How common is unethical behavior at companies and how should I deal with it?

[Anonymous]

I have worked at 2 companies and I keep seeing unethical behavior.

First one was for a large "well respected" German Semiconductor company. I had a Engineering Mentor falsify data (test a good part and use that as data for a bad part submitted by the customer). I had a Manager who admitted to insider training. Both these people kept their jobs while I got laid off. I did not report it out of fear of repercussions.

At my current employer, my Manager lied to me during the interview process. He said I would learn a tool but that never happened in ~3 years because that tool was broken / not calibrated. Former coworker lied about his credentials which was an important factor in me accepting the position (lied about his Seniority at previous employer so I thought he had more experience than he actually had...), and when I confronted him later, he tried to gaslight me. One coworker admitted to cheating on Senior EE project. Also, we were told to sign documents for training even though we did not get properly trained, I think for purpose of audits...

I want to quit my job, but I also don't want to become homeless...

[Oliverlogan263]

Damn dude, that's really messed up what's been going on at your jobs. No wonder you're so fed up. Unethical stuff definitely seems pretty common unfortunately, especially at big companies that just care about money.

If it were me, I'd start looking for a new gig ASAP somewhere else that seems more on the up and up. Maybe even somewhere smaller where it's not such a huge operation. No point in sticking around places that are gonna stress you out with all the shady stuff.

As for reporting it, that can be tricky. Might not want to cause trouble if you still need the paycheck. But maybe you could leave an anonymous tip to like the Better Business Bureau or something, just to let them know to check it out.

Otherwise I'd just focus on yourself, keep your head down at this job till you find a new one, don't get involved in any of their nonsense. And good for you for not going along with falsifying data and stuff, that shows you got integrity. Better opportunities will come, don't lose hope man!

[jahaims]

More common than not. You either have to get stepped on or play dirty as well.

[Anonymous]

I’m seeing some unethical behavior at my current job. I’m going to start looking for another job.