G.T. Research Associates, as a small business, is required to comply to
all federal and state labor laws which protect the rights of employees
and ensure fair labor practices. Although G.T. Associates may not pay
high wages or offer benefits to its employees, it must follow the
regulations related to withholding, unemployment compensation,
workmen's comp., etc. As long as G.T. Associates advertises for these
positions and students apply on other own volition, there are no
ethical violations and it cannot be argued that G.T. Associates is
"exploiting" the students. On the other hand, if the adjunct professor
who owns and operates G.T. Associates required the students to conduct
interviewing as part of their course grade (even if they were paid),
this would be an ethical violation since the students would have felt
"coerced."
As for the quality of the employment pool, G.T. Associates should have
made it clear that the employment pool consisted of students who have
already had some research training. It is still the responsibility of
G.T. Associates to guarantee the quality of the interviewers;
therefore, any additional training should be provided prior to
beginning the work. If G.T. Associates does not provide this training
and the performance of the students is poor, G.T. Associates will pay
the price in the long run. The quality of the final product is the
responsibility of G.T. Associates, not the individual students hired to
conduct the interviews. Therefore, if the product is not up to
standards, it will be difficult for G.T. Associates to grow and
prosper.