Inauspicious Debut for NY Times Magazine Ethicist Ariel Kaminer

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/magazine/06Ethicist-t.html?ref=theethicist

A business owner agrees to comply with a customer’s request to keep women out of an area of  the building during a religious ceremony to bless the workplace. The Ethicists answers that the employer “crossed a line” and should ask the female employees to explain why they are upset. Ms. Kaminer should have taken a more direct approach and answered the question head on.

The question, though not explicitly posed, was whether it was ethical to comply with the request. The answer is that it may not be illegal and it may make sense from a financial and business standpoint, but it is clearly morally and ethically wrong to discriminate against and segregate women in the workplace.

If you’re not convinced it’s unethical, analyze the same scenario substituting race for gender. If it’s morally reprehensible to discriminate in the workplace based on race, the same goes for gender.