It is a widely disputed topic that corporations have a role in society to be ethical and consumer aware of their actions and impact on the wider world. ‘Business Ethics’ can be defined as the critical, structured examination of how people and institutions should behave in the world of commerce’ (Macdonald, 2010). Pressure on organisations in recent years to be ethical and consumer aware has affected their overall constitutions, forcing them to include how they are going to deal with ethical problems such as environmental and social issues within their working environments. The question remains whether organisations have a duty towards their stakeholders and society as a whole to follow principles on values and actions that not only benefit them but many people, from the factory workers to distributors. In recent years, growing concerns over sustainability issues, cheap labour and climate change has led to new government legislation and increased public pressure for organisations to become more ethical in their practice. Before and during the time of World War 1 & 2 the aim of many business’ was to make a profit, the market was not as competitive, majority of people were willing to work for any company where minimum wage was not an issue ‘some see the main purpose of business is to maximise profits for its owners or its shareholders’ (Oliphant and Mayled, 2007). The pressure from growth within human resources and its stakeholders have influenced the way companies have developed. This essay will conduct a critical analysis on whether public relations plays a part in conducting and portraying a company as obliging by their ethical rules also whether it is in their constitutional right to abide by ethical stances relative to society. One example being The Global Alliance group agreed in 2003 ‘that all member associations would standardise their codes of ethics by the end of 2005’ (Theaker 2001:98) they agreed to create an annual report on how and where they are being ethical, pursuing professional developments in their workplaces and to follow protocol by setting out principals. Many constraints have been placed on companies locally and internationally. One main factor dealt with in organisations is the environment and how organisations aim to reduce their emissions including their own carbon footprint, ‘established a framework to develop an economically credible emissions reduction path’ quoted from the official page for the climate change act passed in November 2008 was in order to combat climate change and legally bind those who do not comply with it. As a consequence, many businesses are now forced to reduce their carbon emissions and therefore improve how sustainable they are. As this public pressure for organisations to be ethical has grown, a number of large organisations have been investigated and scrutinized in the media for how ethical their practises are, Anglo- Dutch oil giant shell, one of the world’s biggest supplier of oil, are continually under scrutiny to improve their ethical stances towards the environment and their workers, under threat from activist group Greenpeace and whether Shell as a whole are doing
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Addressing ethical issues is not imperative to the success of the organisation and are therefore seen as less important than making profits; utilitarian believer Milton Friedman developed his views that the business of business was simply to make profits, Friedman believed business responsibility was solely to be profitable, his view being their duty was to make profit and their corporate ethical responsibility was irrelevant where business was concerned. Businesses were created for one purpose in his view and that it was not in the duty of the business to be ethical. Weaknesses surround his theory by claiming that businesses have only one social responsibility, to maximise their profits, Friedman is in effect saying they have no social responsibilities’ (Somerville in Theaker 2004:137) and is a widely disputed topic. Businesses must still conform to an ‘ethical custom’ and to have a reputable stance within society and to withhold profit in a competitive market where customers interests are not at the forefront will reflect badly on the reputation and where customer numbers will decrease. His theory was formed in the 1960’s over 50 years ago, where indisputably parts of the theory are still applicable today, nonetheless the growing need for professional and corporate responsibility often
…show more content…
Addressing ethical issues is not imperative to the success of the organisation and are therefore seen as less important than making profits; utilitarian believer Milton Friedman developed his views that the business of business was simply to make profits, Friedman believed business responsibility was solely to be profitable, his view being their duty was to make profit and their corporate ethical responsibility was irrelevant where business was concerned. Businesses were created for one purpose in his view and that it was not in the duty of the business to be ethical. Weaknesses surround his theory by claiming that businesses have only one social responsibility, to maximise their profits, Friedman is in effect saying they have no social responsibilities’ (Somerville in Theaker 2004:137) and is a widely disputed topic. Businesses must still conform to an ‘ethical custom’ and to have a reputable stance within society and to withhold profit in a competitive market where customers interests are not at the forefront will reflect badly on the reputation and where customer numbers will decrease. His theory was formed in the 1960’s over 50 years ago, where indisputably parts of the theory are still applicable today, nonetheless the growing need for professional and corporate responsibility often