Business Law Ethics - Utilitarianism, Kantian and Virtue Ethics - Case Study Example

Business Law Ethics - Utilitarianism, Kantian and Virtue Ethics Introduction The society has the power to bestow or retrieve power form the business based on its activities. Ethical principles are governed by the ethical theories which stipulate the business social status. The ethical theories include the Utilitarianism, Kantian ethics, and Virtue ethics. The ethical theories stipulate the ethical guidelines the business should follow in meeting and maintaining the society’s expectations. Utilitarianism Under this theory, the moral action is the one which results to the optimum happiness for all the parties’ concerned (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Employees In case the restaurant is closed, the staffs would resign due to lack of income to sustain their vital needs. Most of Ted’s employees are significantly depended on the restaurant. The waiters are university students who need to pay their university bills; Mike the chef is the sole bread winner of his family who fends for his young family. (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Customers If the business is closed due to its bad hygiene, the customers may shun from the restaurant even after being reopened. The loyal customers might feel cheated and disappointed due to the unhygienic food they have frequently been served (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Community The closure of the business will affect the surrounding community due to its bad reputation. The community provides the business with labor and other social values like goodwill, which when broken would be so hard to replace (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Government By the restaurant being closed, the local government may lose its periodical levies due to lack of operation of the restaurant. The government depends on fiscal policies like taxes to implement its strategic and short term objectives (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Conclusion Ted should remit the $500 bribe in order to maintain the happiness of his key stakeholders to avoid future problems. The stakeholders would greatly suffer socially and financially in case Ted refuses to part with the amount. (Hoffman, Frederick & Schwartz, 2014). Kantian Ethics In Kant theory, actions should be governed by the accepted principles of Maxims. Universal acceptability will not conform to Ted’s issuance of the bribe due to its negative perception globally. In terms of respect, Ted respects the well being of his employees and that’s he should pay to safeguard their future (Brenkert & Beauchamp, 2010). Conclusion When formulating a maxim against bribery and later testing it against the categorical imperative, two results are realized. The first maxim fails in Universal acceptability because bribery is an economic crime worldwide. The second maxim against respect conforms to the categorical imperative; this is due to Ted’s respect to his key stakeholders. Ted should remit the bribe because the action has a good benefit to his stakeholders who will suffer in case he fails to pay (Brenkert & Beauchamp, 2010). Virtue Ethics According to Aristotle, Ted is morally right in giving the bribe to protect the welfare of others. Ted uses the money virtue of giving out $500 dollars in order to protect $3000 that he can lose in a week after its closure. Contrary, the vice would be for a spendthrift person to spend the whole $3000 on bribery to please the health worker (Wicks, 2010). Conclusion The virtue theory evaluates Ted’s personality rather than the bribery itself. Ted giving out of the bribe will be to maintain the well being of his stakeholders and his business, which may suffer greatly if he does not (Wicks, 2010). Overall Recommendation In case Ted gives out the bribe, Utilitarian theory will be adapted because Ted has the sole intention of providing the best outcome to his stakeholders. Both the Kant and Virtue theories ignore the consequences of the people affected, which should be the basis on any business decision (Bredeson, 2012). B) Introduction During the examination period, myself and also majority of the students are usually faced with anxiety. I had a best friend whom we shared a lot, though she deferred schooling due to unknown reasons to me. At one particular end of semester’s examinations, she was so worried that she had hardly read. She adamantly told me that she was going to engage in exam cheating which was pretty risky. Being her first time to use the ‘hand-written leakage’, she was intensely afraid during the examination session. Due to her nervousness, the ‘hand-written leakage’ fell under the next student’s chair which I witnessed. As the supervisor was making his rounds, he happened to spot the leakage which he generalized belonged to that innocent girl. I obviously knew it belonged to my best friend, but I was in a dilemma of whether to save the innocent girl or my best friend. Reasoning and Action Taken I did not save the girl because she was new to me. I chose to keep silent to save my best friend because we had been close friends from the past while i had met the girl that particular day. Conclusion According to Utilitarian theory, I would change the decision in order to maintain the happiness of both the innocent girl and my best friend. I would have prohibited my best friend from engaging in exam cheating in order to prevent resultant the negative outcomes (Shaw, 2011).  C) Introduction To be the company that provides top notch skin beauty products for top notch skin hygiene across the globe (Shaw, 2011).  The Vision The company’s vision adopts the long run self interest where it highlights the future expectation of the business activities. The vision illustrates that the company intends to be a global leader in the provision of cosmetic products. The global leadership role is significantly important in realizing the global increase in sales and the subsequent economies of scale. The global leadership role assists the business in expansion of its cosmetic market world wide. Predominance in the cosmetic industry prevents other rival firms from entering in the company’s markets. The rival companies would face stiff competition when adapting to the company’s preoccupied markets. The cosmetic industry is highly flooded and precise global objectives need to be placed. The global objectives assist the company to be relevant in the future to avoid being redundant in the future. The vision also recognizes that prevention is better than cure; consumers should purchase quality beauty products so as to avoid future complications. Cosmetics can pose a high risk to the users’ skins which can highly damage the company’s reputation in the long run. The society expects the businesses to act morally because they have the moral obligation to. The dangerous ingredient in the cosmetics can bring adverse effects which can in turn lead to illnesses and legal issues. The dangerous ingredient leads to cancer which forms a complicated process in treating it. The disease requires periodic checkups which is clearly expensive in the long run. The company can also face legal issues due to lack of ethical prevention values. (Davis,1973). Conclusion Removal of the harmful ingredient and replacing it with another one and thereafter increasing the price, is the best option for maintaining the company’s image. The company must have accountability in its actions so as promote its reputation. The company’s profits would also be maintained through the increase in price in meeting the stakeholders’ interests (Davis, 1973). References Hoffman, W. M., Frederick, R. & Schwartz, M. S. (2014). Business ethics: Readings and cases in corporate morality. Davis, K. (1973). The Case for and against Business Assumption of Social Responsibilities. 16, 2: 312-322. Brenkert, G. G. & Beauchamp, T. L. (2010). The Oxford handbook of business ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Wicks, A. C. (2010). Business ethics: A managerial approach. Boston: Prentice Hall. Bredeson, D. (2012). Applied business ethics. Mason, Ohio: South-Western. Shaw, W. H. (2011). Business ethics. Belmont, Calif: Wadsworth. Read More