Ethics Case Presentation
- 1. Ethics Case Ma r c h 2 1 , 2 0 11
- 2. The Story: FourUtah Walmart employees were fired after disarming an armed shoplifter. Policy states employees should not confront shoplifters who are armed. Corporate states they must be rigid in adhering to company policy in order to defend themselves in liability lawsuits if they were to occur The Story Ethical Guidelines Ethical Approaches Recommendations
- 3. The Problem: •The publicviews these employees’ actions as heroic •Corporate may feel the same, but terminating these individuals suggest otherwise
- 4. The Dilemma: Can theemployee policies Walmart follows be considered “ethical”?
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- 7. 11 Guiding Principles 1.Always act with Integrity 2. Lead with integrity, and expect others to work with integrity 3. Follow the law at all times 4. Be honest and fair 5. Reveal or report all information truthfully , without manipulation or misrepresentation 6. Work, actions, and relationships outside of your position with the company should be without any conflict of interest 7. Respect and encourage diversity and never discriminate against anyone
- 8. 11 Guiding Principles (continued) 8. Ask your manager or the Global Ethics Officer for help if you have questions about this Statement of Ethics , or if you face an ethical problem 9. Promptly report suspected violations of the Statement of Ethics 10.Cooperate with and maintain the private nature of any investigation of a possible ethics violation 11.When involved in an ethics investigation, you should reveal and report all information truthfully. You should report all the facts you are aware of without personal opinion, bias, or judgment
- 9. How to raisea business conduct concern? • Use the Open Door Communication Process • Contact the Global Ethics Office by phone, email, or on the Internet
- 10. Summary of Walmart’s Ethical Policy •Look highly on integrity and personal responsibility •Has not changed greatly over the years •A point of pride for the company •Believe that sound ethical beliefs and practices are essential for a good work environment as well as shopping experience for the customer
- 11. Four Different Ethical Approaches Ethical The Story Ethical Guidelines Recommendations Approaches
- 12. Utilitarianism Approach •19th century by Bentham and Mill •The ethical action is one that will produce the greatest good for the greatest number of people •“Which option will produce the most good and cause the least harm?” •“Does it optimize the satisfaction of all stakeholders?”
- 13. Utilitarianism Approach •Problems: •Only the stakeholders who have the most power, legitimacy, and urgency are given priority •How would this theory view the article?
- 14. Deontology Approach •18thcentury by Kant •The ethical action is the one that most dutifully respects the rights of all affected •“Will everyone’s rights and dignity be respected?” •“Even if not everyone gets all they want, will everyone's rights and dignity still be respected?”
- 15. Deontology Approach •A particulardecision or behavior should be avoided of it interferes with the rights of others •The right to the truth •The right of privacy •The right not to be injured •The right to what is agreed •Problems: •Defining “fundamental rights” •Can encourage selfish behavior •How would this theory view the article?
- 16. Justice Approach •Has itsroots in the teachings Aristotle •The ethical action is the one that treats people equally, or if unequally, that treats people proportionately and fairly. •“How fair is an action? “ •“Does it treat everyone in the same way, or does it show favoritism and discrimination? “
- 17. Justice Approach •Best solutionapplies the same decision making process to everyone •Follows the principles of: –Distributive Justice –Fairness –Retributive Justice –Compensatory Justice •How would this theory view the article?
- 18. Virtue Approach •The ethicalaction is the one that embodies the habits and values of humans at our best –“What kind of person will I become if I do this?“ –"Is this action consistent with me acting at my best?"
- 19. Virtue Approach •Ethical actionsought to be consistent with certain ideal virtues that provide for the full development of our humanity •How does a person develop virtues? –Virtues are developed through learning –Virtues are developed through practice –Virtue are habits •How would this theory view the article?
- 20. Problems with the Approaches 1. We may not agree on the content of these specific approaches 2. The different approaches may not answer the question “What is ethical?” in the same way
- 21. Recommendations •Update policies •Base policies around Sam Walton’s guiding principles •Streamline decisions amongst all Walmarts •Increase training for emergency situations •Show a sense of community by rewarding acts of heroism Ethical The Story Ethical Guidelines Recommendations Approaches
Editor's Notes
- #2 Figure out how to make the pictures loop
- #6 “Vision Statement”:The vision of the Global Ethics Office is to promote ownership of Walmart’s ethical culture to all stakeholders globally. (p5, Statement of Ethics)
- #7 Since Sam Walton founded Walmart, it has always been a values-based, ethically led company. The values that guide our decisions and our leadership are the 3 Basic Beliefs… (p5, Statement of Ethics)
- #8 These principles are meant to help our associates make the right decisions, and to act with integrity. (p5, Statement of Ethics)
- #10 Ethics opinions:In the normal course of business, you might have a situation where you’re not quite sure if there is a violation of ethics, or whether the situation is within the standards described in the Statement of Ethics. When you have any ethics question, you are encouraged to use the Open Door process or contact the Global Ethics Office for a verbal or written opinion before you take any action. (p4, statement of ethics)Open Door Communication process: …is the most direct way to voice any concern to a manager. If you believe your immediate manager is involved in the problem, discuss the issue with the next level of management who is not involved, or use one of the other resources described below.Call the Global Ethics Office: the helpline is available to associates around the world 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is equipped to handle most local languages. The Helpline is staffed by an organization not affiliated with Walmart, and may be anonymous (depending on local regulations). The operator will relay the information to the Global Ethics Office, and will provide the associate with a case number and callback date if desired. There are 60 different hotline numbers that cover areas around the world in which Walmart stores operate. (p5 & p30-32, statement of ethics)
- #13 Utilitarianism was conceived in the 19th century by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill to help legislators determine which laws were morally best. Both Bentham and Mill suggested that ethical actions are those that provide the greatest balance of good over evil. Proposes that actions and plans should be judged by their consequences People should therefore behave in a way that will produce the greatest benefits to society and produce the least harm or the lowest costThe ethical action is the one that provides the most good or does the least harmThe utilitarian approach deals with consequences; it tries both to increase the good done and to reduce the harm done.The ethical corporate action, then, is the one that produces the greatest good and does the least harm for all who are affected-customers, employees, shareholders, the community, and the environment. “Does it optimize the satisfaction of all stakeholders?”To analyze an issue:Identify the various courses of action availableAsk who will be affected by each action and what benefits or harms will be derived from eachChoose the action that will produce the greatest benefits and the least harm
- #14 Problems with this approach: Majority rules Research reveals that only the stakeholders who have the most power (ability to affect the company) legitimacy (legal or moral claim on company resources) urgency (demand for immediate attention) are given priority It is therefore likely that only the most obvious stakeholders will be considered, while others are ignored
- #15 This approach has its roots in the philosophy of the 18th-century thinker Immanuel Kant and others like him, who focused on the individual's right to choose for his/herself According to these philosophers, what makes human beings different from mere things is that people have dignity based on their ability to choose freely what they will do with their lives, and they have a fundamental moral right to have these choices respected. People are not objects to be manipulated; it is a violation of human dignity to use people in ways they do not freely choose. The ethical action is the one that most dutifully respects the rights of all affected.Proposes that human beings have certain fundamental rights that should be respected in all decisions. The ethical action is the one that best protects and respects the moral rights of those affected. Every person has certain inviolate rights that can never be violated Best solution respects everyone rights“Will everyone’s rights and dignity be respected?”We must ask: does the action respect the moral rights of everyone? Actions are wrong to the extent that they violate the rights of individuals The more serious the violation, the more wrongful the action.
- #16 A particular decision or behavior should be avoided of it interferes with the rights of others. These other rights can be thought of as different aspects of the basic right to be treated as we choose. The right to the truth: We have a right to be told the truth and to be informed about matters that significantly affect our choices. The right of privacy: We have the right to do, believe, and say whatever we choose in our personal lives so long as we do not violate the rights of others. The right not to be injured: We have the right not to be harmed or injured unless we freely and knowingly do something to deserve punishment or we freely and knowingly choose to risk such injuries. The right to what is agreed: We have a right to what has been promised by those with whom we have freely entered into a contract or agreement. Problems: Defining “fundamental rights” The US Constitution includes a Bill of Rights that may or may not be accepted throughout the world. The approach can also encourage selfish behavior when a person defines a personal need or want as a “right”
- #17 The fairness or justice approach to ethics has its roots in the teachings of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, who said that "equals should be treated equally and unequals unequally." The ethical action is the one that treats people equally, or if unequally, that treats people proportionately and fairly. Proposes that decision makers be equitable, fair, and impartial in their actionsFocuses on how fairly or unfairly our actions distribute benefits and burdens among the members of a group. This approach asks what is fair for all stakeholders, or people who have an interest in the outcome. The basic moral question in this approach is: How fair is an action? Does it treat everyone in the same way, or does it show favoritism and discrimination? Favoritism gives benefits to some people without a justifiable reason for singling them out;Discrimination imposes burdens on people who are no different from those on whom burdens are not imposed. Both favoritism and discrimination are unjust and wrong.
- #18 Best solution applies the same process to everyone Fairness requires consistency in the way people are treatedDoesn’t mean the outcome will be the same – just the processFollows the principles of distributive justice: people who are similar on relevant dimensions such as job seniority should be treated in the same wayfairness: liberty should be equal for all personsretributive justice: punishment should be proportional to the offensecompensatory justice: wrongs should be compensated in proportion to the offenseEX: We pay people more based on their harder work or the greater amount that they contribute to an organization, and say that is fair. But there is a debate over CEO salaries that are hundreds of times larger than the pay of others; many ask whether the huge disparity is based on a defensible standard or whether it is the result of an imbalance of power and hence is unfair.
- #19 The ethical action is the one that embodies the habits and values of humans at our bestEthical actions ought to be consistent with certain ideal virtues that provide for the full development of our humanity. Virtue ethics asks of any action, "What kind of person will I become if I do this?" or "Is this action consistent with my acting at my best?" Virtues are attitudes or character traits that enable us to be and to act in ways that develop our highest potential. They enable us to pursue the ideals we have adopted. Honesty, courage, compassion, generosity, integrity, fairness and self-control are all examples of virtues.
- #20 How does a person develop virtues? Virtues are developed through learning and through practice. EX: Just as the ability to run a marathon develops through much training and practice, so too does our capacity to be fair, to be courageous, or to be compassionate. Virtues are habitsThat is, once they are acquired, they become characteristic of a person. EX: a person who has developed the virtue of generosity is often referred to as a generous person because he or she tends to be generous in all circumstances.
- #21 Each of the approaches helps us determine what standards of behavior can be considered ethical. There are still problems to be solved, however.The first problem is that we may not agree on the content of some of these specific approaches. We may not all agree to the same set of human and civil rights.We may not agree on what constitutes the common good. We may not even agree on what is a good and what is a harm.The second problem is that the different approaches may not all answer the question "What is ethical?" in the same way. Nonetheless, each approach gives us important information with which to determine what is ethical in a particular circumstance. And much more often than not, the different approaches do lead to similar answers.