Ethi-call - three decades helping thousands of professionals and individuals make difficult decisions

When it was first set up in the early 1990s by Ethics Centre founder Simon Longstaff and executive director Hugh Mackay, they manned the phones and offered face-to-face advice to those facing ethical dilemmas themselves.

Nowadays a rota of some 20 volunteers, who are trained counsellors, help both business professionals and individuals in need of help and guidance.

Funding and the fact it Ethi-call is a volunteer-run service means the sessions are only available by phone.

But Cris says it is an absolute privilege to be a volunteer counsellor, especially when hearing the sense of relief on the other end of the call.

“It's an incredible privilege to listen to people,” said Cris.

“You really get a sense of relief on the other end of the phone.

“You get to make a real difference and that does feel quite special.”

But who are the users of the service?

Cris says it’s roughly split between 65% personal, 25% professional with the balance coming from community issues.  

It's hard to identify specific areas where the calls are coming from, according to Cris. But the problems they are facing can overlap from professional to personal and that can take over someone’s whole life, she says.

Cries for help can come from those involved in making end-of-life decisions or those having workplace issues, deciding to make a complaint or blow the whistle.

“There might be somebody who sits on a board, for example, and it's come to light that one of the other members of the board is involved in an area that goes against the values of the organisation. They’re a valued colleague so what do you do?” Cris explains.

“But it's really important to understand that the service does not provide solutions, we provide no advice.”

In situations that are not of an ethical nature the service can help clients, referring them to other resources.

“But for those true ethical dilemmas, it's about helping the caller, or the client get a better understanding of their own values and where their priorities lie,” Cris explained.

“What is their ethical default? Are they looking for an outcome? Is it someone's rights that they're concerned about?

“It's really teasing out those kinds of ethical aspects of good decision making. You're empowering them to make those their own decisions.”

Not surprisingly, there were huge spikes during COVID when Ethi-call struggled to cope. Currently there is a one to two-week wait list.

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