By Kristin
To the left, Senator McCarthy – not a shining example of how to bring out the best in people.
As you may know, Seattle has been in the news lately for unethical behavior in our accounting department. Folks have fled to Florida, folks have been fired with a handsome severance. We've lost our Superintendent in the process, a woman whose vision I admired, and somehow we've become a district that models our process for ensuring ethical behavior on the McCarthy Hearings.
Today I received a big creamy envelope in my mailbox at school. I thought it was a wedding invitation, but no, it was a gorgeously-designed flyer and a letter from my district. At the top it read "MAKE @ DIFFERENCE." It was a detailed advertisement of the district's response to the theft and incompetency – a response that entails a secret hotline where employees can call (or email!) "an independent reporting service that allows you to communicate your concerns anonymously and confidentially via internet or telephone anytime, day or night."
Thank God, because I don't know how many times I've seen 2:00am on my clock and been frustrated that I didn't have a way to report a colleague for unethical behavior without revealing my identity.
The letter soothes, "We realize it is not always comfortable – or even possible – to report inappropriate behavior to management…It takes all of us working as a team to protect our organization from unethical, illegal, or irresponsible acts. None of us can do the job alone. That's why we're calling on you to do your part."
The flyer details unethical behavior in a section titled, "#1 Think!" "Is it illegal? Does it violate our organization's standards or policies? Could it cause loss or harm to you, your co-workers, the public, or organization, or organizations that do business with us?" And my personal favorite – "Would you feel uncomfortable if everyone knew what you did?" "If you answer 'yes' to any of these questions, don't do it."
And, obviously, if you think your colleague could answer "yes" to any of those questions, Call the anonymous hotline and turn her in! I'm thinking Big Brother. I'm thinking Hitler Youth. I'm thinking KGB. What I'm not thinking of is trust, respect, and teamwork. There's even a perforated business card with a number and email, conveniently sized for one's wallet. It says, "If you ever have a concern regarding unethical activity, don't keep it to yourself. Speak up." But, apparently, don't speak up at that moment. Speak up later, anonymously.
Am I overreacting if I'm appalled? First, the unethical behavior was reported to people downtown, and no one did anything about it. Concerns were raised by people courageous enough to use their names. It wasn't retaliation that was the problem, it was lack of oversight and lack of response. Second, if I see unethical behavior, I'm comfortable addressing it immediately, either to the person doing it or to that person's superior. When children and taxpayer money are involved, I don't really worry about my name being connected to a complaint, and I don't know that other teachers do, either.
The flyer does say "#2 Speak Up!" a short section encouraging us to "drop a hint" or "discuss it" if we see a colleague misbehaving, because we can "have a powerful influence on others." But somehow, that advice – which I think is the only advice we need – is lost because the next section is also "Speak Up," and details the process for anonymous reporting.
I'm bothered that my district has projected an in-house problem out to its teachers, who are behaving extremely ethically and heroically in difficult times. I'm bothered that my district is spending money on an independent reporting service instead of fixing internal problems so that competent managers effectively oversee their staff. I'm bothered that my district is encouraging tattling – anonymous tattling – in an era when too many educators are already paranoid and developing conspiracy theories.
Do other districts have these whistleblower policies? Is this something that's the norm elsewhere? Do you think Seattle's taking a step in the right direction?
My husband and I both thought, “Dang, how much did it cost to print this?” when we saw the brochure.
And while he says it’s important for organizations to have a safe, confidential whistleblower policy and I agree with that, I think of the model schools put into place when bullying became an addressed problem.
We didn’t simply say, “here’s a hotline.” There was a whole curriculum put into place, including training kids to be aware of what bullying was, how to speak up and nip it in the bud before it became a problem, and how to change the culture so that bullying was less likely to occur.
I’d like to see a similar systematic change take place with ethical behavior – not that I think teachers and school staff necessarily need it – instead of simply an answering service.
I completely agree with you! Not only is it disturbing that they are taking this action and approach (and this is the second push…the first was an email), they obviously spend an awful lot of money on the nice envelopes and expertly printed card-stock brochure.
It disgusts me.