The costs involved in the medical and pension costs for the candidate could have a significant impact upon the business.
The second consideration is the image of the business in terms of the law. Customers today are very sophisticated, and tend to investigate businesses in terms of their fairness and social responsibility. Were the first-choice candidate to disclose to the news that the business engaged in unfair practices when not hiring, this could have a severely negative impact upon the business and its perception by the public. This could result in significant losses in terms of customers and revenue. The business will have to consider whether this is an acceptable risk when compared to the risk of the first-choice employee becoming unfit for work.
The third factor is the law. Business and the law cannot be separated, as businesses today are required to be completely fair in their hiring practices (Prial, 2010). If the first-choice candidate feels that the company has not been fair, he is within his rights to approach a legal facility to make a claim against them. This can also result in significant costs to the company in terms of legal and settlement costs. Should the company lose a legal battle, the settlement amount could be significant, or indeed they could be forced to hire the employee, which defeats the decision against him in the first place.
4. Give your decision as the Vice President for Health Services and the rationale for the decision.
As the Vice President for Health Services, it is my decision that, on ethical,...
Basing this decision on a hypothetical disability that might not surface is not within the rights of the company in terms of ethics and the law. I do not believe that there are reasonable grounds for the belief that the candidate might not be able to work within five years. Indeed, there is more than a 50% chance that he might.
Therefore it is my decision that, because the candidate disclosed his condition, he should be hired under the condition of five-yearly medical check-ups. He should be under obligation to let the company's managers know right away when the condition surfaces, and for how long after this he will be able to continue his job performance. Like all other employees, he should have access to the company's medical and pension plans, towards which his salary will contribute monthly. This decision will protect the company in terms of legal and social responsibility.
References
McNamara, C. (2010). Complete Guide to Ethics Management: An Ethics Toolkit for Managers. Retrieved from: http://managementhelp.org/ethics/ethxgde.htm
Prial, D. (2010). Among Many Health-Care Unknowns: The Law's Impact on Hiring. FoxBusiness, March 25. Retrieved from: http://www.foxsmallbusinesscenter.com/humanresources/2010/03/25/health-care-unknowns-laws-impact-hiring/
Seattle Pacific University. (2010). Office of Human Resources: Legal Hiring Considerations. Retrieved from: http://www.spu.edu/depts/hr/supervisor/legal_hire/legalnew.htm
