Business Law and ethics - Case Study Example

Child labour in developing countries The case study was largely centered on child labour in the developing countries and pertaining to this issue, Isecke stated that multinational companies through their strategy of outsourcing some of their business processes have indirectly participated in the use of child labour (43-45). This is because they mainly outsource some of their business processes to developing countries where labour is cheap since less trained workers provide it and even at times, the labour services are provided by child labourers.

It is important to note that child labour was abolished worldwide through the enactment of various laws that prohibit using children below the statutory age limit of either 16 or 18 years old as labourers. According to Isecke, among the key international laws that prohibit against the child labour, include the United Nations' convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Labour Organization's Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work (United Nations 1989) (89-93).

The other thoughts of the workers Besides thinking about the notion of being paid to be educated, the Vietnamese children also thought about how their employer was socially responsible. The Vietnamese children linked their employer to a socially responsible company because of the fact that company had an option of laying them off from their respective duties so that they can go back to school as required by the law but instead the company opted to retain them in the payroll as they enroll for a full time program.

This was despite the fact that the twelve children used forged documents in order to gain employment in the company. The Vietnamese children’s notion that their employer was socially responsible could have been because of the fact that scholars such as Kotler and Lee argued that companies that are socially responsible normally have a strong commitment to behaving ethically and they participate in economic development whilst improving the livings standards of their workers as well as the surrounding community (23-25).

It is correct to assert that the action by the Vietnamese employer was part of corporate social responsibilities since it was aligned towards an ethical practice of not using children below the statutory age limit as labourers. Additionally, the act was also aimed at improving the quality of life for the twelve children who were sponsored with a full-time educational program. This will improve their living quality of life because upon finishing their studies, the children would be entitled to promotions to higher positions and even an increase in their wage rate since they would be having additional qualifications.

The other thought that the workers had other than they were being paid to be educated was that the company was creating a shared value, which was described by Kotler and Lee, as a business concept that is built on the premise that competitiveness and the health of the workforce as well as the surrounding community are dependent (67-68). In this regard, the twelve children had the notion that the company was investing in their education with an objective that they would also benefit from their sharpened skills once they finish the two-year education program.

This assertion is substantiated by the fact that company, which was sponsoring the twelve childre