SINGAPORE (May 25): While working for an ethical organisation is an imperative for some, Singapore’s employees appear to be more apathetic towards the subject than others in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.
According to the latest EY Asia-Pacific (APAC) Fraud Survey 2017, only 33% in Singapore say they would accept a lower salary if it meant working for an ethical employer – which is significantly lower than the APAC average of 44%.
Entitled Economic uncertainty/Unethical conduct: How should over-burdened compliance functions respond?, this year’s study surveyed 1,698 employees from large businesses in 14 APAC territories, including 105 from Singapore.
Based on the results, it appears the city state’s millennial employees (aged 25-34 years old) are also more likely than any other age group to exhibit unethical behaviour in their careers, or remain indifferent towards the ethical track record of the companies they are in.
Only 69% of millennials surveyed in Singapore say they would look for a new job if their organisation was involved in a major fraud, bribery or corruption case, versus 83% of millennials across APAC.
On the flip side, 45% of Singapore’s millennials surveyed say they are prepared to offer cash payments in order to win or retain business, versus 21% for all other age groups (APAC: 38% versus 28%).
39% of the country’s millennials, versus 34% for other age groups, say they are willing to extend their monthly reporting periods for the sake of meeting financial targets (APAC: 42% versus 31%).
Such responses from this particular demographic could, however, stem from a lack of understanding what constitutes unethical behaviour – as millennials largely responded in line with all other age groups that this was not justified to meeting financial targets when provided with more clear-cut choices such as “ignoring compliance controls”, says EY.
“This is a wake-up call for businesses to revisit their compliance programs, invest more in education and lead by example,” says Belinda Tan, partner, fraud investigation & dispute services, Ernst & Young Advisory.
“On the one hand, millennials feel it is okay to behave unethically in some situations. Yet on the other hand, they take a strong stand against working for an unethical business. This discrepancy needs to be addressed early and quickly to help ensure businesses hire and retain the best young talent, who will form their future workforce,” she explains.
Reuben Khoo, EY Asean leader, fraud investigation & dispute services, Ernst & Young Advisory, adds: “Corporates need to simplify their compliance protocols to help employees to follow them. Else, employee frustration with discrepancies and inconsistencies in how compliance programs are executed can create major stumbling blocks to managing effective compliance programs and bringing fraud, bribery and corruption under control.”