FOREIGN ASSIGNMENT
I. History, circumstances, possible issues.
Sara Strong was part of a multinational organization in banking. She was well qualified for the position and rose within the ranks steadily and rightfully so. However, she noticed that whenever she was given an assignment in South America, she was accompanied by a male colleague. Even more, when handling any deals in Mexico, her colleague was the one who had the final word on the deals, even though she had done most of the work concerning the deals. When she was posted in Mexico full time, being preferred over male colleagues even though she was well able to handle the work and the clients continued. She found this very frustrating and it was easy to see that she could be passed up for promotion as a result of this. Whenever she would bring the issue up with her superiors, they would politely tell her that it is mostly done in order to keep the clients happy, but that she should not take it personally. For Sara, it was clear that she was being undermined and being discriminated against because she was female. Her bosses were taking advantage of the fact that Mexico did not quite take to the idea of a woman holding a prominent position in the banking industry. Even though she was told that the attitudes of Mexicans could not be changed overnight, there was no effort on the part of the bosses to try and ‘educate’ Mexicans to accept that a woman can be so much more than a sex symbol.

The Ethical Model:
II. Absolutes.
It is unethical to objectify women in a ‘sexy’ manner in the office in order to please customers. To deliberately refer to them in a demeaning manner that is sexist is very unprofessional and should not be condoned. William Vitam was also wrong in continually allowing customers to bypass her and were going to him, when he knew that she could handle the work. If he started to explain to customers that Sara was well capable of handling their transactions, with time, they would have been able to at least start to change they think concerning women in leadership.

III. Legal
It is unfortunate that such practices were condoned in Mexico and was considered a norm for the people. However, for Sara to be bypassed for a promotion because she female was against company policy, being an American company. However, should Sara continue to feel like she cannot work under such conditions, she should let it be known to her boss. If the worst comes to the worst then she should consider returning to America where she would not be discriminated against in such matters.

IV. Moral Philosophies
A. Teleological. This could end badly unless addressed. Sara will continue to feel frustrated and ineffective at her job. The more she feels like this, the more it will affect her performance and her long term career goals. The office in Mexico is likely to lose a valuable employee. In the future women may be reluctant to come to work at the office in Mexico. These results will definitely work against the office.

B. Utilitarian. The bank in Mexico may suffer as a result. It does not give women the opportunity to advance under such conditions. Any female employee who has spent the time to study will not want to be subjected to such condescension at work.

C. Egoistic. If Sara continues to get aggressive, it is going to work against her at work and her performance reviews will reflect such. She therefore, needs to determine whether continuing to work there would serve her best interests or whether she should return to the USA and pursue a different avenue.

D. Deontological. It is the duty of the management to clearly explain to Sara whether the rules will be followed in that they as a bank will actually start to want to treat women in such a way that gives them an opportunity to move forward. It is also Sara’s duty to provide the bank with the best service possible.

E. Public Relations. In the long run, this would definitely hurt the bank. Once women realize that the bank does not give a fair chance to women, they will likely be shunned mostly by women themselves. Especially when it occurs to a lot of people that the women are being objectified in the work place.

F. Reasonable Person Test. In this case, should Vitam fail to implement the gradual handing over of clients to Sara, then, Sara should consider moving back to the USA where she can advance her goals. Otherwise, if she waits too long, then she will ruin her professional reputation at work as a result.

V. Conclusions
In the 21st century it should be a taboo for an institution such as a bank to still want to objectify women in the work place. Since Sara has worked hard to obtain her Masters, she should consider being in a place where she can use her skills and knowledge effectively. If Mexico is not the place, then she should be willing to make the hard choice to leave.