HR Ethics
The importance of ethics in HR
The importance of ethics in HR cannot be understated. Your HR team is the center of your organization and plays an important role in multiple aspects of your operation. All of your company policies are formed through HR, so ethics should always play a pivotal role. Similarly, ethics should also be a major consideration in recruitment, employee engagement, and management.
If your organization fails to meet the ethical standards that are expected, it will have a lasting impact on your reputation. Even if your HR team does their best to abide by high ethical standards, there are still certain little-known issues that can trip them up if they don’t receive the right level of training.
It’s also the responsibility of HR professionals to identify and resolve unethical behaviors or practices across the business. These can also be prevented by providing HR staff - and staff across the organization - with access to relevant training materials.
Should your HR team learn more about ethics?
Yes, ethics training should be a key part of your HR team’s learning and development strategy. Not only does it allow your HR team to make fair, balanced, and inclusive decisions, but helps instill those values across the organization.
Not having the correct or up-to-date knowledge surrounding business ethics in HR can be costly, and lead to potentially unethical practices. As a result, this could lead to:
- Irreparable damage to your organization’s reputation that will break down relationships with partners and stakeholders.
- A greater risk of unethical behavior from employees.
- A loss of revenue.
- Legal action.
- Fines.
- Reduced customer satisfaction, trust, and loyalty.
What are commonly faced ethical issues for HR staff?
Every industry and business are different, which means the potential ethical dilemmas faced can vary greatly. Just some of the commonly faced ethical issues HR staff may encounter include:
- Issues involving bullying or harassment
- Discrimination based on factors such as sexuality, gender, race, age, or disability
- Employee compensation or benefits schemes that are biased or unfair
- Dishonest or biased recruitment processes
- Asking employees to disclose personal information that isn’t relevant to their role
- Unfair or inconsistent performance reviews or appraisals
- Promotions
- Terminations
What are the benefits of ethics training for HR staff?
When HR staff are provided with regular training, it ensures they have up-to-date skills and knowledge so they can work ethically and morally. However, the benefits of ethical HR practices go much further than this and have a positive effect across the entire business.
- It ensures your business complies with laws and regulations - ethical practices mean abiding by employment law at all times, including fair recruitment processes and minimum wage requirements.
- Promotes ethical practices across the business - your HR team can communicate the dos and don’ts across the business by creating a code of conduct. This helps to ensure compliance by all employees.
- Protects your reputation - clients, customers, and top industry talent won’t want to be associated with an unethical business. And word can soon spread that your business is one to stay away from.
- Encourages better decision-making - ethical decisions are better decisions thanks to a lack of biases.
- Builds trust - when confidentiality is respected it builds trust between employees.
- Lowers employee turnover - employees want to work for a business that shares the same values. Showcasing ethics demonstrates to employees that you’re a trustworthy business, and helps lower turnover.
Can you learn about ethics online?
Human resources is a busy industry to work in, and taking time to take training courses can be time-consuming and expensive. However, one of the most convenient and affordable ways for employees to learn is via eLearning.
Online HR ethics training courses are great for employees who may struggle to find long periods to dedicate to learning. eLearning courses are perfect for micro-learning, as they can be picked up as and when employees have the time - even just a few minutes. This means training doesn’t have to interfere with day-to-day responsibilities and doesn’t add additional stress or pressure.
Because online training materials have already been produced, they can be accessed immediately. They’re also affordable and can be easily scaled, so whether training a team of three or a team of three hundred, it’s cost-effective and flexible.
What are the best online HR ethics training courses?
Online HR ethics training courses can be taken by those new to HR or existing professionals. It’s recommended that staff periodically take refresher courses to ensure they remain compliant and ethical at all times. Some of the best eLearning courses, which aren’t limited to HR staff, include:
- Ethical Boundaries at Work
- Ethics and Ignorance - Avoiding Unnecessary Crises at Work
- 10 Ethical Values for Business Success
- Workplace Ethics
- The Stuff of Work: Ethics and Assets
- Ethics & Code of Conduct
- The Anatomy of an Ethical Decision
- Ethics for a Modern Workforce
- Playing it Safe! Avoiding Ethical Risk at Work
Train your HR team in ethics with Go1
Looking to offer HR ethics training to your employees? Go1 has a wide range of eLearning courses available to access instantly. For more information on how Go1 can help your organization develop and upskill your employees, book a demo with our team today.