JOSH COMBS
MORGAN EWING
Honesty
Objectivity
Fairness
Responsibility
DEFINITION:
“The applied ethics discipline that
addresses the moral features of
commercial activity.” -Stanford Encyclopedia of
Philosophy
When asked to created a CLEAR and
INFALLIABLE Definition,
John Ruggie came up with the following fundamental factor :
“Corporations have a responsibility to respect
human rights in their operations whether or not
compelled to do so by law.”
RELEVANCY IN BUSINESS:
Companies are now expected to define clear, bold guidelines for
employees to be aware of their ETHICAL and MORAL
obligations to the company and themselves.
The Primary Core Values of businesses are evolving:
SOLEY PROFITS
CREATING VALUE FOR CUSTOMERS,
EMPLOYEES, AND SHAREHOLDERS.
(Freeman)
MORGAN’S EXAMPLE
JOSH’S EXAMPLE
ISSUES WITH ETHICS TODAY:
-
Glass Ceiling, Discrimination, SOCIAL AND ENVIRONMENT
OBLIGATIONS
-
GFI Bankers, a Mortgage Company of NY, NJ, CT, PA, and FL is paying a 3.5
MILLIONdollar settlement against allegations of discrimination.
- Charging much higher interest rate on loans to non-white Americans, with similar
financial backgrounds.
- Included a fine of 55,00, the maximum under the federal Fair Housing Act.
- GFI was not the first to encounter this problem, Wells Fargo just settled a $175
million agreement, as well as other large lenders.
- (BUTNER)
WHAT IS BEING DONE TO EMBRACE BUSINESS
ETHICS?
Embracing business ethics in the form of three basic principles which keep work
“consistent with moral goodness:”
•
The Dignity Principle, which holds that work should not diminish the dignity of the
individual engaged in work or those affected by it
•
The Service Principle, which recognizes that work should be done in service to the
greater good
•
The Accountability Principle, which states that business needs to be conducted in
a way that respects both the autonomy and rights of the individual and the
authority and values of the institution, and in so doing, preserve the integrity of
both.
Corporate Capitalism = Strong Faith in Business Ethics
EMBRACING BUSINESS ETHICS….
Although these three principles are not legally binding, many companies put them to use
daily.
Ethisphere Institute’s 2012 list of World’s Most Ethical Companies
Some of which include:
- Ford Motor Company (USA)
- eBay Inc. (USA)
- L’OREAL (FRANCE)
-Accenture (IRELAND)
WORKS CITED
Marcoux, Alexei, "Business Ethics", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2008 Edition), Edward N.
Zalta (ed.), URL = <http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2008/entries/ethics-business/>.
Garrison, Ray; Noreen, Eric; Brewer, Peter; “The Importance of Ethics In Business” , Managerial Accounting
(12th Edition, 2008), http://highered.mcgrawhill.com/sites/0073526703/student_view0/ebook/chapter1/chbody1/the_importance_of_ethics_in_business.htm
l
Cragg, Wesley, (2012) Ethics, Enlightened Self-Interest, and the Corporate Responsibility to Respect Human
Rights: A Critical Look at the Justificatory Foundations of the UN Framework. Business Ethics Quarterly, 22:1.
Retrieved from:
http://secure.pdcnet.org/8525737F005803FF/file/0BE957928BA331468525795000481390/$FILE/beq_2012_0022_
0001_0015_0042.pdf
Buttner, Russ. "$3.5 Million Settlement in Mortgage Bias Case." New York Times. N.p., 08 Aug 2012. Web. 25
Sep 2012. <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/29/nyregion/gfi-to-pay-3-5-million-to-settle-mortgage-biascase.html>.
Freeman, Edward. "Environment, Ethics and Business." Bridgepaper. Business Roundtable Institute for
corporate Ethics, 2008. Web. 25 Sep 2012. <http://www.corporate-ethics.org/pdf/environment_ethics.pdf>.
Faith and Corporate Capitalism." Bentley Ideas Impact for Business and Beyond. Bently University , n.d. Web.
2 Oct 2012.