Construction Management Consultation and the Construction

Question: Describe about the Construction Management of Consultation and the Construction. Answer: Introduction Ethics refers to moral principles guiding a person and is described as doing the right thing. In the business context, ethics refers to the extent of trustworthiness and integrity with which a business is conducted. The purpose of this report is to discuss the Ethical dilemma which is most commonly observed in the construction industry. This industry is considered to be fraudulent in Australia and has received a lot of negative media attention recently (Borys 2012). It is highly susceptible to unethical practices at every phase of a construction project. The report discusses identified ethical dilemma and support the fact with evidence from the literature article. It presents the options available in response to the situation and further evaluates the actions concerning an ethical code of conduct. The author will provide opinion supported with evidence and finally draw a conclusion. Identified Ethical dilemma I have received information from media articles that construction industry is plagued with malpractices in Australia (Collier, 2016). The literature review provided evidence that the scenario is same in other countries such as Hong Kong, South Africa, Singapore, and US (Oladinrin et al. 2014). This scenario is significantly reported in media as well. The common unethical practices in this sector identified by McCarthy (2012) are corruption in business due to bribery, fraudulent activities, tendering practices, substandard quality of construction work, corruption and public accountability for money spent on public buildings and infrastructure. In addition to bribery, there also exist the conflict of interest and collusive tendering. The majority of the construction companies in the world are not legally compliant (Levy et al., 2014). Ayers et al. (2013) conducted a survey, and his findings reveal that majority of the respondents experienced severe negligence from the contractors who provided inadequate information and had lack of supervision. These respondents also have experienced unfair treatment during tender negotiations. The unethical practices with the highest rank include cover pricing which is followed by bid cutting, short payments, lack of safety ethics in subcontractors, bureaucratic and government policy and poor docum entation (Adnan et al. 2012). The high risk of unethical practices in this industry is due to substantial capital investments that provide large-scale rent extraction opportunities. It also involves investments which are not redeployed after implementation. The other contributing factors of these unethical practices include the economic downturn, fierce competition in tendering process, an absence of selection criteria for the project, monopolistic nature of service delivery, lack of the code of ethics and industry-based training and inadequate legislative enforcement (Levy and Slavin 2014). Impact of the unethical conduct Unethical practices have the detrimental effect on the construction and engineering industry. It includes increased costs of projects, high economic damage, criminal prosecutions, fines, a blacklisting and reputational risk of the organization, blackmail, wastage of tender expenses and uncertainty in tendering. Daniel (2015) showed that corruption accounts for 25% to waste of public resources, instability in the business environment, and the cost of public contracting, and missed development opportunities. Statistical data reveals that these unethical practices have the significant impact on the quality of project performance (Ayers et al. 2013). There is an increase in the rate of fatalities by 60% since last decades, which is attributed to unsafe working practices, inadequate safety policies, and inspection programs. Action against Ethical dilemma The detrimental effects of the unethical practices have caused the public to demand good ethical practices and professional behavior. The government of Australia has adopted National Code of Practice for the Construction Industry to address the ethical issues. It was developed by Australian Procurement and Construction Council and the Departments of Labour Advisory Committee (Oladinrin and Ho 2016). It demands and encourages honesty and integrity, ethical behavior, and best practice by clients and service providers in the construction industry. While conducting business the contractors, consultants and clients are expected to comply with applicable code and address corresponding code issues (Barnes and Croker 2013). However, this code does not resolve the ethical dilemma or create ethical integrity in a person. Adnan et al. (2012) stated that it does not address problems faced by business consultants, does not consider the role of clients and many other problem areas. It appears to be set of written principles. The Commonwealth, State, and Territory Governments" are major clients of the construction industry. McCarthy (2012) believes that adopting and complying with Code of Practice for the industry participants would go a long way to achieving the Codes objectives. Recommendations I feel that law-enforcing bodies in Australia should develop both short-term and long-term measures to mitigate this issue. All the departments should have complaints system. The introduction of Punitive measures such as cancellation of licenses if found of guilty of violations will be effective in minimizing bribery and fraud (Majchrzak and Markus 2013). There is a need for ethics training program and ethics awareness workshops (Bal et al., 2013). Media system is highly efficient in improving the ethical practices by using robust strategies to publicly expose unethical activities in the construction industry (Ayers et al. 2013). It is recommended that every project team should be associated with quality assurance group to ensure compliance with code of ethics. There is a need of intense research in both public and private sectors to address ethical issues. It will help in providing useful information to the stakeholder and better tackle the pressing ethical issues (Levy and Slavin 2 014). It is necessary to develop industry wise code of ethics. To achieve the goal of creating the ethical environment in construction sector legislative bodies should be highly committed to introducing and implement the code of ethics (Daniel, 2015). Conclusion The construction industry plays a significant role in promoting country's economic growth. In addition to the advanced technology used in this sector, ethical practices are essential for its growth. It is vital to ensure ethical practices for a smooth functioning of this industry. Ethical lapses can be minimized by the active participation of government agencies, and professional institutes. The thorough literature review has enhanced my knowledge related to ethical issues in the construction business and its effect on the economic growth and people. References Adnan, H., Hashim, N., Mohd, N. and Ahmad, N., 2012. Ethical issues in the construction industry: Contractor's perspective.Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences,35, pp.719-727. Ayers, G.F., Culvenor, J.F., Sillitoe, J. and Else, D., 2013. Meaningful and effective consultation and the construction industry of Victoria, Australia.Construction Management and Economics,31(6), pp.542-567. Bal, M., Bryde, D., Fearon, D. and Ochieng, E., 2013. Stakeholder engagement: Achieving sustainability in the construction sector.Sustainability,5(2), pp.695-710. Barnes, L.R. and Croker, N., 2013. The relevance of the ISO26000 social responsibility issues to the Hong Kong construction industry.Australasian Journal of Construction Economics and Building, The,13(3), p.37. Borys, D., 2012. The role of safe work method statements in the Australian construction industry.Safety science,50(2), pp.210-220. Collier, G. (2016). ABCC quest full of misconceptions. [online] Theaustralian.com.au. Available at: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/opinion/columnists/grace-collier/abcc-quest-driven-by-misconceptions/news-story/abd7bfbf75fd9d2b146974649a23346a [Accessed 19 Aug. 2016]. 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