Emerging Business Ethics Issues Flashcards
An Ethical Issue is a
Is a problem, situation, or opportunity that requires an individual or group to choose among actions.
Three traits to solve ethical issues
Integrity
Honesty
Fairness
Most common types of misconduct
Misuse of company time Abusive behavior Lying to employees Company recourse abuse Violating company Internet use policies
Misuse of Company Resources
The leading form of observed misconduct
- can range form unauthorized use of equipment and computers to embezzling company funds.
Abusive or Intimidating behavior
- can be physical threats, false accusations. profanity, insults, harshness, ignoring someone, or unreasonableness.
Lying
- Joking without malice
- Commission lying
- Omission lying
Bribery
- Active bribery
- Passive bribery (offense committed by officials)
- Facilitation payments (payments that allow for faster and smoother business activity)
Corruption
It has long been illegal to bribe officials in Canada
Hacking
Stealing company or employees information
- System hacking (with company accounts, form the inside)
- Remote hacking ( hacking through a different location)
- physical hacking (physically going in to a building and stealing information)
Discrimination
Is illegal- intentional or unintentional discrimination based on race, gender, age, religion
Sexual Harassment
A repeated, unwanted behavior of sexual nature perpetrated upon an individual by another.
Fraud
Any purposful communication that deceives, manipulates, or conceals facts in order to create a false impression.
Accounting fraud/ Financial misconduct
-Misrepresentation of company’s financial reports
-Dramatic changes in accounting field
-Increased competition and pressures to perform can create opportunities for misconduct
-Accounts should abide by a strict code of ethics
Marketing Fraud
The process of dishonesty creating, distributing, promoting, and pricing products
- Puffery
- Implied falsity
- Literally false
Insider Trading
Two types
- legal insider trading: involves legally buying and selling stock in an insiders own company, but not all the time
- Illegal insider trading: The buying or selling of stock by insiders who possess material that is not public
Intellectual Property Rights and Privacy
Involve the legal protection of intellectual properties
- Books, movies, software
Many issues in the business world
- Employee use if technology
- Consumer privacy
- Can be challenging for businesses today to meet the needs of consumers while protecting privacy
Three dimensions of institutionalization
Voluntary practices
Core practices
Mandated boundaries
Types of Law
Types of legal systems:
Common Law
Civil Law
Theocratic Law
Legislation in Canada
- The charter of Rights and Freedoms
- the Canadian Human Rights Act
- Employment Standards Legislation
- Employment Equity Act
- Official Languages Act
- Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act
Mandated Requirement for Legal Compliance
Laws establish the basic ground rules for responsible business activities
Voluntary Responsibilities
- Cause-related marketing: Ties an organizations product(s) to a social concern through a marketing program.
- Strategic philanthropy: The synergistic and mutually beneficial use of core competencies and resources to deal wit stakeholders, benefit the company and society.
Institutionalization in Buiness Ethics
Involves embedding values, norms, and artifacts in organizations, industries, and society
- Failure to understand highly appropriate core practices provides the opportunity for unethical conduct
- Institutionalization of business ethics has advanced rapidly in past 20 years
