Reference no: EM131508230 , Length: word count : 1800

Discussion : Ageism

The purpose of this discussion is to give you the opportunity to apply ethical theories to the complex issue of ageism in the workplace, particularly in the area of employment. In the modern workplace, there appear to be the following three key issues that exhibit ageism in employment, some of which have been exacerbated by recent economic issues and an aging population:

• Older job seekers fight ageism as a barrier to re-employment

• Younger job seekers have trouble obtaining career entry

• Evidence in many countries highlights that older worker employment and youth employment are not connected in any way

This last point is generally known in economics as the lump of labor fallacy, which challenges the view that if older workers are employed in a tight labor market, then they must be occupying the jobs of the country's youth. Prepare and post a response to the following prompt:

Using at least one ethical perspective or theory from the text and one item of scholarly evidence, present an argument to a group of younger workers (regarding older worker and youth employment) in which you refute the notion that older workers take employment from the young.

Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required resources and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Respond to at least two of your classmates' posts by Day 7.

Discussion 2 : Regulating Off-Duty Conduct

The purpose of this discussion is to give you the opportunity to apply ethical theories and perspectives to modern issues of the workplace. Off-duty conduct away from the workplace can be monitored and reported in many ways. These ways have only grown due to the increase in social media use, which provides employers far greater opportunities to become aware of what employees do outside of the workplace.

Some types of behaviors are especially concerning, as they may have on-duty consequences. Other types of off-duty behavior, however, are more difficult to clearly define as grossly inappropriate and warranting employer intervention. But who draws this line, and what are the ethical implications of where the line is drawn? Prepare and post a response to the following prompt:

Using the resources provided, your own research, and your knowledge of the ethical concepts from the text, consider the issue of off-site monitoring of conduct:

• Considering your own work experience, imagine a circumstance in which your supervisor monitored your behavior off the job. Describe the circumstances, including how and why your conduct was monitored.

• Would you consider your example to involve a minor, moderate, or severe invasion of an individual's privacy? Explain your reasoning. Share your unemotional, well-defined, evidence-based response to your boss to support your viewpoint.

• What issues do you believe led to your employer monitoring you? Use one ethical theory or perspective to help support your employer's viewpoint, and use a scholarly source as your evidence.

• What about your viewpoint as the employee? Use one ethical theory or perspective to support an employee's right to privacy outside of work, and use a scholarly source as your evidence.

Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required resources and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Respond to at least two of your classmates' posts by Day 7.

Rough Draft of Final Paper

In this course, you have looked at classical ethical theories of utilitarianism, deontology, and virtue ethics. You have also examined different perspectives on ethical issues introduced by relativism, ethical egoism, and emotivism. For this paper, you will apply these theories and perspectives to a current issue.

Choose an ethical issue to write about. You may choose from the list below, or, with approval from the instructor, select a different socially-relevant topic. It is recommended that you choose a topic that you are familiar with or that you have some interest in exploring further. For the purposes of this paper, your topic should pertain to a current area of interest in the news and/or government policy forums.

Possible Issues

• Corporate executive compensation

• Corporate contributions to political campaigns

• Human trafficking

• Mass incarceration and the prison industrial complex

• The media and their responsibilities

• Domestic surveillance

• Whistleblowing in government or in a business

• Religion in the workplace

• Ethical problems of gambling

• Progressive taxation rates

• Immigration reform in the U.S. and/or abroad

• Women's equality

In your paper, you will apply ethical theories and perspectives to the issue that you select. You do not have to use all six, but you should apply at least two ethical theories and at least one ethical perspective in your paper. Make sure that you write primarily on ethical topics and concepts, aiming to be both balanced and intellectually driven in your work.

You may share your personal views, but do not rely on opinions (yours or those offered by others) to make your case. Think about the evidence that helps to make your case and use it.

Address the following questions:

• What are the ethical issues?

• Where are there breaches of ethical behavior?

• How could each ethical theory you cite help people think about what constitutes virtuous or ethical behavior?

Your draft must include at least three pages of text plus a title page and a references page. Your draft should include a clear thesis statement that states what you plan to argue. It should also explain how you intend to develop the final paper and include a list of the sources you intend to use.

You can also use the Sociology Research Guide located in the Ashford University Library. Format your rough draft according to APA style and properly cite and reference all your sources according to APA format. If you would like to refer to APA samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford Writing Center, located within the Learning Resources tab in the left navigation bar of your online course.

Note: The final version of this paper will be 1500 to 1800 words, plus separate title and reference pages, and will use at least five academic sources.