BUSINESS ETHICS

Copyright 2007 – Biz/ed

13 Ethics Law

14

Gain the goodwill of the community Increase the lifetime of an organization Produce safe and effective products Provide excellent service & Maintain customers Develop and maintain strong employee relations Enjoy better employee morale

Have two interests - cannot purse one without having negative impact on other

Shareholders – Generate profits. Pay dividends Customers – Good quality products at reasonable prices. Safety, honesty, decency. Employees – health and safety at work, security, fair pay Suppliers – pay on time, fair rates, security Local Community – provide employment, safe working environment, minimise pollution. Government – abide by the law, pay taxes, abide by regulations Management – their aims versus those of the organisation as a whole Environment – limit pollution, congestion, environmental degradation, development, etc.

Utilitarian Approach - which action results in the most good and least harm? Rights Based Approach - which action respects the rights of everyone involved? Fairness or Justice Approach - which action treats people fairly? Common Good Approach - which action contributes most to the quality of life of the people affected? Virtue Approach - which action embodies the character strengths you value?

Harms test : Do the benefits outweigh the harms, short term and long term? Reversibility test : Would I still think this choice is good if I traded places? Legality test : Would this choice violate a law or a policy of my employer? Colleague test : What would professional colleagues say? Wise relative test : What would my wise old aunt or uncle do? Mirror test : Would I feel proud of myself when I look into the mirror afterward? Publicity test : How would this choice look on the front page of a newspaper?