The Situation: Stubbs had an accident involving a press machine. He did not follow the instructions. He lost three fingers and received workers compensation. Shortly afterwards, he filed a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the press machine.
The company maintains OSHA records for 5 years. Tom, the Loss Control specialist has records for the last ten years. The older records expose the company to damages for lack of safeguards on the press machine. Such safeguards might have prevented the accident.
The Dilemma: Tom is asked to throw out the older five years worth of data. What should happen?
Option #1: If he destroyed the records, he can keep his job, but what are the legal ramifications of his actions? Is it his duty to report information that he has even if it puts a burden on the company?
Option #2: If he provides the records, he may lose his job for disobeying orders. Does this choice benefit the company? What about Stubbs, after all he took a risk to not follow the machine instructions?
Option #3: If he blows the whistle, he may lose his job. Should he get the directive in writing to protect himself? Is the company doing something illegal?
Option #4: If Tom goes to the attorney behind the company’s back, he may get fired. Is this decision the fairest for Stubbs? What are costs and benefits of this choice?
Post your reasons for choosing the one of the options above and provide details with a minimum of 10 sentences. Use one of the three perspectives in your answer. (Utilitarian Perspective, Justice Perspective, Rights Perspective)