Gondar Polytechnic College

STUDENT LEARNING GUIDE

GONDAR POLYTECHNIC COLLEGE

Amhara Region

Ethiopian TVET-System

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
SUPPORT SERVICE
NTQF Level I

Learning Guide
Unit of Competence: Demonstrate Work Values
Module Title: Demonstrating Work Values
LG Code: ICT ITS1 10 0811

LEARNING OUTCOME (OBJECTIVES)

At the end of the module the learners must be able :
LO1 Define the purpose of work
LO2 Apply work values/ethics
LO3 Deal with ethical problems
LO4 Maintain integrity of conduct in the workplace

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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For: ecbp/MOE – TVET Outcome Based Training Core Process
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Introduction

This learning guide was developed to provide the learners with the knowledge, skills and right
attitudes required to:

 Apply work values and ethics

 Deal with ethical problems
 Maintain integrity of conduct in a workplace

This guide will also assist you to attain the learning outcome stated in the cover page. Specifically,
upon completion of this Learning Guide, you will be able to –

 Apply work values and ethics

 Deal with ethical problems
 Maintain integrity of conduct in a workplace

Learning Activities

1. Read the specific objectives of this Learning Guide.

2. Read the information written in the “Information Sheets 1” in page 3.
3. Accomplish the “Self-check ” in page 18.
4. Submit your accomplished Self-check. This will form part of your training portfolio.
5. Do the “LAP test” (if you are ready) and show your output to your teacher. Your teacher will
evaluate your output either satisfactory or unsatisfactory. If unsatisfactory, your teacher
shall advice you on additional work. But if satisfactory you can proceed to Learning Guide
13.

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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Information Sheet 1 Work Values and Ethics

This Information sheet provides detailed information regarding the proper work values and
ethics in a workplace and in dealing with others.

Introduction:

Professional workers treat each person in a caring and respectful fashion, mindful of individual
differences and cultural and ethnic diversity. Professional workers promote clients' socially
responsible self-determination. Professional workers seek to enhance clients' capacity and
opportunity to change and to address their own needs. Professional workers are cognizant of their
dual responsibility to clients and to the broader society. They seek to resolve conflicts between
clients' interests and the broader society's interests in a socially responsible manner consistent
with the values, ethical principles, and ethical standards of the profession.

I. Work Values

Work values are beliefs pertaining to desirable end-states (e.g. high pay) or behavior (e.g.
working with people). The different work goals are ordered by their importance as guiding
principles for evaluating work outcomes and settings, and for choosing among different work
alternatives. Because work values refer only to goals in the work setting, they are more
specific than basic individual values. But the work values usually are still quite broad: they refer
to what a person wants out of work in general. Rather than to the narrowly defined outcomes of
particular jobs. Finally, work values like basic values, are verbal representations of individual,
group and interaction requirements.

General Types of Work Values:

1. Intrinsic or Self Actualization Values - directly express openness to change values-the

pursuit of autonomy, interest, growth, and creativity in work.
2. Extrinsic or Security or Material Values - express conservation values; job security and
income provide workers with the requirements needed for general security and
maintenance of order in their lives.
3. Social or Relational Values - express the pursuit of self-transcendence values; work is seen
as a vehicle for positive social relations and contribution to society. Values include being
helpful, responsible, affiliation to friends and the community, social justice, and environ-
mental protection. This is demonstrated by values that are near each other or on opposite
sides of the diagram shown below.

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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Illustration:

List of Intrinsic or Personal Work Values:

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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Top 5 Work Values:

1. Strong Work Ethic

Employers value employees who understand and possess a willingness to work hard. In addition
to working hard it is also important to work smart. This means learning the most efficient way to
complete tasks and finding ways to save time while completing daily assignments.

2. Dependable and Responsible

Employer’s value employees, who come to work on time, are there when they are supposed to be,
and are responsible for their actions and behavior.

3. Possessing a Positive Attitude

Employers want employees who take the initiative and have the motivation to get the job done in a
reasonable period of time. A positive attitude gets the work done and motivates others to do the
same without dwelling on the challenges that inevitably come up in any job.

4. Adaptability

Employers want employees who are adaptable and maintain flexibility in completing tasks in an
ever-changing workplace. Being open to change and improvements provides an opportunity to
complete work assignments in a more efficient manner while offering additional benefits to the
corporation, the customer, and even the employee.

5. Honesty and Integrity

Employers value employees who maintain a sense of honesty and integrity above all else. Good
relationships are built on trust.

Workplace Violence

Workplace violence is violence or the threat of violence against workers. It can occur at or outside
the workplace and can range from threats and verbal abuse to physical assaults and homicide,
one of the leading causes of job-related deaths. However it manifests itself, workplace violence is
a growing concern for employers and employees nationwide.

Types of Workplace Incidents or Violence:

1. physical violence – including kicking, spitting, hitting or pushing, as well as more extreme
violence with weapons;

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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2. verbal abuse – including shouting, swearing or insults, racial or sexual abuse;
3. threats and intimidation.

Causes of Violence at work:

1. Random violence with no clear intent, such as from someone under the influence of alcohol
or other drugs.
2. Intimidation used to achieve a desired end, such as control or sexual favors or simply faster
service.
3. The expression of uncontrolled irritation such as dissatisfaction with poor service or
prolonged discomfort.
4. Displaced anger from past situations applied unreasonably to the issue at hand.
5. Violence related to criminal activity, thrill-seeking or revenge.
6. Violence related to cultural or religious differences between subgroups in society.

Assessing the Risks of Work Related Violence:

1. Identify the Hazard

A hazard is something that can cause harm – in this case violence and aggression. There are a
number of ways you can gather this information.

 Ask your staff and safety representatives about their experiences and concerns.
 Look back at your accident and ill-health records.

2. Who might be harmed and how?

Work out whether and how violence, or the fear of violence, could affect workers or other people in
your workplace. Think about whether there are any special groups of workers who have different
or additional risks, for example lone workers or trainees.

3. Evaluate the risks and decide on precautions

Work out what you are already doing, whether your control measures are working properly and if
there is anything else you need to do. This will help you decide whether you are doing enough. It
is also good practice to ask your staff for their ideas and feedback.

4. Record your findings and implement them

When you have decided what you need to do to keep your staff safe, work out how you will put
these actions in place. Who will be responsible for taking the actions and when? How will you
share this information with staff? If you employ five or more people, you will need to keep a record
of your main findings. Your health and safety inspector may ask to see your risk assessment in
order to review the control measures you have put in place.
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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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5. Review your risk assessment and update if necessary

Task of Employers in Protecting the Employees:

1. Provide safety education for employees so they know what conduct is not acceptable what
to do if they witness or are subjected to workplace violence, and how to protect themselves.
2. Secure the workplace. Where appropriate to the business, install video surveillance, extra
lighting, and alarm systems and minimize access by outsiders through identification
badges, electronic keys, and guards.
3. Provide drop safes to limit the amount of cash on hand. Keep a minimal amount of cash in
registers during evenings and late-night hours.
4. Equip field staff with cellular phones and hand-held alarms or noise devices, and require
them to prepare a daily work plan and keep a contact person informed of their location
throughout the day. Keep employer-provided vehicles properly maintained.
5. Instruct employees not to enter any location where they feel unsafe. Introduce a “buddy
system” or provide an escort service or police assistance in potentially dangerous situations
or at night.
6. Develop policies and procedures covering visits by home health-care providers. Address
the conduct of home visits, the presence of others in the home during visits, and the
worker’s right to refuse to provide services in a clearly hazardous situation.

Handling Incidents or Workplace Violence:

1. Encourage employees to report and log all incidents and threats of workplace violence.
2. Provide prompt medical evaluation and treatment after the incident.
3. Report violent incidents to the local police promptly.
4. Inform victims of their legal right to prosecute perpetrators.
5. Discuss the circumstances of the incident with staff members. Encourage employees to
share information about ways to avoid similar situations in the future.
6. Offer stress debriefing sessions and post-traumatic counseling services to help workers
recover from a violent incident.
7. Investigate all violent incidents and threats, monitor trends in violent incidents by type or
circumstance, and institute corrective actions.
8. Discuss changes in the program during regular employee meetings.

Work Violence/Incident Investigation:

Steps:

1. Establish a Fact Finding Committee

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The incident investigation should begin as soon as possible after the incident has been reported to
a designated person in the company, appropriate medical assistance has been given, the
necessary agencies have been notified and the scene has been secured.

Eyewitnesses are a top priority because they are people who saw all or part of what happened, or
were the first people on the scene after the incident. Also important are people who had used the
equipment involved in the incident, service personnel who had maintained or repaired the
equipment, and the injured person’s co-workers and supervisor.

2. Analysis

An incident almost never has just one cause. Usually an incident is caused by a particular
combination of different circumstances. Investigators need to identify two types of causes:

 Immediate causes: The unsafe practices or conditions that led directly to the incident.
(Example: equipment wasn’t locked out.)
 Underlying causes: The factors that enabled the unsafe practices or conditions to occur.
(Example: lack of monitoring and enforcement of the lockout procedure.) Underlying causes
arise from gaps in the Internal Responsibility System.

3. Report and Recommendations

Each factor that’s identified during the incident investigation highlights a flaw in the company’s
safety system. The flaw may be related to the work environment, the equipment, the attitudes and
practices of people, the way material is handled or the work process as a whole. The incident
investigation report’s recommendations on how to control these hazards will flow naturally from the
investigation team’s analysis of each factor.

The team’s job is to ensure that each recommendation in the incident investigation report is
practical, realistic and persuasive. Impractical, unrealistic or poorly explained recommendations
can diminish the level of trust among the workplace parties and reduce the credibility of the entire
incident investigation process.

4. Action

The decision-making starts with exactly what will be done to prevent the incident from every
happening again. This is followed by decisions regarding who will do it, how it will be done and by
what date it will be done. Once those decisions have been made, two important decisions still
have to be made: Designating the person who will make sure the changes are made and the
person or persons who will follow up to make sure the changes are having the desired effect of
controlling the identified hazard.

5. Follow up

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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An effective hazard control has five important characteristics. These characteristics can be used
by the person responsible for following up on the changes – usually the front-line supervisor – to
assess the effectiveness of the changes.

The implemented hazard controls:

 eliminate the danger to the worker

 do not make the work more stressful or more uncomfortable
 protect all workers who are likely to be exposed
 do not create external environmental hazards
 do not create any new hazards

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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Example of an Incident Investigation Report Form:

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Date: October 2011 Author : Enrico Eric S. Calma, MSIT, PMP
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II. Work Ethics

Work ethics are a set of standards and rules that are required by an individual for satisfactory work
performance. The word ethics deals with moral issues and with right and wrong behavior in a
workplace. By setting work ethics, the workers will know the proper working attitude the company
expects from each one of them.

Types of Work Ethics:

a. Personal

Ethical Traits of Personal Work Ethics:

These are the personal qualities normally included in classic descriptions of ethical
consciousness and integrity. Examples of such ethical qualities in social work are:

 Integrity
 Critical self-insight
 Responsibility
 Courage/moral courage
 A sense of justice
 Balanced judgement
 Tolerance/broad-mindedness
 Empathy/sensitivity
 A basic attitude of respect, friendliness and equality in relation to others

b. Specific to a Work Station

Examples of Work Ethics Specific to a Work Station

 Keeping certain information confidential

 Maintaining cordial information with the clients and agencies that a company has
 Being prepared to take a new task

Ethical Problems Related to Work:

1. Irregularity and luck of punctuality – are problems that you will encounter frequently in any
work situation. Some people frequently absent themselves from work for valid and invalid
reasons. Others like to come late and leave early.
2. Rude and Impolite Behavior
3. Inadequate Knowledge and Skill
4. Wastage of Resources
5. Disregard of Rules and Procedures
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6. Disrespect for the job
7. Disloyalty to the Organization

Ethical Guidelines:

Fundamental values in the work and for the profession are human rights and humanity. The work
shall contribute to creating a good and dignified life for all citizens and to developing the welfare of
the society.

1. Profession and Personality

Professional workers shall

 In their work and way of life respect each individual’s equal and high worth
 show particular responsibility towards persons and groups in a vulnerable position
 use their professional position with responsibility and be conscious of the limitations of their
own competence
 maintain and develop their social work skills and strive towards ethical consciousness and
personal development.

2. The client/citizen

Professional workers shall

 show an equalitarian attitude to other citizens and treat clients with respect, empathic
attention and amiability
 respect the client’s personal integrity and safeguard the individual’s right to self -
determination in so far as the same right for others’ is not infringed upon and there is no risk
of damage to the client. Measures shall as far as possible be based on participation and
mutual understanding
 inform the client as to rights and duties, i.e. clarify the conditions and resources that exist
within the current activity and other authorities involved
 make sure that the demands placed on clients have a reasonable foundation
and are capable of contributing to an improvement of their situation
 never use the position of dependency of the client in different situations to own advantage
 maintain client confidentiality and make sure that information concerning the client is
handled in conformance with the law and generally with great prudence.

3. The Organization, Colleagues and the Workplace

Professional workers shall

 Be aware of and show loyalty to the organization’s basic task

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 show loyalty and respect towards colleagues and other members of staff as well as
towards members of the board
 challenge and work against offensive or discriminatory attitudes and actions within the
organization or in the behavior of colleagues or clients, aware that this may be in conflict
with other loyalty demands
 contribute towards the upholding of high standards of quality in the work so that the
profession can develop in step with citizens’ needs and with changing conditions in the
society
 help to make the workplace a constructive and responsive social environment.

4. Society

Professional workers shall

 Be open to cooperation with other organizations and other professions, under the condition
that this is of value to clients and other citizens
 Strive to build up confidence in social work and in their own professional competence, as
well as being open to demands for accountability and critical appraisal of the way the work
is performed
 As a professional and as a citizen stand for a democratic social ideal comprising human
rights, humanity and solidarity.

Expectations from a Professional Worker:

1. Communication Skills and Information Sharing

Professional Workers must:

a. Explain their role and the purpose of contact, e.g. assessment in a way that can be
understood by all involved
b. Inform clients about what steps they are going to take
c. Give information to clients about their rights and entitlements
d. Be open and honest about what they can and cannot do
e. Be honest if they cannot offer the resources needed
f. Inform clients about what is available, beyond the brief of their organization
g. Listen actively to what clients have to say
h. Talk to those requiring and using services with due respect for their age, ethnicity, culture,
understanding and needs
i. Involve clients in decision making
j. Offer clients choices and options
k. Share proper records with clients
l. Build honest relationships based on clear communication

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2. Good Work Practice

Professional Workers must:

a. Be good at time keeping

b. Be good at starting, continuing and closing relationships
c. Respect confidentiality, and explain when there is a need to share information with others
d. Recognize the expertise of clients about their own situation and have regard for their
wishes
e. Give clients sufficient time to work with them properly
f. Ensure that contract is maintained
g. Assess needs properly:
 making sure that all options are explored properly before deciding on a plan
 looking for options when the services needed are not available

3. Advocacy

Professional Workers must:

a. Be able to:
 challenge their own organizations on behalf of clients
 challenge injustice and lack of access to services
 challenge poor practice
 advise clients about independent advocacy that can best meet
 their needs
b. Enable clients to be empowered to represent their views
c. Involve independent advocates, where appropriate

4. Working with other professionals

Professional Workers must:

a. Be honest, clear and make sure all involved understand:

 what happens to the information clients give to the worker
 how it is kept
 who it is shared with, and why
 how it might be used
b. Understand what information other organizations can offer and share with clients
c. Work effectively with others to improve services offered to clients

5. Knowledge

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Workers must:

Professional Workers must:

a. Have knowledge of:

 services relevant to client needs and circumstances (not just those offered by their
organization) and how to access other relevant services
 benefits and direct payments of legislation

6. Values

Professional Workers must:

a. Have respect for:

 clients regardless of their age, ethnicity, culture, level of understanding and need
 for the expertise and knowledge clients have about their own situation
b. Empower clients in decisions affecting them
c. Be honest about:
 the power invested in them, including legal powers
 their role and resources available to meet need
d. Respect confidentiality, and inform users and carers when information needs to be shared
with others
e. Be able to:
 challenge discriminatory images and practices affecting users and carers
 put clients first

Promoting Ethical Standards at Work:

1. Public Disclosure and Publicity – unethical workers should be held responsible for their
actions. Such irresponsible person should be exposed and they should be suitably
reprimanded or punished.

Possible Punishment:

a. Withdrawal of certain privileges and benefits

b. Informing immediate supervisors and colleagues of their wrong doings
c. Verbal or written warning
d. Suspension from work

2. Preparation of a Code of Work Ethics – a clear statement of the work ethics in any work
situation and their strict implementation is vital. Such a code of work ethics removes any
ambiguities and makes an organization expectation clearly known to the workers.

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3. Teaching of Ethics and Values in Schools and Colleges – teaching moral values and work
ethics is easier adopted in the early stage. Ethics and values should be taught in schools to
develop a disciplined work force.

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Self Check Work Values and Ethics

Name: _______________________________ Remark: ______________

Date: ________________________________

I. Identification:

Directions:

a. Supply the best answer that satisfies each question.

b. Write your answer on the space provided.

1. A set of standards and rules that are required by an individual for

satisfactory work performance.
2. A type of work value that directly express openness to change
values-the pursuit of autonomy, interest, growth, and creativity in
work.
3. Violence or the threat of violence against workers.

4. Deals with moral issues and with right and wrong behavior in a
workplace.
5. A type of workplace violence that includes kicking, spitting, hitting or
pushing, as well as more extreme violence with weapons

II. Enumeration

Directions:

a. List down the required steps, procedure or items being asked by each questions.
b. For step and procedure, it should be in chronological order otherwise it will be considered
wrong.

1. Causes of Violence at work

 _______________________________________________________________
 _______________________________________________________________
 _______________________________________________________________
 _______________________________________________________________
 _______________________________________________________________
 _______________________________________________________________

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2. General types of work values

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

3. Ethical Guidelines

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

4. How to promote ethical standards

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

5. Types of workplace violence

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

 _______________________________________________________________

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