The Ethical Decision Making

The Ethical Decision Making Ethics and morality are entwined together, concerning how we ought to act and behave within the boundaries of standards that govern certain actions being right or wrong. Karhausen (1987) simply described ethics being characterised as a philosophical discipline, surrounding the evaluation and justifications of norms of personal and interpersonal behaviour. Within ethics people make rational processes through moral dilemmas by applying a criteria or moral principles in order to obtain an ethically just outcome, this process is known as ethical decision making (Kohlberg 1973). Within the public service reaching ethical decision can form the underpinning factor of life and death situations, therefore it is crucial that there is constructive and ethical framework in order to base and develop theoretical outcomes from. Police officers in the United Kingdom are given the discretion that if the suspect poses a threat to themselves or to the public, the officers can protect or prevent injury to both themselves and others by whatever is deemed necessary. This could include the use of deadly force. Police officers must have a justification for the use of deadly force and this is based upon the regulation of the agency but most importantly their own analytical and ethical decision making. The National Decision making Model is a framework which helps support and encourage police officers to make the morally correct outcome in everyday situations not just those which requires firearms to be implemented. The National Decision Model (NDM) derives from elements of three decision making models that were formerly used; the Conflict Management Model (CMM), the Scanning, Analysing and Responding to and Assessing model (SARA) and the Value Based Decision making model (Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) n. d). These models all have the similar common values, so were brought together to form the National Decision Model, whilst keeping the benefits of simplicity and utilizing the intrinsic aspects from documents such as: The Peelian Principles, Human Rights Act and Force Values etc (ACPO n.d). The most significant difference for the new National Decision making Model is the central core that has been developed and altered into the statement of mission and values. This is to be considered at each stage of the model, because the role and expectation of the police service is required to be both ethically and technically correct (ACPO n.d). Surrounding this central concept is five action points that collaboratively contribute to an effective decision making process. These are; gather available information and intelligence, assess threat and risk level, consider powers and policies, identify options and contingences and take action and review (ACPO n.d). The ethical issue I have chosen to discuss within this essay is whether police should be routinely armed and the ethical example I am going to use to best demonstrate my facts is the case of Jean Charles de Menezes, who was tragically killed in July 2005. This was due to his suspected involvement in the 7/7 bombings in London, and the high level of alert the police were under at that time (Glass 2007). In order to form a balanced argument I am going to research and explain two ethical theories, the utilitarian approach and the justice approach. I will then apply both of these theories towards my ethical issue of arming the police and discuss how each theory stands in relation to this ethical issue. In todays democratic society the police are expected to uphold the Human Rights of every individual and this is achieved by balancing regulations and policies along with ethical and moral dilemmas. Furthermore this emphasis is increased in situations such as arming the police and ensuring that there is evidence of moral justifications for their implementation. Multiple philosophical theorists have argued alternative justifications through the use of philosophical theories towards ethical issues such as arming the police; however this essay will focus on primarily examining the utilitarian approach and the justice approach. I have chosen these two differing theories as their opinions towards arming the police are very different and almost contradict one another, so therefore will form the basis of this essay. On the 22nd July 2005, at approximately 9.20am a gentleman left his flat and walked down Tulse hill in London as he commuted to work (Telegraph 2008). At 9.39am, Officer James drove past this gentleman and said that he is possibly identical to the suspect Hussain Osman the suicide bomber they were after who was on the run (Telegraph 2008). At 9.46am the control room of Scotland Yard recorded that the subject had been discounted and informed all units to return to their original positions. Minutes later there was confusion within the command room generated by uncertainty to whether he had been identified or not and commander Cressida Dicks loggist recorded. It is him, the man is off the bus, they think it is him and he is very, very jumpy (Telegraph 2008). The commander remained deeply concerned and stated that the suspect should be prevented from entering the underground system. Despite this the suspect walked into the underground, went down the escalator and apparently heard his tub e leaving so jogged down the stairs and into the carriage where he sat down and started to read his newspaper (BBC News 2005). It was then that the officers were told over the radio that the situation was a code red, thus being shot to stop. At 10.06am officer Ivor, after following the alleged suspect onto the Tube at Stockwell station, signalled to the firearms officers hes here (Telegraph 2008). The suspect stood up as the firearms officers entered the carriage shouting the word police and apparently walked towards them (BBC News 2005). Ivor reported that the suspect appeared very agitated and therefore pinned him back into his seat as he proceeded forward. Seeing this, the firearm officers named Charlie 12 and Charlie 2 for identifiable reasons shot the suspect believed to be Mr Osman seven times in the head, to ensure what they believed as the threat was over (Telegraph 2008) However, it turned out the man they believed to be Hussain Osman, was in fact Jean Charles de Menezes, a normal family man, who was an electrician by trade on the way to a job in North West London that day, who had no connection to terrorism. I will now discuss the utilitarian approach which evolved in Great Britain over the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by Jeremy Bentham, John Stuart Mill and Henry Sidgwick, who together succeeded in developing this into a practical and rational theory, which we can find today within our modern society (Genniet 2010). There are four theses combined to make utilitarianism, these are; Consequentialism, which is the relevance of actions that are determined solely by their consequences. Hedonism, which is the so called good that each human seeks to achieve, and utility to which is the degree an act produces pleasure. Maximalism, which is the right action producing the most good and thus causing the least bad, and finally Universalism, which is how the consequences affect everyone (Waight 2012). Overall utilitarians are mainly concerned with the two following components; happiness and consequences of actions. Within utilitarianism happiness is about reaching the biggest state of contentment and pleasure that every human being strives for. Utilitarianism is based on the principle of Utility, which is found in everything that contributes to happiness of every rational human being (Genniet 2010). The utilitarianism approach is classified as a consequentialist ethical theory, so this simply means that a judgment is made on morality of an action in relation to the consequences or results of that action (Mackie 1977). Consequentialism within utilitarianism is the fact that an action must be judged for its consequences on the happiness of the largest number (Mill 1863). So in simple terms this means within utilitarianism the belief is; there is a choice between courses of action and the most ethical one will produce the greatest happiness and cause the least harm, not only to the i ndividual, but for all who are in any way affected (Mackie 1977). Utilitarianism does not care if that action is formed by lies, manipulation, or coercion as long as it produces the greatest benefits (Velasquez et al 1996). The strengths of the utilitarian approach is that it is a simple clear systematic method to ethics and cannot be faulted on its morals, as it tries to establish the greatest happiness and fairness of the greatest number or party involved (Mackie 1977). Bentham states that utilitarianism considers all the consequences from differing actions, which is vital in building a civilized society (Troyer 2003). This can be seen each time we make a cost-benefit decision, we are being utilitarians. An example of this could be, when we build a new road, instinctively knowing that traffic fatalities will occur, we are analysing that the sacrifice is worth making for the greater good that will follow (Gillette n.d). In terms of the theory, these decisions are crucial in order to live and further develop the world we live in, otherwise society will stand still. Researchers have argued that there are many weaknesses and implications within the utilitarian approach and one strong weakness is that according to this ethical theory there would be no moral absolutes. For example, things that are always right or wrong whatever the circumstances or actions may be, would not exist (Mackie 1977). Many have argued with the concepts of utilitarianism, as some state that it does not relate well to human beings, instead treating individuals as objects used in connection with increasing happiness (Gillette n.d). This is furthered by that fact that utilitarian theories make it morally permissible to imprison, torture and murder individuals, whether innocent or guilty, in order to achieve the greater good (Gillette n.d). Other weaknesses from this theory include that it is difficult and sometimes impossible to predict the consequences of each action, and that it is difficult to define exactly what is meant by someones happiness (Smart and Williams 1973). Al though these are all strong weaknesses within utilitarianism, strong believers of this theory like Bentham and Mill, have confidence in that the strengths outweigh these perceived flaws. I will now discuss the utilitarian approach in relation to my ethical issue of arming the police and my working scenario of the Menezes case. In its simplest the utilitarian belief is that the most ethical action will produce the greatest happiness and cause the least harm to all who are in any way affected (Mackie 1977). So from the information I have researched it would be plausible to assume that arming the police would be both permissible and acceptable in the eyes of utilitarians and their approach. This is because having a society which police officers are routinely armed with guns that are capable of delivering lethal and life threating force; it can be seen as a method of protection and prevention for both the police and greater community. This links to the utilitarian approach in terms of sparing the lives of the many which outweigh the potential lives of a few. However, the risk of injuring to the many can be exacerbated as there is a potential for the police officers weapo ns to be used for wrong doing or the criminal believing that they should be armed as well, like within an Americanised society. This would then flaw the utilitarian approach as by criminals having guns, its main principle theme of achieving greatest happiness by causing least harm, would be not be entirely applicable. In the terms of utilitarianism and specific to the Menezes case, shooting an individual or suspected individual who poses a risk to innocent civilians is justified because the death on that individual would mean sparing the lives of many others. Furthermore, the officers involved in this situation can be seen to have followed the ethical framework, the National Decision Model to aid there decision making. They did this by gathering the apparent intelligence from the control room, assessing the threat to themselves and the public which informed them that they were under red alert and to use lethal force in order to stop the risk of the bomb being detonated and prevent fatalities. When the situation arose the officer decided that it was necessary to take action and did what was needed to be done. However, as the final stage of the National Decision making Model is to review what happened, in this case it turned out that the information they had received was not hundred percent accurate and thus resulted in killing an innocent member of society, Mr Jean Charles de Menezes. I will now discuss the justice approach or otherwise known as the fairness approach, which was developed by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle who stated equals should be treated equally and unequals should be treated unequally (Velasquez et al 1996). Justice has multiple meanings within different context for example the importance of having rights, equality and fairness. Surrounding this concept are theories which cannot solely be related to moral theories because justice and morality can be separate notions within themselves (Gray 2011). The underpinning moral question this approach asks are; how fair is the action, how does it treat everyone in the same way, or does it show discrimination and favouritism. Discrimination and favouritism within the justice approach focuses on how unfairly benefits or burdens are dispensed among members in a group without justifiable reason, even though those members are the same as other members within that group (Velasquez et al 1996). In simple terms the justice approach finds that moral decisions must be based on standards of equality, impartiality and fairness (Daft and Marcic 2008). A leading individual within the justice approach is Rawls, who rejects the utilitarian approach with its basis on maximising happiness and formulating a social contract through establishing principle of justice (Rawls 1999). Rawlss theory is purely hypothetical, which helps identify a rational choice of what the justice approach might require. Within this theory, Rawls believes that individuals should operate behind a veil of ignorance in which they are not aware of their gender, religion, social position, intelligence or place in society (Rawls 1999). Following this Rawls predicts that two essential features would become apparent in society, firstly people have the same equal rights to certain basic liberties for example freedom of life, freedom of speech and thought and freedom to participate in government. Secondly, least well off members of society would benefit from social and economic inequalities and differences of treatment, however only if these principles are available to e veryone (Rawls 1999). This shows that Rawls take on the justice approach is purely hypothetical and only parts of it relate to todays society. There are three main types of justice concerned within this approach and they are; Distributive justice, Procedural justice and Compensatory Justice. Distributive justice is concerned with individuals who are similar in ways that is relevant to an action or decision, for example men and women carrying out the same job should be paid the same (Daft and Marcic 2008). Procedural justice requires that rules and regulations should be administered honestly and these rules should be clearly stated and impartially and consistently enforced (Daft and Marcic 2008). Compensatory justice is focussed on individuals receiving fair compensation for any injuries they sustain from another party if it was not their fault or wrong doing. This approach does reflect however the utilitarian ethics as it uses merit to distinguish how members of society will either be punished or rewarded, based solely on whether that individuals actions is beneficial or harmful to the society in which it occurred (Rawls 1999). The strengths of the justice theory are that it does not require complex calculations such as those demanded by the utilitarian approach, nor does it justify self-interest as the individualism approach does (Daft and Marcic 2008). However its weaknesses are far more arguable, including that there is no knowledge of its own status, no social background, and it is influenced by not having social circumstances, psychological make-up, culture and civilization. I will now apply the justice approach and its theoretical concepts to my ethical issue of arming the police and the working scenario of the Menezes case. As previously established the Menezes case is a prominent event in the deliberation of whether it is ethically justifiable to arm all police officers within todays society, and is plausible from the utilitarian viewpoint. However the justice approach stands aside in this issue, with the notion that by disarming all involved parties will equal the playing field for all. This is true as it may limit such violent crimes and any lethal mistakes made by the police, thus concurring with Velasquez et al (1996), that equals should be treated equally and unequals should be treated unequally. However, practically within society this would not exist as some individuals already have firearms and would not want to see themselves as equal to others. This poses both a risk and a challenge for police officers within the justice approach as the majo rity of society would be equal in not having firearms, although they would be inadequately prepared if faced unexpectedly with an individual with a firearm, therefore not on an equal level. Additionally the justice approach is concerned with individuals having certain liberties such as the right to life and speech, which could be compromised and infringed upon if society decided that police officers should routinely have firearms. In terms on the Menezes case, taking the life of someone who is innocent and unarmed is against the principles of the justice approach as these two parties were unequal. This is irrelevant to the officers ethical decision making process or the National Decision Model to which it can be seen as lawfully correct but not ethically right in this situation. To conclude, this essay has used the ethical issue of whether police should be routinely armed in society and has looked at the ethical example of Jean Charles de Menezes. As a method of ensuring a balanced argument I have examined two ethical theories, the utilitarian approach and the justice approach and explored their viewpoint related to my ethical issue. This essay has found that the utilitarian approach is mainly concerned with the two following components; happiness and consequences of actions and although its morals cannot be doubted, achieving the greatest happiness is important, the approach is very limited and not practical in a modern society. This is evident in an example by Gillette (n.d) who conceptualised that utilitarians view of murdering, raping or torturing is acceptable if it is for the greater good and happiness, yet this is not ethical. In relation to arming the police, the utilitarian approach is immoral, as it would make it ethically permissible to shoot someone if it benefits the greater good of everyone else. Alternatively the justice approach finds that moral decisions must be based on standards of equality, impartiality and fairness (Daft and Marcic 2008), although similarly to the utilitarian approach, this is not always practical and is restricted by the nature of society we all live in. The justice approach finds that in relation to arming the police, some individuals may not want to perceive themselves as equal to others, for example already owning a firearm therefore invalidating the possibility of all individuals being equal and having the same liberties under a veil of ignorance. Overall the ethical issue of whether police should be routinely armed remains controversial from various ethical viewpoints, and will remain a prominent subject in our ever developing society for the forcible future. Word Count: 3261References Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). (No date) ACPO Professional Ethics [Online]. Available at: http://www.acpoprofessionalethics.org/default.aspx?page=ndm (Accessed: 09.11.12). BBC News. (2005) Timeline: Tube shooting [Online]. Available at: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4159902.stm (Accessed 09.12.12). Daft, R.L. and Marcic, D. (2008) Understand Management. Mason: South-Western Cengage Learning. Genniet, H. (2010) Utilitarian Philosophy [Online]. Available at: http://utilitarianphilosophy.com/definition.eng.html (Accessed: 07.12.12). Gillette, M.A. (No date) Ethics Decision Strategies [Online]. Available at: http://www.bsvinc.com/ethics_decision.htm (Accessed: 07.12.12). Glass, D. (2007) Getting the Balance Right: The Use of Firearms in British Policing. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 1(3), pp. 293-299. Gray, J.W. (2011) Ethical Realism [Online]. Available at: http://ethicalrealism.wordpress.com/2011/04/26/three-theories-of-justice/ (Accessed: 12.12.12). Karhausen, L. (1987) From ethics to medical ethics, pp. 25-33, in Doxiadis, S. (ed) Ethical dilemmas in health promotion. London: John Wiley and Sons. Kohlberg, L., (1973) The claim of moral adequacy of a highest stage of moral judgement. Journal of Philosophy. 70 (18), pp. 630-646. Mackie, J.L. (1977) Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong. London: Penguin Books. Mill, J.S. (1863) Utilitarianism. London: Parker, Son and Bourne. Rawls, J (1999) A Theory of Justice. London: Harvard University Press. Smart, J.J.C and Williams, B. (1973) Utilitarianism: for and against. London: Cambridge University Press. Telegraph. (2008) Jean Charles de Menezes inquest timeline [Online]. Available at: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/3061485/Jean-Charles-de-Menezes-inquest-timeline.html (Accessed: 07.12.12). Troyer, J. (2003) The Classical Utilitarians: Bentham and Mill. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company. Velasquez, M., Andre, C., Shanks, T. and Meyer, M.J. (1996) Thinking Ethically: A framework for Moral Decision Making, Issues in ethics [Online]. Available at: http://www.sme.ie/articles/business_ethics/frameworks_ethical_decision.pdf (Accessed: 09.11.12). Waight, T. (2012) Research Ethics. [Lecture to Bsc Public Services Year 3], November.

Nepalese migration to Japan

Nepal is landlocked between India and China, situated between the Himalayas. With no industrialization worth the name, its mainstay is agriculture. Its major export is labor; most of the rural households have one family member abroad and expect the inward remittances from them month after month for their livelihood. The Nepali migration to Japan is governed by the Labor Act of 1985. The armed conflicts between the forces loyal to the King and Government and Nepal and the Maoist People’s War groups, have created a fear psychology in the Country and encouraged migration. Historical & Structural contexts: The majority of the Nepalese workers in Japan hail from ethnic group designated as ‘martial races’. They are popularly known as ‘Gurkha’ soldiers. They were an important segment of the Indian and British Army. In India, even now, they are the prominent part. Nepal has a long history of migration; Nepalese migrated to the city of Lahore and joined as soldiers in the army of Sikh Ruler, Ranjit Singh. The martial aspect has now taken the form of economic criteria with the fast advancement of the modern materialistic civilization consequent to the industrial and internet revolutions. A new culture of emigration and remittance economy in rural Nepal has taken concrete shape. Migration is, mostly, an economic option now. From the cinders of the II World War, Japan’s industrial structure took an unprecedented leap. Manufacturing and construction industries created a vacuum consequent to shunning of the jobs by the Japanese workers. Economically distressed migrants from countries like Nepal, secure elevated wage levels, and that in turn accelerated the process of migration from Nepal. The subsequent living conditions, isolation, distress and discrimination added to their woes, but the offsetting factor was the financial rewards. As for the women immigrant workers, Japan’s share is 9%. Most of them work in the service sectors or as domestic helps. Push –Pull factors: Economic agents are responsible for the homogenous optimizing behavior as for various theories of migration. In contrast, â€Å"Lipton assumes heterogeneity of group behavior – rich persons optimize whereas poor persons are more reactive than proactive. Hence, the migratory decisions of the rural poor are more likely to be influenced by push factors while pull factors more likely apply to the rural rich.†(Asian, 2000†¦) To some extent the conditions obtaining in the migration scene in Nepal today in relation to Japan, gives credence to Lipton’s hypotheses as for migratory and remitting behavior of both poor and rich families. Socio-economic differentials are one of the important factors for migration determinants. Globalization has worked wonders in all the segments related to human beings. For economies and individuals who possess mobile capital and knowledge, it has proved to be a boon. But the conditions of the less educated workers have remained the same, as their options are limited. The bargaining power of the employers is in tact, if anything it has increased because of their capacity to adopt latest technology, with less labor requirements, outsourcing and moving elsewhere. The labor migration, both short term and long term, to countries like Japan from Nepal has adverse effects on account of this development. Network and social capital: Indian sub-continent was the traditional destination for the migration of the Nepalese labor, but with the passage of Labor Act of 1985, countries like Japan became the much sought after destinations.   The trade unions also began to show interest in the welfare and working conditions of the overseas workers. â€Å"Foreign labor migration from Nepal is still largely a privately organized affair in which individuals make use of their own personal networks or make arrangements through a number of private, government-registered manpower or recruitment agencies.†(Seddon, 2005). As for Southeast Asia, the popular destination at that time was Japan. Immigration then was not legal, the repatriation incidents occurred often, but the reward for the lucky ones who stayed on was high. The wages were 10 times the average wage in Nepal. The remittances from Japan to Nepal recorded a steep increase. This further kindled the curiosity and enthusiasm of the rural folks of Nepal, both men and women to migrate. â€Å"The implications of this situation are far-reaching for Nepal as a whole, for the structure and dynamics of regional and local economy and society, and — perhaps most of all — for households and individuals all over the country, both those directly involved in foreign labor migration and those left behind.†(Seddon, 2005) Labor migration increases unity of the countries of sending and receiving migrants. Migration serves useful purposes for both the countries. It is the twice-blessed concept. It blesses those who receive, and those who give. The reality behind this poetic comparison is that the two ethnic groups have to come to terms for a happy living. Legal citizenship is one thing. The actual assimilation and the willing acceptance from the local society is another thing. The development of commonality is a slow process. To oppress the minority and obliterate the differences is not a welcome procedure and the consequences will be bitter. History has enough examples of such disastrous failures. Historical conditions and the related racial stigma, will not get obliterated easily. References Cited: Article: ASIAN AND PACIFIC MIGRATION JOURNAL, 1999,2000..www.cicred.org/rdr/rdr_uni/revue101-102/101-101-102.html – 26k – Retrieved on October 2, 2007 Seddon, David-Article: Nepal’s Dependence on Exporting Labor, January 2005-Migration Information Source www.migrationinformation.org/Feature/display.cfm?id=277 – 35k –   Retrieved on October 2, 2007         

Cross Cultural Experience

Back in 2010 when I was still a student at Singapore Polytechnic, I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to serve my Internship at the Royal Bank of Scotland (IRS). I must emphasize, that the 6 months spent was one of the most memorable life experience I have had. Personally It opened my eyes to what I'll call the ‘real' working environment, as the previous jobs I held were mainly serving as an assistant in retail (part-time).I termed it ‘real' working experience because the internship also offers me the chance to work in Hong Kong. At the age of 18, the opportunities given were more than could ask for and certainly the experience and lessons learnt had an Impact on me until today. The Internship provided me the opportunity to work under two different supervisors. I can remember them vividly as they are both different in terms of their leadership and yes, culture-wise as well.The first supervisor was Mr. Christopher Kim, head of Middle Office for Asia Pacific region. Mr. Christopher comes from Korea, and in my opinion Is someone who speaks his mind and puts his ideas across well. To put it bluntly, he expects subordinates to imply with his instructions unless there is a better alternate solution. He sets high expectations, even on work placement students like myself. One of the cultural etiquette that I noticed about Mr. Christopher Is that he was always punctual.In fact, never once have I seen him report late for work. Came to understand from colleagues that he would be in office earlier by an hour every work day. One of the first few ground rules set for me as an intern is to be punctual, unless for valid reasons of course. As a head of department, Mr. Christopher certainly proved himself to be a good role model for others to look up to. In my pollen, he had on him the ‘strict and stern' appearance, which inevitably makes me feel afraid to talk to him.A month into the internship, I got a surprise when received an email from him c omplimenting me for Job well done on one of the task he had assigned. This humble demonstration of appreciation led me to see the good side of Asian culture ? treating people with sincerity. Looking back, culturally Mr. Christopher like most East Asian nations practices hierarchy within an organization where someone in a higher rank or post usually commands greater authority amongst his lower peers. Respect is meeting that Is valued highly and this can be seen evidently In Mr. Christopher.As a leader of the department, he would organize group meeting fortnightly to check on the status of each individual in a bid to ensure everyone keeps up with the pace and to feel integrated within the team. Work aside, he encourages team bonding through simple dinner and drinks every once In a while. 2 months Into the Internship, I was transferred to a project team as additional manpower was needed meet deadlines. My new supervisor is an Australian by the name of Miss Us-Ling Regress, who takes on the role of Senior Business Analyst in the bank.As a Singapore brought up in a Chinese family, I was taught since young to respect elders and to obey Instructions without questioning. Working under Miss Us-Long helped me to comprehend the meaning of cultural differences, as she had a very different approach compared to 1 OFF Mr. Christopher. The deterrence in approach probably stems trot near cultural upbringing, which encourages free thought and self-involvement at work; to be more independent in learning. Miss Us-Ling with her consultative style of management gives me the impression of being approachable and easy to talk to.Unlike most Asians who adopt hierarchical structure, she brought about a direct style of communication which encourages an open debate of ideas. Anyone, no matter his/ her position is encouraged to contribute during discussions and Miss Us-Ling is receptive to all of them. Her good man-management skills rubbed off the whole team and even as an intern I can see and feel the strong team spirit fostered. For instance, most members have no qualms working additional hours on some days if deadlines are needs to be met urgently.As opposed to Asians, she encourages freedom of beech' where challenging of ideas in meetings are not seen as disrespectful as long as it leads to getting the Job done efficiently and effectively. More importantly, she does not see herself in any way superior to her subordinates. I got the biggest surprise 4 months into the internship when I was informed I have the opportunity to travel to Hong Kong for work. The time spent in Hong Kong enabled me to grow as an individual, since it was the first time I traveled alone. I used to think that Gingersnaps are always indulged in work; they hardly have time for themselves.However, Hong Kong changed my perspective. Very much like Singapore, Hong Kong is a hustle and bustle city where everyone can hardly stop their pace for a moment. In the morning while going to the train statio n for work, I was amazed that the walking pace of the people in Hong Kong is even faster than in Singapore. I had an experience once whereby on a rainy day, a woman carrying an umbrella on the opposite direction almost walked her umbrella through' my face because she was apparently shorter and only focus on the road ahead!Otherwise, culturally people have Confucianism roots where decisions made by management are seldom contested as they are seen as rude and disrespectful. . 2. NATIONAL SERVICE In a multi-cultural Singapore, National Service is a period of unique experience for all Gingersnaps, as it bonds all of us together as one. I was enlisted to the Home Team Academy, Singapore Police Force. During this period of my life, I learnt to appreciate and respect the culture norms of the different races.NSA not only opened my eyes to the different culture among races, it also taught me the culture of an order and regimental lifestyle, where teamwork is often highlighted as they key to solving problems. The 9 months of training taught me to adapt to changes and live together ruinously. Often, people are not receptive to change and are usually bonded by friends of similar culture, and NSA is there to help rectify the problem of social integration. Besides the Chinese, the Malay Muslims form the majority of the cohort in my training batch.Of course the minority – the Indians and Eurasian are part of it as well. Living together for about 9 months taught me quite a fair bit on Malay culture I would never have come to know if not for NSA. For instance, the Malay Muslims have to pray 5 times a day, and that they have to go through a month of fasting before their new year. In adapting to one another, the rest would ensure there is quiet when they are conducting their prayers and the rest would also practice sensitivity during fasting month, such as not consuming food in their presence.I have also come to understand the Malay language, although I am not able to spe ak it dulcetly. Currently, in order to gain some experience while studying, I applied to become a brand ambassador at the Duty-Free Shop in the airport selling tobacco and alcohol. This Job provides me with the opportunity to meet people from all over the world. Each work day opens my eyes to different culture as customers from different surrounds will walk into the shop and purchase duty free items. One of the most frequent visitors we have in Singapore is the Chinese (Pres).My time in UDF enabled me to see that the Chinese has very big spending power and their purchase is often linked to face'. They often snap up the exclusive items that are not available in their domestic market as having them signifies their wealth and status. This is an opinion agreed upon by the Chinese colleagues as well! 2. 0. CONCLUSION From the humble experiences I have in life, I feel it is essential to appreciate other culture of the different people we meet along the way.We should all respect and embrac e the culture norms of each individual as this will not only enable us to grow as a person, but also allows us to understand that the way one behave or act could actually stem from an upbringing that are different from us. Amidst the online saga where people are posting rude/inflammatory remarks about other cultures, I feel that this is all a result of cultural misunderstanding. We should all take a step back and reflect upon ourselves, and seek first to understand the situation before pointing the finger at others. Only then can we achieve peace and live together harmoniously as

Patco Strike - 1580 Words

REAGAN AND THE PATCO STRIKE OF 1981 On August 3, 1981, nearly 13,000 of the 17,500 members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) staged a walk out and strike. There were four main reasons the union members of PATCO decided to go on strike. First, to address the concerns by members who felt that their work was seriously undervalued and under-rewarded. The second reason was that the Federal Aviation Administration had neglected serious deficiencies in staffing and hardware reliability. Thirdly, their work week was unreasonably long, especially when compared to controllers overseas. The fourth reason for the strike was the FAA’s (FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION) approach to management-union relations and the†¦show more content†¦FAA management declared negotiations terminated until controllers resumed their jobs. PATCO leaders stated that the strike would continue until the items in their contract were satisfied. Leaders within the union had thought that with the reduction of qualified manning, all air traffic would come to a standstill. PATCO could not foresee that the FAA would go against their own rule for air traffic control, and run the system with only 5 15% of the experienced work force. The FAA moved to place 500 military controllers to replace the ones out on strike, to work alongside the 2000 controllers that did not walk out. They also prioritized scheduled flights at major airports to keep 50 percent available during peak hours. All of this helped to continually improved air operations. ‘Figures released by the FAA showed flights on schedule increased to 65 percent on Monday; 67 percent on Tuesday and by Thursday it was up to 83 percent’. â€Å"Reagan held a press conference that morning, in the Rose Garden and read a statement, citing the pledge that all controllers had taken, never to strike. Reagan told the striking controllers that they had forty-eight hours to return to their jobs, or, he would consider their jobs forfeited and they would be terminated and would not be rehired†. When the 11 am deadline on the 5th of August arrived, of the 13,000 air traffic controllers that had walked out, only aShow MoreRelatedPatco Strike1007 Words   |  5 PagesPATCO Strike Andrea Leak Webster University Abstract This research paper will inspect one of the most important events in the late twentieth century within the United States labor history. It has transformed the labor relations development to altitudes. President Ronald Reagan, in 1981 dismissed of approximately eleven thousand employees of the Professional Air Traffic Controller Organization (PATCO). It stood out as an event of unmatched worth during the labor decline era. 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