Lesson 3.1
What Workplace Integrity Really Means
Estimated time: 5 minutes
Integrity is sometimes described simply as “being honest.”
That is true, but workplace integrity goes further.
Integrity means that your:
words, actions and responsibilities match.
It means doing the right thing when:
- the owner is absent
- nobody is checking
- you could make extra money
- another employee tells you “everyone does it”
- admitting the truth may be uncomfortable
- hiding the truth would be easier
Scenario
A customer gives an employee ₦50,000 for an item costing ₦45,000.
The employee realizes that the customer thinks the item costs ₦50,000.
Nobody else saw the payment.
What should happen?
The customer should receive the correct change or appropriate transaction record.
The fact that the employee could keep the money does not make the money theirs.
Integrity Question
Ask yourself:
Would I make the same decision if everyone affected by it were standing beside me?
That question does not solve every ethical problem.
But it can expose many dishonest ones.
Poor
“Nobody will know.”
Better
“Whether anyone knows does not change who this belongs to.”
Remember
Integrity is most visible when you could benefit from doing the wrong thing and choose not to.