Whistle Blowing
In this situation, I believe Chantale should go ahead and mention the problem to the media in order to ensure that the matter is followed up on. When speaking to the media, Chantale should ensure that she retains her privacy on the matter, as doing so will cause her more trouble with the management of the organization where she works. The media should make it a point to mention the medical wastes that are being dumped, and health authorities in the city should conduct further inquiries. In this case, Chantale will be ensuring that her consciousness remains clear on the matter. Also, after reporting the issue to the media Chantale should make sure that she does a follow up on the case to ensure that the matter is handled correctly.
Question two
There are limits that an employee’s loyalty should not surpass based on the fact that it can interfere with the judgment that one is supposed to make. In the case of Chantale, if she had been blindly loyal to the management she would have given up when it comes to following up on the issues that she has raised about the dumping that is being done by Avco which is contrary to the health provisions. Chantale’s situation shows a classical example of how blind loyalty is dangerous to an individual in that it can affect their conscious as Chantale in the situation seems tormented by the issue based on the instructions that her immediate bosses have given her. Hence, the loyalty of an employee’s towards the employee should not be blind.
Question three
Yes, it would have made a difference if Chantale was in a position of greater authority and also if she had scientific expertise. Regarding having a position of greater authority, it is evident that Chantale is disturbed by the responses that she has received from her immediate bosses. It is an indication that if she could be in a powerful position, she could have done something about the issues such as reporting the Avco Environmental to the relevant health and environmental authorities. Also, she could have confronted the company disposing of the medical waste and inform them that what they are doing is unethical. If she had scientific expertise, Chantale could have conducted her investigation on the matter and publish the findings which would have created public knowledge regarding the issue. Through building public knowledge, it would have been possible for Avco Environmental and health authorities to act.
Question four
The management of the Avco Environmental should ensure that they come up with a proper mechanism of disposing of the medical waste in a manner that is acceptable environmentally. There are various ways that the company can handle the medical wastes in a way that ensures that there is the environmental protection. One of the significant ways is ensuring that it incinerates the medical waste. Incineration ensures that there is 100% destruction of the wastes. Hence, there is 100% elimination leading to the protection of the environment from unnecessary pollution. Also, the Avco Environmental should ensure that it trains its employees on the effective methods that can be used in the management of the medical wastes based on the standard requirements.
