Ubers Unethical Practices in the Transport Industry - Case Study Example

Introduction There are several current issues in business ethics that affect the wellbeing s in today’s business world. Uber as one of the challenged individuals clearly sheds light on the most important aspect of business issues that aimed at protecting customer’s privacy and exercising much regard to their troubles. Ethical business issues Uber’s arguments aspects was based car sharing issues that had raised a lot privacy issues to customers and more so causing a disturbing threat to the business ethical issues such as fundamental issues which ensures that companies face trust and integrity issues in ethics to ensure there enough trust between the company and the customers (Brenkert, 69). Such value of trust and integrity ensures that the customer privacy is maintained and the relationship between the two leads to success of the company. The decision-making issues of business ethics can also determine customer privacy. Decision making issue helps in identifying possible problems that customer face and coming up with ethical courses and solution to the problem. It’s always regarded that ethical decision making process should be aimed at protecting the workers and most importantly the customers rights by ensuring that business operations are carried out in a fair and just way(Brenkert, 80). These results to protection of the common good and ensuring values of customers and employees are safe guarded. Compliance and governance business issue is also another aspects of business issue that ensure that companies comply to business law which are mostly aimed at safe guarding the customers privacy. These policies in these business companies ensure that no one directs the employ to break the law or do the opposite of the companies policies, procedure and values as in the case of car sharing argument of the of the Uber’s troubles to customer privacy. Uber engaged in several business practices that were regarded to be unethical. Senator Franksen accused the Uber’s company as the troubling and most disregarding company for the consumer privacy. One of the Uber’s practices was on multi-tasking drivers ,Uber identified the opportunity and came up with an invention of using a mobile application to drivers to enable them identify the customer who needed a ride. The practice was regarded dangerous and a threat to business ethics on the profession of driving. The practice posed customer to threat of accident occurrence as the task of checking the device in the mobile at the same time driving increased chances of accidents (Gavai, 109). Safety of the passengers was also another practice of Uber’s company; most of his workers were constantly accused of defiling passengers sexually. This acts showed that the Ubers Company was not in a position of shaping his company by the law and regulation of that company. Besides this was most disregarded act of the company that infringed the customers rights to protection and privacy. In different campaigns that Uber organized, he addressed on allowing the cab drivers access to riders, drivers, and sensitive geological data. This showed an extent to which he disregarded the customer’s privacy concerns of their whereabouts. His company policy never seemed to address much of the customer’s concern (Gavai, 206). Besides his policy, privacy mentioned the statement of sharing personal information of the customers with relatives and affiliates for some internal reasons. Uber also took advantage of high demand from customers to implement a policy that was aimed at increasing charges rates. This practice surge pricing in situation of sandy hurricanes resulted to a number of drivers moving back to the roads, however the policy never worked as he expected due back clash from customers. Uber faced many critiques from this act. The practice of taking advantage of certain situation to exploit customers was unethical as far as business ethics issue is concerned. Ethical theories Ethical practices that Uber practiced were immoral and unethical to 6the current business codes and ethics. Immanuel’s theory of ethics is based on good categorical imperatives, which determine the moral laws of every individual on what one should do or should not do (Gavai, 105). Kant’s theory explains that morality can only work according to categorical imperatives through admirable motives. Therefore the society should ensure that their act in their professions do not bar other groups from participating in relation to moral law. Kant theory of ethics explain overall duty and moral respect for the law enforced by the either the government or by the institutions themselves to shun unethical acts of most industries that affect consumers privacy .This relates to Uber’s transport industries that do not comply to such laws as they do the opposite of what is required of them. For instance, Uber’s company do violates the various rights of the costumers like privacy concerns of individual, women rights violation of sexual assaults. Therefore, Kant’s explain the need of sense motivation as key to sense of duty and respect to the law. Ethical practices in Uber Company’s policy also do not conform to human rights of freedom. They infringe on rights of costumers’ protection in terms of sharing of personal information with others and violating women rights through sexual assaults. Kant explains the human freedom as moral issue to the truth for the situation of free will (Hartman, 293). Therefore, the practice of Uber that violates and disregard customer’s right is immoral and unethical as far as the Kant’s theory of ethics is concerned. Kant also explains the formula of universal law of nature to best understand our action whether it is moral or immoral. Morality of every individual works according to categorical imperative as Kant explains (Paliwal, 56). It is therefore the need of any individual to act responsibly and treat others as human beings in the best way possible and not to be self-centered. This is an example of Uber’s practices that are self centered and driven by their self-interest rather than their morals of duty. This acts show an extent of immorality act of such people such as Uber. Most Uber’s practices in business are considered unethical and immoral. However the defender of these unethical acts may rise to defend himself or herself against the critique by considering ethical principles of being loyal to the company, maintaining commitment of excellence to the company and having unquestionable integrity to the company and protecting the reputation and moral of the company and its employees. Most importantly, the defender may base his or her argument on the principle of promise keeping by trusting ethical executives to make possible attempts to fulfill their spirit of their promises and commitments (Paliwal, 79). The executives ensures that they do not interpret agreement in most diligent manner in order create excuse for avoiding their commitments. Besides practices could be seen as a way of improving the transport company by coming up with new invention that could improve the working condition of the employees and increase transport services to customers. It could also be argued that Uber’s practice was away of fighting for the rights of workers in the transport sector by providing employment opportunities as indicate that he tapped teachers and war veterans as drivers. This could be seen as way of reducing crimes and possible unemployment crisis. Recommendation Uber’s practices in transport industry are unethical and defile the code of ethics in business, it therefore recommendable that Uber should ensure that he expands the companies’ privacy concern to enhance training, accountability of employees according to internal review of company’s commission. To enhance privacy practices there should be strict regulation on how workers of car booking companies access information, ensure mandatory training on jobs that deal with data privacy, do away with accounts that are inactive and adopt whistle blowers secure lines to address customers complaints. The company should also uphold intense transparency as they make ways of formalizing their privacy program. They should ensure that they protect personal information of the riders so that customers may feel secure with their issues. Works cited Brenkert, George G. Marketing Ethics. Malden (MA): Blackwell, 2008. Print. Gavai, A. K. Business Ethics. Mumbai [India]: Himalaya Pub. House, 2010. Print. Hartman, Laura Pincus. Perspectives in Business Ethics. Boston: McGraw-Hill Irwin, 2002. Print. Paliwal, Manisha. Business Ethics. New Delhi: New Age International, 2006. Print. Read More