Can you ever be ethical and moral and follow the law at the same time?
Ethics and morals relate to “right” and “wrong” conduct. While they are sometimes used interchangeably, they are different, especially as they relate to code enforcement, building inspection and all other forms of regulatory enforcement. How many code officials are required to enforce rules and regulations that they do not fundamentally agree with? Instead of considering the needs of the resident, interjecting common sense into the matter, taking on a bit of personal risk on behalf of an individual and making a simple accommodation; should you just stick to the code?
Before I open that can of worms, let us clearly define some terms.
As aforementioned, ethics and morals relate to “right” and “wrong” conduct. Ethics however refers to rules provided by an external source (i.e. workplace rules), and laws of course have “enforcing authority” derived from the state or local jurisdiction (like property maintenance and building codes). A person‘s morals however refer to that individual’s own principles regarding right and wrong.
Morals and Law differ because the law demands an absolute subjection to its rules and commands; so is following the rules the safest option?
MetricOne Training and Consulting offers this class and other courses which are designed to explore these concepts in a regulatory environment, and help officers and inspectors develop practices to stay abreast of the right and wrong things to do during their daily workday.
If you are interested in the next time this course is being offered, please CLICK HERE
Please leave a comment below if you agree with the statement: “The Rules are the Rules”
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