us to what we ought to be doing (even if others are not!, or… if no one is looking). Ethics “IS” is only a description-eth-ics “ought” is a prescription. This is one of the main reason why our Governor has estab-lished a “Code of Ethics” which we will cover in more detail later.

The “That’s just the way it is.” is a rationaliza-tion used to reach an illogical conclusion - if something “is” then it must be “right”

“Real ethical behavior means sticking to a universal set of ethical values and establishing them as the “norms” of accept-able behavior. ”


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Let’s take a look at 6 Universal Ethical Values: * Please note: these universal ethical values are from the book Making Ethical Decisions, by Michael Josephson, Josephson Institute, 1992-1993. According to Mr. Josephson, the six universal ethical values meet our definition of what ethics “Ought”-a set of values that guide our ethical behavior. What are your thoughts on these ethical values? Would you add or subtract any? Before reaching a firm conclusion, let’s examine each of these ethical values by starting with Trustwor-thiness...

Examples of Trustworthiness. Honesty in communications-no intentional misrepresentations

Honesty in conduct-prohibits such activities as theft, cheating, deception or eva-sion.

Integrity-doing what’s right despite costs to yourself

Promise-Keeping-making all reasonable efforts to fulfill commitments and avoid bad faith excuses

Loyalty-creates an expectation of allegiance, fidelity and devotion beyond normal obligation of concern for others

What are your thoughts on even “Little White Lies”? Have you ever used them or received them? How did they make you feel? Think about this, “When another person finds out that you’ve de-ceived them, will they say ‘thank you’?” How are they most likely to react?

6 UNIVERSAL ETHICAL VALUES:-Trustworthiness-Respect-Responsibility-Fairness-Caring-Civic Virtue & Citizenship

UNIVERSAL ETHICAL VALUES


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UNIVERSAL ETHICAL VALUES

Examples of Respect. Autonomy-providing others the information they need to make informed decisions about their own lives.

Courtesy, civility, and decency - (for example reference the Governor’s Executive Order on “Ethics” and “Workplace Violence”) Tolerance and acceptance-tolerating other people’s be-liefs and accepting individual differences without prejudice. Think of the following questions: “Can you lie to a liar?” Also, in general, a lack of respect is at the root of illegal discrimination and sexual harassment-which can not only lead to violation of ethical values, but legal issues as well.

Examples of Responsibility.

Accountability-accepting responsibility for decisions; do not shift blame to others; do not accept credit for the work of others; consider consequences of actions ahead of time and ac-cept responsibility for foreseeable consequences of actions or inactions.

Pursuit of excellence-diligence, doing your best, perseverance, good work habits, contin-uous improvement, self-restraint.

Why is this ethical value so important in the public sector? Our actions are continually monitored not just by our bosses, peers, or workers, but the public as well. If responsibility is not taken seriously, we could lose support from the public we serve. Have you ever heard the phrase, “Good enough for Government work?” How did this make you feel? Are you comfortable with this type of attitude?

How Does the expression, “Good enough for Government work” make you feel as a State Employee?


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Universal Ethical Values

Examples of Fairness. Justice - equity, due process, openness, and consistency.

Procedural fairness-scrupulous employment of open and impartial information and pro-cesses.

Exercising authority with open-mindedness -willingness to seek out and consider relevant information and conflicting information.

Impartiality-making objective decisions based on standards and avoiding favoritism or prejudice.

Equity-balanced treatment for all, an ap-preciation of cultural diversity, requires cor-rection of mistakes, refusing to take unfair advantage of the mistakes or the ignorance of others.

Examples of Caring. Being “others oriented” - at the core of ethical behavior.

Stakeholders and the Golden Rule-translates into maximizing the bene-fits to others while minimizing harm.

Caring versus duty-duty does not preclude making de-cisions that cause harm (duty might require it); a person who is caring must cause no more harm than it is reasonably necessary to do what is required by duty; requires us to be considerate, compassionate, and generous in all our actions. Remember: Customer Service is one of the core competencies for all state employees and will be evaluated each year. This is the “Key” to quality customer service.

Examples of Civic Virtue & Citizenship. Civic duty extends beyond self-interest; recog-nizing obligation to contribute to the overall pub-lic good; civic duties including voting, reporting crime, paying taxes, etc.; civic virtues include so-cial contributions like seeking public office, work-ing for issues that improve the public good, volun-teering time and money for charities, performing community service. As public servants, we must remember we are not just state employees; we are also citizens. All cit-izens have interest in an effective and honorable government and we are in a position to help make it so.


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EXECUTIVE ORDER 1997-4

Drawn up by Governor Jim Geringer on December 9, 1997

State of Wyoming, Executive Branch Code of Ethics, Executive Order 1997-4

Now that we have a better understanding of the concept of Ethics, take a moment to re-view the Governor’s Executive Order by going to the document. This document is import-ant to all employees and should be used to guide ethical decisions while serving in State Government. Please take time to review this very important document.

http://will.state.wy.us/sis/wydocs/execorders/WS-GOV-EO-1997-04.pdf


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Let’s highlight some of the key areas of the ex-ecutive order: -Applies to all employment-related activities of the Executive Branch of the State of Wyoming. -Allegations of a violation of this order are to be inves-tigated by the agency head or designee. -Uphold federal and state constitutions, laws, policies, objectives, orders, and rules.

-Cooperate with other public employ-ees. -Strive to be honorable, courteous, and dedicated to advancing the public good. -Avoid conduct that compromises the integrity of the public office or creates the appearance of impropriety. -Avoid any activity that constitutes a conflict of interest or a perceived con-flict of interest. -Avoid any conduct that constitutes an abuse of authority.

-Protect all property owned or leased by the state.


“...hereby issue the Ex-ecutive Order adopting the following Code of Ethics in the interest of better serv-ing the citizens of the State of Wyoming through the provision of ethical stan-dards applicable to all public officials, elected officials, appointees, and employees of the Executive Branch of the State of Wyoming.”


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Employees may:

-Solicit or accept voluntary gifts or money that is of a nominal value for events such as marriage, retirement, or charitable purposes.

-Accept unsolicited promotional items of a nomi-nal value.

-Engage in a reasonable amount of communi-cation with family members, day care providers, medical professionals, and similarly situated indi-viduals during the work day.

To whom does the executive order apply?

The code of ethics is applicable to all employment-related activities of public officials, elected officials, appointees, and employees of the executive branch of the state of Wy-oming. This includes not just permanent employees, but also probationary, at-will, and temporary employees.

Who administers the Code of Ethics?

Any agency head who receives an allegation of a violation of this code of ethics, is required to promptly investigate it. If the allegation is true then the agency head must take appropriate action and they must follow the Personnel Rules and internal policies. Allegations of violations by agency heads or appointees will be investigated by the Gover-nor.


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There are specifically prohibited activities in the State of Wyoming Code of Ethics. They break down into 4 categories:

• Conflict of Interest• Abuse of Authority• Conflicting Outside Employment• Personal Use of Public Property

Conflict of Interest

Activities which create a conflict of interest include:

• Using your public position to advance personal gain.• Taking official action in a matter involving a close personal or financial relationship.• Activities which are in conflict with official position.• Treating someone in a preferential manner.• Making decisions which are independent and impartial.

Abuse of Authority

Conduct which constitutes an abuse of authority includes:

• Giving confidential information to a private party.

• Awarding a contract to someone closely tied to you.

• Supervisors asking employees for gifts or contributions (exceptions are found in “Al-lowed Activities”.

• Accepting meals, lodging, travel reimburse-ment from sources outside government allowances.

PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES


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Conflicting Outside Employment

Outside employment which conflicts with public duties include

• Accepting fees, gifts, expenses, etc. if it would create a conflict of interest or the appearance of impropriety.

• Receiving a salary from an outside source as compensation for duties performed in public employment.

Personal Use of Public Property

Inappropriate use of public property includes:

• Selling or soliciting for personal gain products or services during busi-ness activities.

• Transacting personal business if it detracts from duties.

• Using State of Wyoming Govern-ment address as a personal resi-dence or for personal reasons.

• Transacting personal business if it detracts from duties.

PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES


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Specifically Allowed Activities

• Accepting unsolicited advertising or promotional items of nominal value (e.g. pens, pencils, note pads, calen-dars, etc.)

• Engage in a reasonable amount of communication with family, care pro-viders, medical professionals, etc.

• Engage in teaching, lecturing, or writ-ing for compensation when those activities are not related to public employment.

• In a private capacity, solicit to obtain goods, services, grants, or loans on behalf of a recognized charitable or fraternal organization.

• Solicit voluntary gifts or donations of nominal value (de minimus. For example, in the case of retirement or birthday celebrations on a voluntary basis only.)

• Accepting gifts when the motivation is clearly a personal or familial rela-tionship.

• Accepting loans from financial insti-tutions under customary terms.

ALLOWED ACTIVITIES

“No employee shall be penalized for inquiring about approval for an activity. If approval is denied due to a conflict with the Code of Ethics, but the employee proceeds anyway, then the supervisor may take appropriate disciplinary action.”


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QUIZ YOURSELF

Take this quiz to see if you understand ethics and the State of Wyoming Code of Ethics. (an-swers are on the next page)

1. Can I accept a hat from a contractor? (Yes or No)2. Can I let a contractor or consultant pick up the tab for a meal? (Yes or No)3. A contractor offers you access to his land to go hunting this year. Should you take him up on it?

(Yes or No)4. You are offered tickets to a sporting event. Should you take them? (Yes or No)5. Is it allowable to go to a conference ‘hospitality’ room where companies are offering free snacks

and non-alcoholic beverages and promotional items? (Yes or No)6. Can I take home or salvage items no longer needed for work for my personal use? (Yes or No)


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QUIZ ANSWERS

1. Yes Employees may accept unsolicited promotional items of nominal value.

2. No You should pay your bill.

3. No If you are being offered preferential treatment because of your employment with the State, then you should not

4. No If the tickets are offered just to you, or a select group of employees, then accepting the tickets would be inappropriate.

5. Yes All participants of the conference or event are allowed access to the same treatment.

6. No Until the material is officially disposed of by the State of Wyoming (taken to the dump for example), it is officially state property and cannot be put to personal use.

state of wyoming ethics

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