Ch 4- International Business Ethics

Question 1

Ethics and Employment Practices

Answer 1

Issues: Child labour, safe work conditions, safety, and wages
Questions: what standards should be applied?

Question 2

Human Rights

Answer 2

Issue: Freedom of association, speech,
assembly, movement, and freedom from political
repression

Question 3

Ethics and Environmental Pollution

Mining and logging in developing countries- abuses

Answer 3

Issue: Impact on the environment, health and
livelihood of residents, cultural impact
Question: Should a multinational corporation
follow local standards in a developing nation if
doing so does not break any laws in the host
nation? What standards apply?

Question 4

Ethics and Corruption

Answer 4

Issues: Gift giving, Bribery, Grease payments
Question: Business practices vary significantly among
countries.
* Canada’s Bill S-21, The Corruption of Foreign Public
Officials Act attempts to address the issue of bribery

Question 5

Social responsibility

Answer 5

refers to the idea that business people should take the social
benefits into account when taking business
decisions, and that there should be a belief in
decisions that have both good economic and good
social benefits.

Question 6

What is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?

Answer 6

Is a business model that helps a company be socially accountable
—to itself, its stakeholders, and the public.

Question 7

CSR Moral Obligations: 4 Stances

Answer 7

Obstuctionist, Defensive, accomodative, proactive

Question 8

what is Obstructionist Stance:CSR Moral Obligations

Answer 8

• A company makes it difficult for customers or others raise
  concerns regarding ethical situations

Question 9

CSR Moral Obligations: Defensive Stance

Answer 9

• When companies take the position ‘it wasn’t their fault’ or
  ‘nothing can be done’

Question 10

CSR Moral Obligations: Accommodative Stance

Answer 10

• When a company exceeds customers expectations

Question 11

CSR Moral Obligations: Proactive Stance

Answer 11

• When companies reach out to stakeholders in advance to
  let them know something has happened

Question 12

The Root causes of Unethical Behavior: Factors- know 3

Answer 12

The Roots of Unethical Behavior:
1. Personal ethics
2. Decision making processes
3. Organizational culture
4. Unrealistic Performance Expectations
5. Leadership
6. Societal Culture

Question 13

Organizational Culture

Answer 13

Organizational culture (the values and standards
that are shared among employees of an
organization) that does not stress business
ethics.

Question 14

What would be classified as a Straw Men Approaches To Business Ethics

Answer 14

an argument that will not stand up to scrutiny
– a false argument they offer inappropriate guidelines for ethical decision making

Question 15

What is the Friedman Doctrine approach?
Unethical

Answer 15

The sole responsibility of business is to maximize profits for
its owners and shareholders as long as it is operating within
the rules of the law
* There are no societal obligations- “if its legal its ethical thinking” stay within the law

Question 16

Cultural relativism
Unethical

Answer 16

“When in Rome, do as the romans”- Grease payments- Firms should adopt the ethics of the cultures in which they operate.

Question 17

Righteous moralist
Unethical

Answer 17

a company should maintain its home country’s ethics
wherever it operates as its ethics are superior
* Imposes home country standards on those in other countries
* “This is how we do things”
* Limitations

Question 18

Naïve immoralist
Unethical

Answer 18

• if a manager of a multinational sees that firms from other
  nations are not following ethical norms in a host nation, that
  the manager should not either
• This approach to ethics argues that behavior is ethical
  since everyone else is doing it
  ‘everyone else is doing it….
• Rationalizes unethical behavior