- Job candidates are obliged to apply only for those positions in which they are sincerely and seriously interested.
- "Sincere interest" has several meanings but two stand out here. First, they should not agree to an interview after having accepted a job offer from another company. Second, they should be qualified according to the requirements listed in the job application.
- The following scenarios test this concept in different ways. "Bring Your Friends" raises the issue of whether not being seriously interested in a job is ok if the interviewer knows this and initiates the interview for other reasons. "Working for Mega Weapons" asks whether moral or conscience-based conflicts cancel out "sincere interest."
1. Bring Your Friends:
Maria, a talented student in mechanical engineering has accepted an offer to work for a prestigious firm. Then she receives a call for an interview with firm X. She tells them that she has already accepted an offer from Y, but the caller says that doesn't matter. "We want to interview you anyway so that we can document affirmative action compliance. In fact, if you have any friends who are similarly situated [i.e., women who come from minority groups] please give us their names. We will fly all of you to our central headquarters for interviews at our expense. It will be a good vacation.
What would you do if you were in Maria's place?
- Accept the interview offer but not try to recruit any of your friends.
- Accept the interview offer and try to recruit some of your friends to go along.
- Refuse to accept the interview on moral grounds.
- Refuse to accept the interview because it would interfere with the class in Practical and Professional Ethics that you are currently taking.
- Report this company to the appropriate governmental agency since they are clearly distinguishing against candidates from so-called minority groups
- Your solution....
2. Working for Mega Weapons
Jorge is an unemployed computing professional. He is also a pacifist. Antonio, a friend, has a job prospect. Mega Weapons is looking for someone with Jorge's expertise. Yes, he will be spending time developing the guidance systems for "smart bombs." But the accurate, smart bombs will be less likely to go astray and kill innocent civilians. Jorge, however, remains unimpressed by this. "They're still bombs," he says, "and their primary purpose is to kill human beings. Besides, I would compromise myself by even accepting an interview. What if they ask me about my views on war? I would have to tell them the truth and then they would dismiss me as a candidate." Jorge tells his wife about the job prospect. While she supports his pacifism, she tells him that she can't continue indefinitely as a waitress; her job is preventing her from completing her college degree and keeps her away from the children. She asks Jorge if there is any way he can reconcile this job with his pacifism. What should Jorge do?
What should Jorge do is he receives a request to interview with Mega Weapons?
- Jorge should not go to the interview because he is not "sincerely interested" in this position. His pacifism cancels out any possibility of "sincere interest".
- Jorge should accept this interview request because his obligations to his family outweigh matters of personal morality and personal conscience such as his pacifism.
- Jorge should accept this interview and a job offer, if one follows, precisely because of his pacifism. If he refuses then Mega Weapons will find a war monger who will do all kinds of harm. By taking the job and using his skills to minimize harm in weapons development Jorge is doing his best to realize the pacifist agenda.
- Jorge should set aside his pacifism and use his engineering skills to carry out politically sanctioned weapons projects just as a doctor should set aside personal likes or dislikes of a patient and exercise his or her skills dispassionately and professionally.
- Your solution...
- 1913 reads
