Question

Watch YouTube video: Ask the Ethics Guy! Episode #6: Those Lazy Millennials

do you think Millennials' ethics are different from generations born before them? John Locke' s Social Compact addressed the concern of what people might do in a state of nature. They might feel free to do anything they want. Sound good?! The problem is, their rights would not be protected. So Locke argued that people should cooperate, and thus give up some of their freedom, for security. This is a consent to be governed. If we consent to be governed and we have a say in our government, then why do some people mistrust government? Do you believe that if the top level of any organization, business, private or governmental, displays ethics from the top down, that their followers, employees and constituents will follow suit? Will we, as stated in the video, raise our ethics to expectations?

Answer 1

One of the most important factors about human civilization is that it gets better and different with each passing generation. So, there is no right or wrong in how people conduct themselves at workplace and in the society as long as they follow the rules of the company and laws of the land. Thus, social contract refers to the role of government in protecting the people and their properties and in return, people sacrifice some of their freedom. This means, with every passing generation, the same laws are interpreted in new light and new behaviors are accepted as the new norms. So, millennials’ work ethics cannot be questioned because the way corporate companies operate and the IT industry function is not like the factories from the previous generations.

In my opinion, change should start from the top because people assume someone in a higher position as a role model and try to follow their way of life and work. This would mean if the top officials are corrupted, they wouldn’t be able to discipline or control those who are at the bottom of the company. If leaders are corrupt, officials would be corrupt and if officials are corrupt they would also make the public corrupt. So, change should start from top.

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