Enforcing Standards or Loyalty to Commander
Abstract
Each individual in United States Army has the basic responsibility to do the right thing in any given situation. Our decision making process is based upon our perception of reality, right vs. wrong, and our ethics. This is why it is very important that soldiers and NCOs maintain high ethical standards regardless of rank. First, before we get started, what are Ethics? Ethics are values, traits and principles that an individual has learned or developed through his or her upbringing and experiences. Most soldiers relate ethical decisions to choosing the hard right over the easy wrong. During my assignment as a first sergeant, I faced an ethical dilemma. It was not a dilemma of knowing what was right or wrong however, it was doing what was right for the sake of loyalty to my commander. Since it was my commander who put me in the situation, it was a very hard decision to make. After an Army physical fitness test (APFT), my unit had three failures one of which was a lieutenant. I immediately suspended all favorable actions (flag) and put all three in the special population physical fitness program. One month later the NCO in charge of the program told me the lieutenant had never shown up for the program. I counseled the lieutenant and explained to him the result of failing the APFT a second time could have on his career. I also told him as an officer in the United States Army he was expected to lead by example. During the counseling session the lieutenant acted as if he did not care. He stated the captain's board would convene next month and he would be taken care of. I informed the commander about the counseling session, he told me not to worry he would take care of it.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Nov 16, 2005
- Accession Number
- AD1111227
Entities
People
- Sam K. Young
Organizations
- United States Army Sergeants Major Academy