BU111 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: List Of Countries' Copyright Lengths, Corporate Social Responsibility, Whole Foods Market
Friday, November 28, 2014
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Social Context
Ethics in the Workplace
- ethics are individual standards or moral values regarding what is right, wrong, good, bad
- ethical behaviour is behaviour that conforms to individual beliefs and social norms about what
is right and good
- unethical behaviour is behaviour that individual beliefs and social norms would define as
wrong and bad
- business ethics refers to ethical or unethical behaviours by managers or employees
MANAGERIAL ETHICS
- the standards of behaviour that guide individual managers in their work
- behaviour towards employees: legal guidelines state that hiring and firing decisions should
be based solely on the ability to perform a job
- no discrimination
- wages and working conditions —> ex. paying someone less b/c you know they cant afford
to quit regardless
- behaviour towards the organization: a conflict of interest occurs when an activity benefits
an employee at the expense of the employer
- ex. shoe buyer accepts a free vacation from shoe manufacturer. Shoe manufacturer then
asks the buyer to increase the size of an order, and the buyer may feel obligated
- companies have policies that forbid buyers from accepting gifts from suppliers
- common problems include behaviour such as stealing supplies, padding expense
accounts, and using a business phone to use personal long distance calls
- behaviour toward other economic agents: difficulties arise because business practices
vary globally
- ex. in some countries, bribes are a normal part of business, in Canada, it is unethical/illegal
- disputes arise between a company, its employees, stockholders, customers, competitors,
suppliers, unions, etc
ASSESSING ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR
- determine whether a particular action is ethical by:
- 1) gather the relevant factual information
- 2) determine the most appropriate moral values
- 3) make an ethical judgement based on the rightness or wrongness of the proposed activity
or policy
ENCOURAGING ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR IN ORGANIZATIONS
- the factors that generally cause unethical behaviour are:
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BU111 Full Course Notes
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Document Summary
Ethics are individual standards or moral values regarding what is right, wrong, good, bad. Ethical behaviour is behaviour that conforms to individual beliefs and social norms about what is right and good. Unethical behaviour is behaviour that individual beliefs and social norms would define as wrong and bad. Business ethics refers to ethical or unethical behaviours by managers or employees. The standards of behaviour that guide individual managers in their work. Behaviour towards employees: legal guidelines state that hiring and firing decisions should be based solely on the ability to perform a job. Wages and working conditions > ex. paying someone less b/c you know they cant afford to quit regardless. Behaviour towards the organization: a conflict of interest occurs when an activity benefits an employee at the expense of the employer. Ex. shoe buyer accepts a free vacation from shoe manufacturer.
