Reference no: EM132840006

Imagine you have a co-worker named John T. Shirker, who is not quite doing his or her best (this will be hard to imagine, I know). Shirker does just enough to avoid being fired, disciplined, or otherwise having their work addressed by your organization. Some of Shirker's behavior includes: being late for meetings, being slow to respond to emails, abusing the organization's paid leave program, and doing personal tasks at work.

You try to avoid working with Shirker on projects, although sometimes it is unavoidable. In those cases, you and others must pick up Shirker's slack. You worry Shirker's performance is hurting your organization's productivity and reputation, as well as making other employees complacent.

You and Shirker have the same supervisor, and you've discussed Shirker's performance with her. She understands your concerns but so far has not done anything in response. You don't know much about Shirker's personal life, but he seems reasonably content.

(1) What are some of the ethical implications of Shirker's behavior? How is it affecting others?

(2) Why do you think Shirker might be shirking?

(3) What might you do to improve the situation?

(4) Apply at least one of the theories of business ethics in your answer.