4.2 Gray matters for the hughes aircraft case  (Page 11/14)

Dialogue

• Construct a dialogue in which Gooderal responds to this latest test skipping issue
• Consider these issues in constructing your dialogue:
• Goodearl had already confronted LaRue about test skipping when Lisa Lightner came to her. After failing to get results, she had decided to drop the issue
• How should Goodearl respond to Temple? Should she continue pushing responsible dissent or give way to Temple’s threats?

Decision point five

• After her conversation with Temple, Goodearl goes to the Personnel Department to inquire into filing a harassment complaint against her supervisors at Hughes
• After her discussion she sees the personnel official leave his office and turn toward Frank Saia’s office, one of Goodearl’s supervisors.
• Goodearl is then called to Saia’s office. An angry Saia throws his glasses at her and threatens to fire her if she persists. He also asks her where she gets off filing a harassment charge against him.

Dialogue

• Construct a dialogue in which Gooderal reacts to Saia both during Saia’s outburst and after it.
• Is Saia harassing Gooderal? (How do we define “harassing” in this context?)
• How should Goodearl respond given that Saia’s latest outburst was caused by the personnel official reporting to him the confidential meeting he had with Goodearl?
• What are Goodearl’s options at this point? Are any of the strategies for responsible dissent we have studied so far relevant or of use?

Decision point six

Decision point six

• Margaret Goodearl and Ruth Ibarra have made several attempts to get their supervisors to respond to the problem of skipping the environmental tests. The general response has been to shoot the messenger rather than respond to the message. Both Goodearl and Ibarra have been branded trouble makers and told to mind their own business. They have been threatened with dismissal if they persist.
• So they have decided to blow the whistle, having exhausted all the other options. They initiated contact with officials in the U.S. government’s Office of the Inspector General. These officials are interested but have told Goodearl and Ibarra that they need to document their case.
• One day they find two hybrids (chips that combine two different kinds of semiconductor devices on a common substrate) on LaRue’s desk. These chips which are destined for an air-to-air missile have failed the leak test. It is obvious that LaRue plans on passing them without further testing during the evening shift after Goodearl has gone home. Goodearl and Ibarra discuss whether this presents a good opportunity to document their case for the Office of the Inspector General.

Dialogue

• Construct an imaginary conversation between Goodearl and Ibarra where they discuss different strategies for documenting their concerns to the Office of the Inspector General?
• Have them consider the following:
• By looking for documented evidence against their employer, have Goodearl and Ibarra violated their duties of trust and confidentiality?
• Some argue that before blowing the whistle, an employee should exhaust internal channels. Have Goodearl and Ibarra discuss whether they can do anything more inside Hughes before taking evidence outside