A month later, Amanda was unceremoniously dismissed. Monkey See, Monkey Do Employees aren't the only ones being deceptive. Many employers condone unethical business practices and use lies to drive productivity or hide their own inadequacies. In fact, in some professions, the willingness and ability to lie has become institutionalized, unspoken criteria for success on the job. Over time, this sense of denial gets perpetuated, eventually becoming the elephant in the middle of the room that everyone just tiptoes around.
Employees tend to mimic the behavior of their leadership models.
So people begin to question why they have to follow certain expectations when the boss doesn't. Often the very rules, policies, and procedures used to inspire ethical behavior in the workplace are responsible for the lack of honesty at work. Managers wear these rules like cloaks of protection for their own duplicity and deceit. These systems are based on a carrot and stick mentality, which creates an unhealthy internal competition. And many times they're working with rules that have stuck around for years, but have no meaning.