Analysis on H.B Fuller case from perspective of work ethics. It is based on the analysis on university syndicate. Please use this slide for education purpose. All information is based on the article provided.

1. For Education Purposes
Case Study:
HB Fuller and the street
children of Central America

2. Company Profile
HB Fuller was founded in 1887, the company was now a
global manufacturer of adhesives, sealants, and other
specialty chemicals and had operations in over 40
countries in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin
America.
Their product toluene-based adhesive have qualities that
water based adhesives cannot duplicate. With product
Strength that they set very rapidly, the adhere strongly,
resistant to water.
H.B fuller had total revenues of $1.243 billion in 1995, up from
$1.097 billion in 1994. Profits had totaled $392 million in 1995
and $354 million in 1994.

3. Situation
Social Economic
• Honduras & Guatemala are mired in poverty. For several years, these countries
struggled with large deficit budgets, migrations from the countryside into major
cities had exacerbated urban crowding and had created large impoverished
populations in every large city, unstable family conditions which leads to
abandoned children roamed city streets.
• Lot of addiction from street children's to Resistol product from H.B. Fuller in
Honduras & Guatemala
Company
• H.B Fuller market are big in Latin America, both Honduras & Guatemala are H.B.
Fuller key market to sell resistol.
• Toluene, the ingredients of their products reportedly destroys nerves, causing
them to die
• HB Fuller had been pressured to run a test and decide a safe ways of keeping kids
from sniffing its glues

4. Basic Duties
• They make adhesives
product that cannot
duplicate, that toluene-
based adhesive have
qualities that water
based. With its Strength:
they set very rapidly, the
adhere strongly,
resistant to water as
promised.
Respect Rights and
Legitimate Claims
• Misled the government with
the information that the
mustard-seed oil was
carcinogenic substance, when
in fact the mustard-seed oil is
safe substance
• Not responsible for their
subsidiaries act to keep selling
Resistol
Best Practices
Align with Actor
Commitment
Ethics: Basic Frameworks
Ethical
Unethical
• Not adding small
amount of mustard-
seed-oil that make the
glue unpleasant to
inhale therefore prevent
misuse as others
adhesive producers
(Testors)
• They prevent children to
misuse their product by : stop
selling product in retail,
change its packaging and
increase their price by 30% and
change their formula.
• Cooperate with children
advocates to providing
information of warning of
resistol addiction
● They keep their
product to support
local shoe maker
that can help to
resolve poverty
issues and keep
provide
employment.

5. QUESTIONS
1. Is H. B. Fuller responsible for Children
addiction on Resistol?
2. Do you agree or disagree that social
conditions are ultimately responsible for
the misuse of H.B Fuller?
3. Do the parent company is not responsible
for the subsidiary activity?
4. Is H.B fuller in morally appropriate
manner?
5. What should H.B Fuller done, but did not ?

6. Answers
1. Is H. B. Fuller responsible for Children addiction on Resistol ?
No it's not.
In this case of H.B. Fuller, they are producing a toluene-based
glue in Central America that is used by many Latin American
shoe manufacturers, leather workers, carpenters, furniture
makers, and small shoe repair shops because of its ability to set
very rapidly, adhere strongly, and its resistance to water. So, HB
Fuller is only responsible to deliver the product as promised
to their customers.

7. Answers
2. Do you agree or disagree that the social conditions are
ultimately responsible for the misuse of H.B Fuller?
Agree
Some places in South America, such as Honduras and Guatemala,
are in heavy poverty and have unemployment rates around 15 and 20
percent. Children would often begin sniffing this cheap glue in order
to escape their painful lives out on the street, after being abandoned
by their parents or running away.

8. Answers
3. Do the parent company is not responsible for the subsidiary activity
?
Yes, it is. From the perspective of respecting rights, company should take
responsibility on any subsidiary activity, subsidiaries is part of their
stakeholder.
The main issue regarding the responsibility of representatives for the actions
of subsidiaries lies in the territorial distribution of the subdivisions operating
under the jurisdiction of the country in which they are located. Often conflicts
arise based on disagreements between the administration of the parent
company and the subsidiary. The parent company cannot exert direct
influence on the activities of a subsidiary abroad, and cannot extend the
laws that apply to the territory of the parent company abroad, even though it
has a certain measure of power and impact on the subsidiary due to its
subordinates

9. Situation Question Answers Conclusion &
Recommendation
Outline

10. Answers
4. Is H.B fuller in morally appropriate manner ?
Judging by the attitude, H.B Fuller is not morally appropriate manner
because, they were continuing sales of Resistol by H. B. Fuller for
the sake of gaining more profit, and refusing to acknowledge the
harm it causes for vulnerable inhabitants of poor countries’ streets,
also denying the damage that this toluene-glue is causing to the
children, severely hurting some and even killing others. By not
putting enough effort to restrict who can get ahold of the toluene-
based glue and not trying harder to find a way to improved product to
deter from inhalation (misuse).

11. Answers
5. What should H.B Fuller done, but did not ?
● H.B Fuller did not act ethically in 1989 when the company misled the
Honduras government with the information that the mustard-seed oil
was carcinogenic substance, when in fact the mustard-seed oil is
safe substance (it is safe substance by Food and Drug
Administration, as published in ‘91).
● The company did not immediately reformulate its glue using other
substance instead of Toluene.
● The company should have been responsible for their subsidiary
companies, who still selling resistol causing death cases among
children in Latin America.

12. CONCLUSION
5. What should H.B Fuller done, but did not ?
H.B Fuller is morally responsible for the misuse of Resistol and they failed to prevent
when they could have done certain actions in order to prevent the misuse by children in
Latin America.

13. Thank
you!