The Impaired Employee and Liability Essay Example for Free

The Impaired Employee and Liability Essay I believe that the first ethical consideration is the fact that the potential employee was upfront in revealing that he had a degenerative progressive condition that could result in a disability. He did not have to bring this to our attention and his physicians are not even able to predict when the disabling condition will appear or if it will appear at all. The candidate was demonstrating his own highly ethical behavior which is ultimately what we are looking for in an employee. The second ethical consideration is that we are responsible for displaying the same kind of ethical behavior we expect from our employees. The basis for any ethical decision is based on what is morally right or wrong. The right thing to do in any hiring situation is to hire the best possible candidate. The candidate in question went through the screening and interview process and was the number one pick of mine and the screening committee. His potential health problems have nothing to do with his professional abilities and whether or not he would be able to competently perform his duties. A third ethical consideration is the fact that I shared my concerns with other high ranking company officials and instead of looking at the qualifications of the candidate they looked at the financial risk the candidate could impose on the company in the future. I believe we should have considered what an asset his skills and abilities would have been to the company versus an unknown financial risk due to a possible disability that may not occur. Identify and explain at least three legal considerations. The first legal consideration would be in denying the candidate employment because of any kind of disability. The Americans with Disabilities act prohibits any employer from discriminating against a qualified individual with a disability in the job application procedure, hiring, firing, advancement and other privileges of employment (EEOC, 2008). The qualifications of the individual should be the only determining factor on whether or not they are hired. The second legal consideration could be that the screening committee shared confidential information about the candidate without his knowledge. The physicians of the candidate did not even know whether or not the disability would occur or to what extent so there was no reason to share this information with anyone else. The last legal consideration is the liability that could come with hiring this candidate. Healthcare organizations have a corporate responsibility to exercise reasonable care in selecting and retaining employees (Showalter, 2008, pg. 137). If the Health Service organization were to hire this candidate knowing he could possibly become disabled and then get hurt on the job because the facility did not properly accommodate his disability then they would be liable for any injuries that the employee might incur while on the job. Identify and explain at least three Business considerations. One business consideration is what the candidate could potentially bring to the business. His skills and qualifications ranked him as the number one candidate which would make him an asset to the company. The possibility of the candidate costing the company money is a vague at best but the potential good he could do the company is set forth in his qualifications. Another business consideration would be the cost to the company if the candidate were hired and did end up with a disability. Even though they can not discriminate against the candidate for having a possibility disability they should evaluate the cost that the company would incur if it had to accommodate his disability in the future. There is the potential of the employee missing time due to his disability and the cost of providing reasonable accommodations. The last business consideration is that the screening committee has a duty to evaluate and screen potential employees with no bias. If they deny employment to a candidate based on this information they are compromising their integrity. They need to have and follow a specific set of guidelines in searching, screening and recommending potential candidates for employment. Another business consideration is the possibility that if the candidate were not hired that he would file a complaint stating that he was discriminated against because he revealed his health status. Even if he could not prove it there would still be an investigation, a trial and publicity about the case that could possibly hurt the reputation of the facility. Give your decision as the Vice President for health Services and the rationale for the decision. The search and screening committee found an outstanding candidate for the mid-level management position. It is not ethically or legally right to eliminate this candidate based on a possible disability in his future. It is my duty to hire the most qualified candidate and even though he may have a health issue in the future he is, in the present, my candidate of choice. His skills and abilities will be an asset to our organization. Any future disability will be dealt with when the time comes. References Facts about the Americans with Disabilities Act. (2008). Retrieved February 7, 2012 from http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/fs-ada.html Showalter, J. S. (2008). The law of healthcare administration (5th ed.). Chicago: Health Administration Press.