Privilege to work or work as privilege

1. Work as a privilege – Privilege to work?
For many of us, the ability to work has always been viewed as a right; guaranteed to all and
universally accepted as essential. In actuality, working is a privilege; to serve a company or
represent it in an official position, to qualify for an official position within the company, or to
even be elected in some capacity. It’s important that we treat working as a privilege by doing
everything within our power to be responsible employees, whether it be by going “above and
beyond” the position held, having an impressive character, or not misusing our position for
illegal actions.
A famous quote by David O. McKay symbolizes the importance of understanding such
responsibility. "Let us realize that: the privilege to work is a gift, the power to work is a blessing,
the love of work is success!"
When employee serve customer but don’t deliver the services that people are entitled to, it’s the
same as stealing. Corruption happens at all levels of business and can involve managers, staff,
suppliers and the people they serve. Statistically, the more power and access to resources people
have, the higher the risk that they may be tempted into corrupt or unethical behavior.
Many other practices are a form of corruption, but may not lead to a jail sentence. They will,
however, be dealt with by managers, and may lead to dismissal. These include things like
misusing resources (like office supplies or computers); a servant not doing the work they are
paid to do; or behaving badly (like drinking on the job).
Managers are very high risk because they have to make decisions and they understand the
system. Staff members who work in front offices, where they directly deliver services or take

2. money from the public, are also high risk. The people they serve may be corrupt and try to pay
for special favors through bribery. Suppliers and contractors may also be corrupt and try to
subvert the proper tender processes or deliver less than agreed upon.
In the U.S. alone, any witness who demands, receives, or accepts a bribe in exchange for altered
testimony faces a fine of three times the value of the bribe and/or up to 15 years in prison, while
anyone who bribes a witness faces a fine and/or up to two years in prison.
Every public servant has a role to play in watching out for and reporting corruption. There are
special staff such as auditors, security staff, and compliance officers that are dedicated to rooting
out corruption.
The privilege to work and serve with ethics is defined as the “moral values of human conduct”
and the rules that govern how we should behave. Good values are what makes the foundation for
a good employee. Many the mistake of missing the opportunity to show supervisors that they
have what it takes to be successful on the job as well as possessing the personal characteristics
they hold.
Each profession has its own ethics that define appropriate behavior. For example, doctors should
always respect confidentiality as part of medical ethics (this is also a part of HIPPA laws) and
should they violate these laws, their medical practicing license may be revoked.
We have dealt with corruption and the ethics involved, but there are still many other kinds of
ethical behavior that apply to all workplaces – for example, not sexually harassing a colleague
and not being rude to colleagues. These ethics are about moral behavior and they cover the range
of our actions at work. It’s values like these that also set apart those who understand that work is
a privilege, not a right and lead individual success in both life and working positions.
Ludwig Eckl
President/CEO
Innovative Imaging Concepts Inc.
Info@Innovative-Imaging.net
Cell: 413 262 5940