Paul Cronan and New England Telephone Company
...rom employment. Nor does NET state issues of performance in the rehiring of Mr. Cronan, or in his placement in any position. The concept of Wrongful Discharge is to protect classes from illegal discharge if based on categorization in one of the protected classes: „h Religion „h Gender „h Race „h Ethnic Origin „h Age Handicap „h Disability The 1964 Civil Rights Act is a piece of legislation that protects against illegal discrimination if an employer discriminates against one of these protected classes in the areas of hiring, firing, compensating, terms and conditions of employment, and the promoting of employees. This application exists in the case as Mr. Cronan claims to be wrongfully discharged and discriminated against for his disability, that being AIDS. Mr. Cronan seeks only to work full time as he had been released to do. However, his frequently required time off for medical treatments/hospitalizations caused the actions of NET. The Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to make reasonable accommodations for workers with disabilities. Ethical Issues; Weekly Issues Studied, Issues Applied to Case The company has, in my opinion, the following corporate and ethical responsibilities. First the company has a right to protect the confidentiality of Mr. Cronan¡¦s illness. I believe it was ok for the first line supervisor to ask the question as to the source of illness and that Mr. Cronan could have declined to comment; however, Mr. Cronan volunteered the information upon promises of confidentiality. The supervisor does have a responsibility to keep his managers above him informed, and was bound as management to move the information upward, and this action should not have threatened the confidentiality, all managers should have maintained the same strict guidelines to protect the interest of their employee. Having said all this, when AIDS education seminars/classes are performed prior to the return of an employee who had been absent for an extended period, it is not possible to prevent rumors and the realization employees will come to upon his return. Simply put, confidentiality can and should be maintained wherever possible; however, Mr. Cronan himself could have leaked the information and we would not have known. I believe as wonderful as this sounds, it is difficult to practice unless the company and employee come to some agreement as to an explanation for absences and ¡§accommodations¡¨ made on his behalf, which itself is challenged ethically. The company further has the ethical responsibility to protect the rights of all employees who could be exposed to Mr. Cronan¡¦s disease. Because this disease is only spread through blood transfers or through sexual contact, the fear of this disease spreading is over-anxiety and poor education on the part of his fellow workers. I believe the company looked into these considerations and addressed them properly, though not timely. The education of employees in regards to this situation was not accomplished fully. As ethical principals imply impartiality, protection of both Mr. Cronan and his fellow employees could have been met; however, beyond the education on the disease, NET had an ethical responsibility to educate on prejudices surrounding the disease and enacting measure to protect Mr. Cronan from physical harm. Violence in the workplace cannot be tolerated at any level The company also has the ethical responsibility to protect the interests of the public as provider of a service. Because the employees walked off the job, it becomes difficult to provide the level of service that maintains the integrity of the company, as seen in the eyes of the customer. NET must answer the question from a company standpoint how it intends to maintain the level of service necessary. Summary of Issues I believe first and foremost that the company hastily moved Mr. Cronan towards disability in order to quietly solve an issue they were ill prepared to deal with, and in doing so illegally violated the rights of Mr. Cronan. The company, by law, is to make reasonable accommodations for an employee with a disability, which AIDS qualifies as in my viewpoint. The company has the legal and ethical responsibility to educate ...