Ethical decision making in hiring practices

Abstract
Human resources managers are increasingly called upon to contribute to ethical decision making in their hiring practices. Hiring policies and practices are a critical gateway to fulfilling organizational ethical commitments. Using standard screening methods like background checks or screening applicant social media accounts present ethical dilemmas, pitting the need for due diligence against the need to resist any form of discrimination in hiring. By engaging in hiring policies and practices that reflect legal ground rules and also ethical codes, human resources managers achieve critical security goals and also protect the legal and ethical rights of employees. Key issues to take into consideration in hiring decisions include the legal ground rules that govern organizational codes of conduct and codes of ethics. Many organizations also craft codes of ethics and codes of conduct specifically to craft organizational culture, promote security, while also insuring against legal breaches.
Codes of Ethics vs. Codes of Conduct
Both codes of ethics and codes of conduct can be grounded in legal compliance, while still reflecting the overarching values and culture of the organization. At the very least, hiring practices need to properly reflect commitments to the legal ground rules pertaining to anti-discrimination and employee rights to privacy (Dwoskin, Squire & Patullo, 2013). Codes of ethics reflect principles and governing philosophies, which can be expressed in vague or abstract terms. Codes of conduct can be written in ways that more specifically address behaviors or measurable actions. As Adelstein & Clegg (2016) point out, only “Some elements of codes have the force of national regulation and law behind them,” (p. 56). Codes mitigate legal risks and can also be used to defer responsibility; ultimately ethical behavior is a matter of individual choice (Adelstein & Clegg, 2016). Organizations genuinely committed to meeting the high standards set forth in codes of ethics and codes of conduct need to embed these norms and behaviors into company culture via training programs, leadership, and other elements of organizational socialization.
Organizations do well to work beyond legal strictures to create hiring practices and procedures that help draw to the organization top talent that confers a competitive advantage. For example, Stoughton, Thompson & Meade (2015) found that prospective employees and applicants expressed more negative perceptions of organizations using social media screening during the hiring process. The perceived invasions of privacy that go along with social media snooping as well as formal background checks—even when they are legally permissible—can be detrimental to the greater goals of the organization including the creation and maintenance of a specific type of organizational culture, and the retention of top talent. Thus, human resources practices at the hiring stage reflect the “discursive boundaries between legal compliance...and self-governance strictures,” (Adelstein & Clegg, 2016, p. 56). Legal compliance is a low bar for human resources managers and executives, who cannot rely on lip service paid to ethics in company codes. Actual hiring practices need to reflect prevailing social norms, or at least coincide with the mission, vision, and values of the firm.
Background Checks
Background checks are a “commonly used assessment tool,” and are “standard practice among companies for screening potential employees,” (Brody, Perri & Van Buren, 2015, p. 550). The law generally protects the rights of employers to conduct background checks, and in some cases even requires employers to use background checks as a means of performing due diligence—such as to “shield employers from potential negligent hiring lawsuits,” (Dwoskin, Squire & Patullo, 2013, p. 29). Background checks can help organizations to readily identify problematic behaviors or tendencies in applicants. Paradoxically, though, background checks can be used against the hiring organization, such as when the information yielded in a background check is used to discriminate against an applicant (Dwoskin, Squire & Patullo, 2013). Furthermore, the results of background checks are not necessarily considered equally among the applicant pool, with other hiring practices and considerations taken into account. Managers need to be aware of potentially inconsistent interpretations of background checks, to prevent any legal complications.
While they may seem like valuable and even valid tools in the hiring process, credit checks are even more problematic than criminal history background checks. One of the main reasons why credit history checks are both legally and ethically eschewed is that they lead to disproportionate discrimination against non-whites whose credit histories have been compromised by institutionalized racism (Shethji, 2016). Employers could even claim that the results of the background check or credit history check were grounds for refusal when in fact the applicant could make a legitimate claim of discrimination. Another reason to avoid the over-reliance on credit history checks is relevance and validity; the information may not have a strong bearing on actual ethical behaviors and may not provide meaningful information. Using background checks can therefore place organizations at great risk for violating both ethical and legal principles of equal opportunity in hiring practices.
Clearly, background checks serve an important role in protecting the company and its stakeholders, helping with human resources decisions and facilitating the hiring process. Yet the results of background checks need to be weighed carefully and considered contextually. Contextual variables include the full gamut of the applicant’s background and potential contributions to the organization, including commitment to its culture and values. Moreover, background checks do not necessarily reveal all of the information necessary to make informed or ethical hiring decisions. As Brody, Perri & Van Buren (2015) point out, a litany of companies have relied too heavily on background checks instead of performing more important types of applicant screening during the hiring process.
Some of the alternative means of screening include psychological assessments. Using psychological assessments also presents clear ethical conundrums for organizations. Like background checks, the results of so-called “honesty and integrity tests” can be misinterpreted or misused, and there are also questions about the legitimacy and validity of the assessments themselves (Brody, Perri & Van Buren, 2015, p. 551). Clearly, hiring practices need to balance the ethical obligation to protect the firm from potentially malicious or problematic new hires, with the ethical obligation to remove bias or discrimination from the hiring process. Paying more attention to, and devoting more resources towards, training and leadership development as opposed to potentially discriminatory hiring procedures can help organizations align their practices with their principles.
Conclusion: The Importance of Integrity in Leadership
Hiring practices remain a core component of ethical decision making in organizations. Human resources managers need to comply with EEOC and related formal laws and institutions at the very least, while also protecting their organization and its primary stakeholders. Using background checks, psychological assessments, and social media screenings may be necessary in some cases, but also risks tarnishing employee perceptions of the organization. The ultimate goal should be to create an organizational culture that is dedicated to meeting the ethical criteria outlined in its formal codes. Leaders in the organization have a direct responsibility to model the behaviors expected of new hires and indeed, all employees. Hiring practices and screening is only the first step towards creating an ideal ethical culture in the organization.
References
Adelstein, J. & Clegg, S. (2016). Code of ethics: A stratified vehicle for compliance. Journal of Business Ethics 2016(138): 53-66.
Brody, R.G., Perri, F.S. & Van Buren, H.J. (2015). Further beyond the basic background check. Business and Society Review 120(4): 549-576.
Dwoskin, L.B., Squire, M.B. & Patullo, J.E. (2013). Welcome aboard! How to hire the right way. Employee Relations Law Journal38(4): 28-63.
Hill, R.P. & Rapp, J.M. (2014). Codes of ethical conduct. Journal of Business Ethics 2014(123): 621-630.
Shethji, P. (2016). Note: credit checks under Title VII. 91 N.Y.U.L. Rev. 989 *
Stoughton, J.W., Thompson, L.F. & Meade, A.W. (2015). Examining applicant reactions to the use of social networking websites in pre-employment screening. Journal of Business Psychology 2015(30): 73-88.