Governance Regulation and Ethics - Essay Example

?Task The concept of consumer protection and regulations based on relationships with consumers becomes a main obligation of businesses. The corporate social responsibility that applies to this is based on the focus of offering the best protection to consumers as a social obligation while ensuring that there are initiatives and responsibilities taken for consumer protection. In “Civil Action,” there is a question of the governance taken, specifically because the actions of a company don’t offer consumer protection or environmental concerns with the main actions. The questions which are presented are inclusive of relationships with consumers that are put into question and which lead to complexities among those who are interested in offering protection to those in the same area of the consumers. The main conflict which is presented in the film is based on consumer protection, specifically in relation to the environment. This occurs first when the families file a claim about the company putting toxic waste into the environment, specifically which leads to leukemia and other health problems among the consumers. As the story line continues, the problems with health from the waste and lack of environmental concern continue to increase. The issues relate to several problems and questions of what the stand point should be with the company as well as what is required in terms of responsibility and obligation to potential consumers through the environmental concerns that are approached. The concept of relationships with consumers is the first problem which is related to the film. The consumers are unaware of the health problems and there is not disclosure of what is occurring with the environmental concerns or health, leaving each of the individuals susceptible to becoming ill. The right to know is followed by questions of moral responsibility, corporate obligation and the commercial context, all which are violated. The lack of morality is based on the known factors which attribute to the toxic waste and how this will affect those in the region. This is followed by corporate obligations that are not followed, specifically which are inclusive of corporate social responsibility which is ignored with the only focus on production and money that needs to be made within the environment. The commercial context follows this with the advertising of the company becoming negative as well as unfair consumer contracts based on misleading concepts of the rules and regulations being followed within the company (Nelson, 2005: 96). The concept of consumer protection within the business as well as other legalities relate to this impact the business and consumers in several ways with the expectations with the business. In any business, the marketing and advertising, as well as the brand identity, is expected to have a specific perception and attitude about the company. The advertisements, which represent a positive identity with the consumers, are furthered with an understanding that the business acts in specific ways within society. When the context is broken, consumers, stakeholders and others believe that there is a violation of the relationship which has been created. Since this is communicated as a promise from the company, specifically in relation to the strategies and implementation within the company, it causes the relationships to not be protected and leads to false pretenses with the business. The corporate responsibility and consumer protection then intertwine with the understanding that the relationship is built on the corporation having the responsibility to care about the consumer (Werther, Chandler, 2011: 105). The concept of consumer protection and false advertising is followed by other barriers that are often created with consumer relationships. This is related to the stakeholder agreements, investments and other negotiations that have taken places with businesses. Often, these lead to more profits as well as expectations which are taken. If the communication and relationships with others involved in the business holds a specific understanding, then there is not the desire to change these relationships. The cost which occurs is based on the corporation continuing to invest while leading to false advertising, many times because of a faulty system or a lack of strategy to change the products or services while causing the irresponsibility to accumulate because of other relationships with stakeholders and investors. The result is a lack of the correct communication with corporations while responsibility becomes secondary to upholding the relationships with those who are interested in product availability and expectations within the business. The controls of the business then merge beyond the expectations with consumer protection and relationships which should be built (Owens, 2008: 52). There are other types of legislation that are based on consumer protection in relation to the corporations from the Act of 1987. These are based on fair dealings that are required within a corporation as well as expected contracts that make the corporation liable to the consumers that are surrounding the business in a community. The EU Act of 1999 follows this particular contractual agreement with consumers. This states that there are unfair policies which can be fought against with potential consumers and the relationships which are taken toward the corporations. This also follows the FTC policy, which states that there is a direct relationship to consumer protection and which justifies unfairness. This is done if there is injury to consumers and if the injury outweighs the benefits of the product. This is also based on injuries which the consumers could have avoided if there was an understanding of the problems which are associated with the corporation (Nelson, 2005: 99). In the movie, the FTC policy applies, specifically because the health of the consumers is compromised to the point where the products become a secondary benefit. If the consumers were aware of the toxic waste, then it could have been avoided by moving, making the company at fault under the FTC policy and the EU Act (EU, 2005: 1). The changes which would have been presented in the film if these specific policies applied would have been based on completely different outcomes where the consumers were compensated, able to move out of harm from the toxic waste or were able to evaluate and take action against the company that led to the health problems through the toxic waste. Furthermore, the legalities would have been initiated with consumer protection from the viewpoint of offering assistance to the families before considering the monetary benefits of the corporation and how this particular aspect may have been affected. The law and legislation which should have been followed would have changed the amount of protection available through the court system and would have limited the rights of the corporation, as opposed to causing difficulties with the corporation continuing to function in the same manner as before with the policies and expectations for production that did not protect consumer rights (Pridgen, 1996: 15). Even though these particular aspects for consumer protection and regulations can be seen with policies and expectations, the controversy of protection arose because of the nature of business and the expectations that caused the courts to avoid the environmental problems and social responsibility. The main approach which causes the problems is based on the combination of financial problems with the regulations and controls that are needed with businesses. Court and legal systems often implement policies for protection; however, the businesses that are functioning are not allowed to follow the regulations and endeavors which are created, causing negotiations among legal systems and the financial associations which are created. This controls the businesses and other components economically; however, it often does not consider the results which occur with the issues among consumer protection. This contradicting part of the legalities and with businesses becomes one of the main issues with consumer protection and the violation of rights with certain individuals (Rottier, Veron, 2010: 2). The concept of consumer protection is one which is a part of the general understanding of what a corporation should hold as well as what the expectations are among those involved in business. This is first inclusive of the corporate relationships with consumers which demand a specific level of communication, responsibility and promises that are fulfilled with relationships toward consumers. This is furthered with legal protection and acts that are designed to assist those who are in need of protection, ranging from offering knowledge about the corporation to warning about any problems which are a part of the business. However, as seen in “Civil Action,” there is an understanding that there are more complexities with corporate responsibility and businesses. This is associated with the finances that are a part of the business, controls with finances and responsibilities to stakeholders and financial institutions. As these take precedence, the consumer protection becomes secondary, even under the legalities and consumer contracts that are offered. The result, as seen in this movie, is the difficulty to change the environmental and consumer responsibility under any legalities while causing a loss of consumer protection for those asking for assistance. Task 2 The concepts of corporate social responsibility, (CSR), are based on understanding the impact which a business has to others that are within the community. The approach which is taken leads to relationships that are built legally and with the community. Beyond this, are more capacities of resolving issues and building strategies and plans that are more conducive to the community. The definition that is associated with this as well as the reflection which is taken shows a different approach to those who are interested in business and the actions taken. A reflection of CSR is seen in the movie “Civil Action,” specifically with the lack of responsibility taken by the corporation and how this relates to hindrances in the community, among consumers and within the environment. Examining the different perspectives that are a part of this also show how CSR can be defined and how it changes the way in which many respond to given circumstances. The foundation of corporate social responsibility is based on the expectations that individuals have toward a business in terms of their responsibility to the community. This begins with ethical considerations, specifically which causes the businesses to be liable for actions taken that would either harm or help those in a given situation. The concept is one which leads to the duty of care, which states that each business has to consider the surroundings, community and the processes and strategies used within the corporation. If these affect the duties of care in a negative way, then changes need to be made for better responsibility. Ethical norms, following codes of conduct and complying with growing responsibilities within the community are the basis of upholding the corporate initiatives from the perspective of assistance within the environment and among consumers. The main association is showing a specific understanding that ethical and moral considerations come first. This is followed by the corporation having an understanding within their own possibilities that the business makes an impact within the social standing and creates a different alternative with those who are holding a sense of responsibility (Nelson, 2005: 187). Corporate social responsibility is furthered with definitions that are inclusive of both the internal environment and relationships which are created to those that are in the community. The responsibility is based first on the working environment, fairness which is created among workers and the ability to meet psychological needs among those that are in the given community. This is able to provide specific relationships that are among those in the work area while creating a sense of control and responsibility with the relationship of employees to the work area. This is furthered with policies and expectations that are a part of the internal environment. The responsibility is then furthered with the understanding that relationships within the community among stakeholders and potential customers should be included as a main component of those in the community. The result is the belief that the corporations which are responsible will intervene and take a specific role according to policy implementation, strategies and relationships that are within the community, dependent on the associations which are based on responsibility at the time (Leka et al, 2010: 298). In “A Civil Action,” there are basic concepts of corporate social responsibility that are investigated as well as how these are approached or avoided. There are two types of responsibility that are noted. One is based on the toxic waste that is placed in the environment and which is causing destruction among those in the area. The other is the health issues which begin to arise in the environment, specifically which creates difficulties with those who are subjected to the toxins. There is an unawareness of the toxins by consumers, health problems that begin to occur and other problems which arise, all which point back to the lack of corporate social responsibility from the film. This leads to the court case which complicates the responsibility, specifically because the corporation embraces the problems and does not show a sense of regard or responsibility after being made aware of the issue. Instead, the need to continue to accumulate profit and to save the reputation of the business lead to cover ups and complexities with the court case while the problem persists without the ability to create positive responses to the responsibility through new initiatives (Zaillian, dir, 1998). The concept of corporate social responsibility is one which begins to expand because of the complications which arise as well as the associations which occur. One of the levels of corporate social responsibility is based on the connection to legalities and the government as well as how businesses respond to this. The political and legal implications are based on specific acts which are passed for corporate responsibility and citizenship. This aligns with the culture and environment which one is in and includes responses to requirements that are initiated at given times. The responsibility is furthered with assumptions that continue to grow with the social and environmental responsibility which one should have, specifically because it should relate to the legalities of a given area and the expectations that are involved with this. The corporate social responsibility then expands to include political movements and legal implications that occur over time and which link back to the main governance that is within a business (Scherer, Palazzo, 2011: 899). The legal, environmental and the social implications of corporate social responsibility are important to note not only because of expectations with businesses. This is dependent on changes in society, knowledge about what corporate responsibility should include and trends which initiate this. The social responsibility among corporations then expands and fluctuates according to the understanding in society and what is expected. For instance, the green movement that began to occur in the 1990s led to pressures with corporate responsibility to stop having toxic waste and products that initiated environmental harm. The responsibility then began to change with corporations and initiated expectations because of new trends. The change led to a belief that it was ethical to care for the environment with the understanding that corporations should be responsible not only for profit but also with the trends which were occurring. The responsibility of corporations then becomes based on building strategies and initiatives that are able to respond to these specific demands (Simonsen, 2010: 25). When looking at “ A Civil Action,” it can be seen that there was a rise in environmental awareness, understanding of health and protection among consumers and legalities that persisted with this. This was currently introduced in society, and as can be seen from the struggles in the film, had not yet become a moral obligation and expectation from the court and to the responsibilities of corporations. The concepts and expectations with corporate responsibility then become dependent on the dynamics and associations that are a part of a business. The ideology is one which is inclusive of the idea of having integrity and dignity in a business while following the needs for relationships and expectations that are a part of the main community. This is followed by the idea of responsibility being a dynamic framework. As the changes occur among legalities and with the trends in society is the need for corporations to respond in a positive manner. Strategies and planning is required within corporations to continue to match the corporate responsibility that is a part of the social and community efforts. Expanding efforts with these strategies and making it a shift in efforts then continues to help with the progression and needs that are associated with the business. The dynamics can then meet demands of society and legalities while ensuring there are controls in understanding the responsibilities that are needed while defining moral and ethical associations with a given issue (Tams, Marshall, 2011: 109). The main concepts which are associated with the corporate social responsibility are based on defining the ethical and moral obligations. This is followed by responsibility with ethics and relationships in the internal and external environment. The responsibility is based on understanding how a business can impact society, the environment and other associations that are a part of the business. Defining these with making the right decisions and creating responses that are able to create moral responses then help to build a stronger basis within the company while creating strategies that respond to the legal and moral needs of the time. The issues with “A Civil Action” are based on the inability to meet these specific needs because of the lack of focus on responsibility to the environment and community. The lack of responsibility also was shown with the relationships to legalities that were broken and not followed by either the court or the company. The result was a question of what social responsibility meant as well as how the lack of ethical obligations from a company can affect others that are in a given environment or situation within the community. References EU. 2005. “Corporate Social Responsibility.” European Union. 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Tams, Svenja, Judi Marshall. 2011. “Responsible Careers: Systematic Reflexivity in Shifting Landscapes.” Human Relations 64 (1). Werther, William, David Chandler. 2011. Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility: Stakeholders in a Global Environment. New York: Sage. Zaillian, Steven. 1998. A Civil Action. California: Touchstone Pictures. Read More