In recent years corporate downsizing has been on the rise throughout the world.
Downsizing is reducing costs by dismissing employees and reassigning their duties to the employees who remain. They usually call it restructuring, rightsizing, reallocating resources, or job separation. They sometimes use dieting metaphors like "trimming the fat," "getting lean and mean," or "shedding weight." Whatever the euphemism, employees affected by these practices know what the words mean to them: layoff. And no "kinder, gentler" words can do much to alleviate the anxiety and distress that come with losing a job.
In their quest to lower costs to stay competitive, companies often wield the ax with little or no regard for the well-being of the people involved. For example, in the past years AT&T have dismissed thousands of managers and employees through downsizing, though many of these people have twenty or more years of loyal employment with the firm. Industry analysts assert that if organizations wish to consider themselves responsible, ethical corporate citizens, they must demonstrate concern for their employees, even when they have to tell them they are no longer employed.Organizations concerned about easing their employees' shock and stress at being laid off can do so through careful planning and preparation. Effective, honest and timely communication is always important, but when staff reductions are imminent, it becomes critical. Employees who know what is going on can prepare themselves for the inevitable and are much better able to cope when the ax finally does fall.
It is sometimes difficult to determine the right thing to do, but many firms are trying. IBM for instance, offers early retirement. AT&T offers job search help and career counseling to displaced employees. Organizations can also support employees whose positions have been eliminated by providing retraining or outplacement assistance and a reasonable severance package. Those being laid off are not, however, the only ones affected by the downsizing. By addressing the needs and concerns of remaining staff, showing sensitivity to their feeling of loss, and dealing with their anxieties about additional layoffs, an organization increases its chances of retaining their loyalty and trust.
Questions about the ethics of downsizing are sure to continue. Do responsible companies lay people off? Is it ethical to close factories? Must employers guarantee workers jobs for life? What are the ethical issues involved when organizations become so downsized they are no longer able to attain their goals (a situation known as "corporate anorexia")? What happens, for example, to patients in a hospital that has eliminated so many positions it is no longer able to provide the necessary level of care? If, as most experts agree, downsizing is here to stay, perhaps the real question is not, "Is it ethical to downsize?" but "How can companies downsize ethically?"
近年來全球興起了公司裁員之風。所謂裁員，就是公司為了降低成本而解雇一些員工並將其工作職責重新分配給其他人。裁員常被雅稱為重組、合理精簡、資源重新配置、崗位剝離等。有時也用"抽脂"、"瘦身"、"拋重"等減肥術語來比喻。不管是什麼委婉措詞，裁員之舉波及到的員工都知道這對自己意味的是被解雇。而這些"更溫柔，更關切"的措詞對於緩解丟了工作所帶來的焦慮與沮喪也是於事無補。
為減低成本以保持競爭力，公司經常大舉裁員卻很少顧及受此影響的人們的安康。例如，在過去的幾年中，AT&T裁掉了成千上萬的經理和雇員，而他們中有許多人已在該公司忠心耿耿工作了二十年甚至更長時間。產業分析家們斷言，如果公司還希望被看作是負責任的、有道德感的企業人，他們就必須表現出對員工的關心，即使在不得不告知員工要解雇他們的時候。
關注如何消除裁員給員工帶來的衝擊與壓力的公司可以通過精心籌畫與準備做得妥善些。有效、誠懇與適時的溝通總是很重要的，而如果裁員行動突如其來，溝通就更為關鍵。瞭解情況的員工可以為不可避免的結果有所準備並在砍斧揮落時從容面對。
有時很難決定怎樣做才對，但是許多公司在努力做好。例如，IBM有提前退休計畫，AT&T為裁掉的員工提供求職幫助與職業指導。公司也可以為被解雇員工提供再培訓或新職介紹幫助以及合理的解聘補償，但是，受裁員影響的並非只有被裁掉的人，所以也要關心留崗人員的需求與擔憂，細心體察他們的失落感並化解他們對以後的裁員行動的焦慮。這樣做公司得以保持員工忠誠與信任的可能性就會更大。
有關裁員的道德問題肯定會不斷出現。有責任心的公司解雇員工嗎？關閉工廠合乎道德準則嗎？雇主必須給予員工終生工作保障嗎？公司因規模減小而不能實現目標（俗稱企業厭食症）會引起什麼道德問題？例如，醫院減掉許多崗位而不能提供必要的醫療水準會對病人造成什麼影響？正如大多數專家所認同，如果裁員行動繼續下去，或許真正的問題不在於裁員是否道德而是公司怎樣做使得裁員更為人道？
留言列表
