Work Ethics?? Obsolete or not?

8/22/2021

Work what??? ethics, you know, work ethics?!!

Work ethic is a belief that work and diligence have a moral benefit and an inherent ability, virtue or value to strengthen character and individual abilities. It is a set of values centered on importance of work and manifested by determination or desire to work hard.
Wikipedia

The work ethic traits are: appearance, attendance, attitude, character, communication, cooperation, organizational skills, productivity, respect and teamwork

Here’s more from Google:
A work ethic is a set of moral principles an employee uses in his or her job and it encompasses many of these traits: reliability/dependability, dedication, productivity, cooperation, character, integrity, sense of responsibility, emphasis on quality, discipline, teamwork, professionalism, respectfulness, determination

Okay, someone, anyone! Please help me, because I did say I would not do this, i.e. give advice unless asked!!! But there I was partially unclothed from waist up, just like the other woman in the small waiting room, patiently waiting our turn to have our melons squished, mashed, and thrust into/onto metal to verify all’s well with my girl parts! So you see, my guards were down, and it just happened.

A young, courteous high school junior was asked to sit with my Mom while I had my xrays taken. I warned her that Mom was a chatter-box and they both chuckled as I walked away. I returned a few minutes later and before we would part ways, the high school junior and I began talking. I had remembered glancing at her when I checked in, as she sat quietly, observing the dynamics in the open check-in area. She proudly told me she had an opportunity to earn 75 points for volunteering at this medical facility this summer to fulfill requirements for the health professions major she was in. “75 points!!” she stressed.

A little put off by her stressing the number of points (and not how much she would be learning), I found myself talking about the great opportunity she had to learn, and because I had recently observed some poor work ethics exhibited at this exact check in area, I dove into it with vigor! There seemed to be a slight furrowing in her brows when I mentioned ‘work ethics,’ but I continued, giving examples and she seemed curious.

I urged her to observe the staff in the check-in area to see how they greeted each patient walking up to their counters. I gave her examples of what an ideal greeting would be and ones that weren’t. I talked about not being caught up in social conversation when patients arrive and not promptly shifting gears to smile and ask the preferable greeting, “How may I help you today” as if you really mean it. I said, “remember, you have a job because of those patients that are coming to you. It’s imperative that you do everything you can to help those patients, including getting someone else to help if you’re not sure.”

I mentioned not keeping personal cellphones on one’s body or in the workspace, to avoid distractions and to stay on task, that a free moment was not to check in on Facebook or other social media, but to ask what else can I be doing to perform my job well. Even through my new protege’s face mask, I could see a little surprise as I talked about cellphone use.

And then I went there, uggh!!

I said, “remember when you clock in to your workplace, wearing your employee badge with your employer’s emblem on it, you are representing your employer, your time is no longer your own. Every minute now belongs to your employer, until you clock out; you are getting paid for every minute of time you are in your role. So when you casually swipe up on your phone to peek at messages, you are now stealing $ from your employer!!! Or when you get on your work computer and start shopping for an outfit to your friend’s party, you are stealing from your employer. Or, when…”

Okay, so I really didn’t go that far, but I heard a speaker communicate these ideas once, and because they resonated with me, I include them in the ones that I practice. Since I did not want to scare the young high schooler with too much information, I stayed on the periphery of this important topic. But she did look a little surprise when I initially mentioned the term ‘work ethics,’ so it had me pondering whether ‘work ethics’ are not part of the preparation for life or the workplace, just like my conclusion that there is a lack of exposure to the great benefits of mentoring.

Come to think of it, I don’t think I was ever taught about ‘work ethics,’ formally in any of my educational preparation! I probably picked it up somewhere on my journey. So I’ve often wondered why many others do not practice good ‘work ethics’ which I suspect, without it, one can sabotage one’s own professional future even having all the other things checked off. If you just stumbled onto my Blog,