What influences an employees ethics and values in the workplace?
Do they differ from generation to generation? In the 50’s the workplace was comprised of people whose value systems and work ethics were greatly influenced by the Great Depression and world wars. The themes of the day included: (1) appreciation for the opportunity to have a job; (2) the expectation of loyalty to a company; and (3) a belief that the boss was always right. The management style was patriarchal: management was the brains and labor was the brawn. This was accepted as a way of life, and it worked… back then. But things have changed. Enter the baby boomers, a generation born during a period beginning in 1946 until the 1960s. This group rejected the old ways of blindly following the path laid out by employers. This group wanted more influence on how the workplace was run. They wanted participatory management. In addition, their job became a source of personal identity. The boomer’s opening question of “And what do you do for a living” is inevitably followed by an “I am…” r
