As a contractor or an employee, you do have the ability to do what you think is right despite what your employer says they want.
But only to a point. People resist perceived change. You can improve the back-end all you want, as long as you don't make unexpected changes to the front-end. This includes something as simple as a clarifying pop-up, or a speed increase of a procedure.
And being fired isn’t just a risk you should be willing to take, it’s the required course of action here. With any luck you could get a superior in trouble by going above their heads or reporting to a relevant authority.
Doing things that are immoral/dangerous/stupid because you need to eat is not an excuse.
That's a rather naive view of the work environment. There's a myriad of reasons why it is hierarchical of which not the smallest one is so people down who have a limited field of vision and expertise do not jump into decision making above their pay grade. Doing it once may be acceptable but the issue of course is that one is unlikely to know when is the time do that stick the neck out. Doing it multiple times pretty much guarantees that one would find out that he or she is imminently replaceable.
But only to a point. People resist perceived change. You can improve the back-end all you want, as long as you don't make unexpected changes to the front-end. This includes something as simple as a clarifying pop-up, or a speed increase of a procedure.