Research Proposal on UAW Corruption Scandal

Introduction

According to the latest reports on the UAW corruption scandal, reports indicate that the officials of American based auto-company; United Auto Workers received an approximate amount of $20 million in payments from the Fiat Chrysler (FCA) to facilitate the exchange of incorporating the pro-provisions of the company into the contracts of the union. Additionally, the report also revealed that the payments made to the UAW top officials to obtain benefits, advantages of Fiat Chrysler Company in the negotiation process, facilitate allowances for the officials, implementation process, as well as administration process of the contract between the two companies in between 2009 and 2015. Typically, the corruption scandal surrounding UAW Company provides indisputable proof that the company is corporate syndicate, but not the organization of workers. Hence, the company serves in ensuring enforcement of labor discipline, pushing through to acquire work allowances, as well as isolating the struggles of the employees. For this, the company's top officials get compensated lavishly beyond their full union payments (salaries) and expenses accounts, in the form of bribes, and control of healthcare and retirement funds (Melgar et al., 2010).

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The reports that top leaders of the UAW Company received direct bribes from the executive of the organization are no surprise to anybody following UAW operations. For a very long period of time, UAW Company and other entities call themselves trade unions have currently operated as corporate management, not organizations for workers, but are cheap contractors of labor, as well as the police force of the various industries which work towards oppressing any form of opposition from employees they are claiming to represent. Generally, the current disagreements between the company and the demands of the workers are just increasing complexity to the talks of the contract. Ethically, acquiring of trustworthy and uncompromised leaders on both sides to solve the existing challenges facing both parties for the continuity of the company, may be regarded as an ethical dilemma. Currently, UAW Company is severely suffering from the moral dilemma since most workers cannot have confidence on those leaders who will represent their grievances or any contract proposal the leaders bring to them which may be untainted by the unethical gifts, favors, as well as cash payments received by the UAW top officials for decades. This challenge makes workers organize the demonstration and strike over the embezzlement of funds by the company's officials who have unlawfully benefited at their expenses.

Currently, no leader can build confidence out of the UAW Workers due to the emergence of corruption scandals in the company since the entire organization tainted due to unethical practices such as corruption scandals and other poor working environment-related issues. Additionally, the organization may continue facing ethical dilemma since the US government may go ahead to make good use of the corruption scandal to push aside UAW company through various means such as trusteeship or forced arbitration, including the ban on strikes for violating the rights of workers (Darcy, 2010). This legislation would severely place the company's workers in the indirect conflict, not only with the UAW Company but with the state as well.

Conclusion

Lastly, I consider this topic very significant to me since it helps me to understand that corruption as vice does not only taint UAW's brand image and reputation but also to the workers, unions and the entire country. This problem has also led to the emergence of the strike by the autoworkers. Additionally, this topic also assists me in realizing the importance of ethical practices at the organizational level, whereby people should enhance moral values such as respect, transparency, integrity, and accountability at a workplace to avoid immoral acts like corruption in the society.

References

Darcy, K. T. (2010). Ethical leadership: The past, present, and future. International Journal of Disclosure and Governance, 7(3), 198-212.

Melgar, N., Rossi, M., & Smith, T. W. (2010). The perception of corruption. International Journal of Public Opinion Research, 22(1), 120-131.