CSJT Ethical & Professional Standards 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A coworker asks you to clock them in because they are running 20 minutes late. What is the most ethical response?
- Clock them in to help a colleague in need
- Decline and remind them that falsifying time records violates policy (Correct answer)
- Clock them in but report it to your supervisor later
- Ignore the request without saying anything
Correct answer: Decline and remind them that falsifying time records violates policy
Clocking in for another employee constitutes time fraud and violates workplace ethics policies.
Question 2: During a hiring panel, you recognize an applicant as a personal friend. What should you do?
- Participate but try to be objective
- Advocate for your friend since you know their qualifications
- Disclose the relationship and recuse yourself from the decision (Correct answer)
- Say nothing but score your friend lower to avoid bias accusations
Correct answer: Disclose the relationship and recuse yourself from the decision
Disclosing the conflict and recusing yourself protects the integrity of the hiring process.
Question 3: A supervisor instructs you to backdate an official document to meet a reporting deadline. You should:
- Comply since supervisors have authority over staff
- Backdate it but add a note explaining the true date
- Refuse and report the request to the appropriate ethics office (Correct answer)
- Ask another colleague to do it instead
Correct answer: Refuse and report the request to the appropriate ethics office
Backdating official documents is falsification of records, which is illegal regardless of who orders it.
Question 4: You discover that a colleague has been padding expense reports by small amounts for months. The most appropriate action is to:
- Confront the colleague privately and give them a chance to correct it
- Ignore it since the amounts are minor
- Report it through the proper internal reporting channel (Correct answer)
- Tell other coworkers so they can decide what to do
Correct answer: Report it through the proper internal reporting channel
Ongoing fraud, even in small amounts, must be reported through official channels to uphold accountability.
Question 5: A member of the public offers you a $50 gift card to thank you for processing their application quickly. You should:
- Accept it since it was given after the work was done
- Accept it and report it to your supervisor
- Politely decline and explain that government employees cannot accept gifts (Correct answer)
- Accept it only if the agency's gift threshold allows
Correct answer: Politely decline and explain that government employees cannot accept gifts
Federal and most state civil service rules prohibit employees from accepting gifts from members of the public they serve.
Question 6: You are assigned a project but lack the required expertise to complete it properly. The best course of action is to:
- Complete it to the best of your ability without saying anything
- Delegate it to a junior employee
- Inform your supervisor of the skills gap and request guidance or training (Correct answer)
- Decline the assignment without explanation
Correct answer: Inform your supervisor of the skills gap and request guidance or training
Transparency about competency gaps prevents errors and reflects professional integrity.
Question 7: A colleague from another department shares confidential personnel data with you informally to 'get your opinion.' You should:
- Provide your opinion since it is just an informal conversation
- Remind the colleague that sharing confidential data outside authorized channels is a policy violation (Correct answer)
- Share the information with your own team for broader input
- Accept the information but promise to keep it secret
Correct answer: Remind the colleague that sharing confidential data outside authorized channels is a policy violation
Unauthorized sharing of confidential personnel data violates privacy regulations and agency policy.
CSJT Ethical & Professional Standards 2
A coworker asks you to clock them in because they are running 20 minutes late.
What is the most ethical response?