However the problem occurs when the person purchasing at the shampoo at supermarket becomes a reseller and offers it with a small discount to the elite buyer. This kind of price discrimination is common but it can become illegal if it violates the pricing laws of the country in which discrimination occurred (Ferrell et al. p. 288). It is also illegal if segmentation is not possible in the market where discrimination occurred or if the cost of exporting was higher than the price of the product in a foreign location. Sometimes a manufacturer would sell its products at a higher rate in his country while offer them at a lower price in foreign markets. This kind of practice is called dumping but it creates ethical issues because some buyers are paying a higher price for the same product.
ANSWE 8:
Bribery is a common practice and is often known as facilitation…...
mlaReferences
Malone, D. 2002. Well-blown whistle -- the story of Kim Emigh's allegations helped lift the lid on WorldCom. Fort Worth Weekly (5 September).
Vicki D. Lachman, Whistleblowing: Role of Organizational Culture in Prevention and Management
Wayne H. Decker, Thomas J. Calo. Observers' Impressions of Unethical Persons and Whistleblowers. Journal of Business Ethics, 309-318, Springer, 12/2007
O.C. Ferrell, John Fraedrich, Linda Ferrell. 2009 Business Ethics: Ethical Decision Making and Cases. South-Western College Pub;
Whistle-Blowing
The question of the responsibility and/or ethical duty of an employee to blow the whistle on an employer have been the subject of much discussion. Some would argue that there is an ethical duty to respond and 'blow the whistle' when an employee becomes aware of apparent unlawful behavior on the part of his or her employer. One definition of whistle blowing as posited by Dandekar, 1991 is the motivation or desire to prevent unnecessary harm to others. Garde (1992) identified characteristics of whistle blowers, determined in scholarly research to be altruistically motivated and intend for their actions to benefit those that have been wronged; are utilitarian; possessing an increased level of moral development and are driven by a sense of social responsibility and integrity. This definition and the characteristics that follow seem to be in line with the utilitarianism that "requires a decision maker to maximize utility for society…...
mlaReferences
Dandeker, N. (1991). Can whistle-blowing be fully legitimated? A theoretical discussion.
Business & Professional Ethics Journal, 10, 89-108.
Garde, B. (1992). Workplace litigation: Representing the whistle-blower -- a case or a Cause? Trial, 28, 32-41.
Greene, A., & Latting, J. (2004). Whistle blowing as a form of advocacy: Guidelines for the practitioner and organization. Social Work, 49(2), 219-230.
Whistle-Blower Case Study Based on Oklahoma Law
It may appear common-sense that Janet and Darla are whistle-blowers; they saw something wrong at their workplace (another employee potentially stealing drugs and committing fraud), and notified their employer. However, while they may have effectively blown the whistle on potential fraud, they are also working in a state with "at will" employment laws, which states employers can fire employees for any reason (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2014).
When the Federal court looks at the appeal they will need to assess whether or not Janet and Darla have met the requirements to be classified as whistle-blowers, and assess whether or not their dismissal could be seen as retaliation for whistle-blowing (Bennett-Alexander & Hartman, 2014). If classified as whistle-blowers they would be protected from retaliation by the employer. The case to consider is that of Groce v. Foster, 880 P.2d902 (Okla. 1994), which gave five exceptions which would…...
mlaReferences
Bennett-Alexander, D; Hartman, L. (2014). Employment Law for Business. Mcgraw-Hill Education
Tromal, D R; Schilling, (2014). Managing Human Resources and Collective Bargaining, R&L Education
For example, Cannon USA, and the entire Cannon Corporation worldwide was already known for its commitment to corporate social responsibility and to environmentally friendly policies and practices long before environmentalism global responsibility became high-profile social values in the United States. Those very general ethical concerns far exceeded any legal requirements and lie wholly outside the scope of the organization's actual business and manifested an independent corporate culture valued by the chief executive officer and the Cannon board of directors. The converse is equally true in that unethical business practices can generate a corporate culture that violates ethical standards as well as legal standards (Halbert & Ingulli, 2008).
One significant difficulty in changing corporate culture relates the fact that corporate values usually originate at the highest levels of the organization from those who possess the most influence and power in the organization. To a large degree, violating established elements of corporate…...
mlaReferences
Halbert, T., Ingulli, E. (2008). Law & Ethics in the Business Environment. Cincinnati: West Legal Studies.
Alma Joseph's case study, "The Dilemma Public Service Department" Public Performance & Management Review, Vol. 24, No. 3, March 2001, pp. 285-287-Attached pdf This case study analysis paper approximately 3 full pages (double-spaced, 1" margins, 12 pt font), address issues: In terms administrative responsibilities, mind case: honesty, malfeasance, misfeasance, nonfeasance, accountability, competence, .
Honesty is certainly one of the primary concepts that come to mind when considering Alex and the way he chose to approach the problems he came across. While his attitude is certainly praise-worthy, it is difficult not to think about how he is somewhat naive in this situation. A more experienced public official would have probably given more thought to the situation he was in and would have focused on addressing the problem in a way that causes as little harm as possible. The main idea is that the respective problems were not necessarily new and…...
orldCom: The Ethics of histle-Blowing
In recent years, it has not been easy for employees to completely trust the corporations for which they work. Accounting scandals have made the average employee question business practices unlike before. The large corporate American framework built in culture; vision, core values, accountability and self-worth seem to have gone out the window with a certain degree of worry. Is it risky to work for a big business corporation? Has greed, ambition, the threat of globalization, lack of competition, poor leadership and the new technologies to make all this seem seamless, changed the rules for corporations and governance? hat has happened to the days of trust and inspirational role models of the self-made every man? Has the bottom-line or the need for the last dollar put a shroud upon the business operation standards in this country?
There are no guarantees in life or big business. Michael Pfarrer writes,…...
mlaWorks Cited
Davidson, Paul. "WorldCom's Black Cloud." USA Today (April, 19, 2004).
Grossi, Gianni. "Do We Really Need Heroes?" Internal Auditor Magazine
Johnston, Jo-Ann. "Corporate Financial Crimes Affect Ordinary Americans."
Tampa Tribune (July, 28, 2002).
Whistle lowing
Introduction and History of Whistle lowing
Whistle blowing is the revealing of immoral, illegal or illegitimate deeds to authorities. The authorities may be insiders or from outside the affected organization. Many cases of whistle blowing involve people revealing information to outsiders especially media organizations or pressure groups about an act they consider to be irresponsible, irregular or illegal (Robbins, 1993).
Cases of whistle blowing have increased dramatically in the recent past but the practice began way back in the 1970s (Shimabukuro & Whitaker, 2012). Scandals involving big corporations and that have led to the collapse of such organizations such as WorldCom and Enron among others come to mind (Minks, 2010). The U.S. Federal government has since enacted several statutes tailored at dealing with the problem.
This paper therefore aims at discussing these laws. Three whistle blowing cases involving the government and another three involving corporations will also be discussed. We will…...
mlaBibliography
Biography, "Edward Snowden." Accessed November 12, 2014, http://www.biography.com/#!/people/edward-snowden-21262897#synopsis
Lewis Linda, "Serpico: Police violence is out of control," Accessed November 12, 2014, http://whistleblowingtoday.org/2014/10/serpico-police-violence-is-out-of-control/
Lewis Linda, "Supreme Court hears arguments in whistleblower case, DHS v Robert MacLean," Accessed November 12, 2014, http://whistleblowingtoday.org/2014/11/supreme-court-hears-arguments-in-76oiuqwerq2-321qwhistleblower-case-dhs-v-robert-maclean/
Markkular Center, "Lessons learnt from the Enron Scandal, Markkular Center for Applied Ethics," 2002, Accessed November 12, 2014 http://www.scu.edu/ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/enronlessons.html
Counseling
The Ethical Dilemma -- histle Blowing
The ethical dilemma I faced occurred just after I graduated from high school, in the summer before I started college. I was hired as an "orderly" at a county facility for elderly people (sometimes called a nursing home). It was called a county "hospital and home" for the very frail and elderly in our community. Most of them had been placed their by families due to the difficulty those families experienced in providing good care for them. Some families visited on Sundays; but many of the patients never received any visitors. It was quite sad, and just outside the day room windows everyone could clearly see where they were headed -- to the cemetery.
I was given no training relative to the real issues these older people (all individuals in the ward I worked in were male) were facing. My job was basically to take…...
mlaWorks Cited
Ungar, Michael. (2010) Engage (Chapter 8) in Counseling in Challenging Contexts. Florence,
KY: Cengage Learning.
Ungar, Michael. (2010). Ethics and Power (Chapter 7) in Counseling in Challenging Contexts.
Florence, KY: Cengage Learning.
Whistle-Blowing and Sarbanes-Oxley
The relevance of whistleblowers in an organizational setting cannot be overstated. As a matter of fact, whistleblowers have in the past helped bring about the much needed changes in organizations. They can, therefore, be referred to as guardians of public accountability. It is, however, important to note that whistleblowing does have its own unique challenges. This is particularly the case given that whistleblowers risk isolation, ridicule, loss of employment, etc. once they go public with certain information.
In essence, a whistleblower, in an organizational setting, is an employee or any officer or representative of the firm who lifts the lid on issues or undertakings within the firm that he or she deems illegal, dubious, or generally harmful to the interests of various stakeholders (Holt, 2007). In general terms, whistleblowers possess specific characteristics. To begin with, in addition to being brave, whistleblowers are typically morally upright. To lift the veil…...
mlaReferences
Holt, M.F. (2007). The Sarbanes-Oxley Act: Costs, Benefits, and Business Impacts. Burlington, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Mattera, P. (2015). Pfizer: Corporate Rap Sheet. Retrieved from http://www.corp-research.org/pfizer
Secunda, P.M. (2009). Retaliation and Whistleblowers: Proceedings of the New York University 60th Annual Conference on Labor. Frederick, MD: Kluwer Law International.
Though still worthwhile if it leads to an improvement in nursing or medical standards, whistle-blowing can be damaging to the profession (Fritko & Jackson 2005).
Whistle-bowing can also empower nurses, however, with successful instances of whistle-blowing potentially inspiring others that had noticed wrongdoing and remained to afraid to speak out. A large part of the importance of whistle-blowing in the nursing profession stems form the fact that the cultures of many medical institutions and personnel seem to inhibit the pointing-out of misconduct, especially when it is nurses that try to call issues in operations to others' attention, and thus whistle-blowing is specifically the most needed where it will be the most actively discouraged and punished (Jones & Hoffman 2005). The more whistle-blowing occurs, the stronger and more empowered individual nurses will be in making the decision to point out issues in care provision and general conduct, and though this can…...
mlaReferences
COENA. (2002). "Code of ethics for nurses in Australia." Accessed 23 September 2010. http://www.health.sapanta.com.au/srcn/code.pdf
Firtko, A. & Jackson, D. (2005). "Do the ends justify the means? Nursing and the dilemma of whistle-blowing." Australian Journal of Advanced Nursing 23(3).
Hendren, R. (2010). "Nurse whistle-blower case sets dangerous precedent." Health lenders media. Accessed 23 September 2010. http://www.healthleadersmedia.com/content/NRS-246273/Nurse-Whistleblower-Case-Sets-Dangerous-Precedent
Jackson, D.; Peters, K.; Andrews, S.; Edenborogh, M. & Halcomb, E. (2010). "Understanding whistleblowing: qualitative insights from nurse whistleblowers." Journal of advanced nursing 66(1), pp. 2194-201.
There is an increasing recognition of this not only among investigators and regulators, but also among businesses and employees alike.
Clearly, the general attitude of employers and employees towards whistle blowing is changing with time. Generally, this is the result of consequences generated by corporate wrongdoing, and also by the increase of importance attached to ethical business practices. Corporate responsibility in terms of both society and the environment has seen great increases over the last decade. For this reason, the importance of whistle blowing is also increasing. Indeed, it can be seen as the ethical responsibility of employees to disclose activities when they have suspicions regarding certain practices.
By making whistle blowing a standard ethical element of business, the corporate world can ensure that businesses work for the mutual benefit of employers, employees and the public they serve.
eferences
BBC News. (2003, Oct. 8). Coke pays off whistleblower. etrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3175138.stm
Business Link. (2010).…...
mlaReferences
BBC News. (2003, Oct. 8). Coke pays off whistleblower. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3175138.stm
Business Link. (2010). Whistle blowing and Dismissal. Retrieved from http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?itemId=1082104950&type=RESOURCES
CIPD. (2010). Whistle blowing. Retrieved from http://www.cipd.co.uk/subjects/empreltns/whistleblw/whistle.htm
Connor, M. (2010, Apr. 1). Whistle-Blowing found Effective in Targeting Corporate Misdeeds. Business Ethics. Retrieved from http://business-ethics.com/2010/04/01/11414-whistle-blowing-found-effective-in-targeting-corporate-misdeeds/
A suggestion within the company, or a well-spoken word can often end the problem before going public with it is necessary ("Ethical Dissent," n.d.). The thought behind this is that whistle blowing, or drawing public attention to an issue, actually makes a problem worse, when privately addressing could make it better. In addition, those who condemn the practice may also mention the negative professional consequences, such as firing, that often occur along with whistle blowing, in addition to personal retaliation.
Thus, the issue of whistle blowing is something that all must face in the professional world, whether they are in the public or private sector. In the end, whistle blowing is a personal decision on the part of an employee, and it can be admirable when done to right something that is inherently wrong.
eferences
"Blowing the Whistle." (2009, May). etrieved July 14, 2009, from http://whistleblowing.org/
"Ethical Dissent." (n.d.). etrieved July 14, 2009,…...
mlaReferences
"Blowing the Whistle." (2009, May). Retrieved July 14, 2009, from http://whistleblowing.org/
"Ethical Dissent." (n.d.). Retrieved July 14, 2009, from http://www.computingcases.org/case_materials/hughes/support_docs/whistleblowing/ethical_dissent.html
Issue 11: Is Employer Monitoring of Employee Social Media Justified?
Summary of Sides
The rise of social media and the near ubiquity of its use has led to an increasing trend of employers screening potential hires and monitoring existing employees through their social media activity on sites like Facebook and Twitter. The ethicality of such monitoring has been questioned by ethical scholars Brian Elzweig and Donna K. Pepples argue that employers have a responsibility to their organizations to ensure that employees are not negligent in their actions that directly affect the company or that might negatively reflect upon the company. More to the point, these authors argue that there is no real expectation of privacy on social networking sites and that employers could not be violating any such expectation, as "a general expectation cannot be relied upon just by using the privacy settings" (p. 195). Employers are upholding their duty to the…...
blow the whistle" on what you heard in the garden? If so, how will you blow the whistle? If you decide to blow the whistle, what are your reasons for doing so? Your discussion should reflect knowledge of what Boatright says about issues, problems and justifications for whistle-blowing. Also, in discussing the answers to these questions you should include the following: 1) you should evaluate real and potential conflicts of interests that confront you in your decision 2) you should explain how your reasoning is consistent or inconsistent with the three following moral theories: Kantian moral theory, utilitarian moral theory and virtue theory.
The situation
Our MBA is not really aware of what is going on; all he has is assumptions, guesses. He has no actual proof. In the first case, he has had suspicions of several transactions -- their accounting practices seem suspect - and he has pointed out his…...
mlaSources
"Behind the Enron Scandal - Multiple Articles." TIME 2002. 27 Apr. 2006 .
"BBC NEWS | Business | Enron Scandal At-a-Glance." BBC News. 22 Aug. 2002. The BBC. 27 Apr. 2006 .
"Enron Scandal - Information on Enron." Securities Fraud Fyi. 2003. 27 Apr. 2006 .
Hays, Kristin. "Prosecutor Questions Lay At Enron Trial." Business Week 27 Apr. 2006. 27 Apr. 2006
Cho, Y., Song, H. (2015). Determinants of whistleblowing within government
agencies. Public Personnel Management, 44(4): 450-472.
Cho and Song (2015) examine the determinants of whistleblowing behaviors in public administrative positions in their study by basing their approach on the work of Miceli and Near, who "argued that proactive personality, less co-worker invalidation, and leverage in the specific situation lead to whistleblowing" (p. 450). However, in their research, Cho and Song (2015) find that the determining variables behind whistleblowing in public are complex and many relevant variables remain unexplored. The purpose of their study is to examine some of these variables more closely and open the door for further investigation into what causes public administration whistleblowers to go public with their information. The thesis of the researchers is that the factors leading to this activity are dynamic, interacting, complex and personal.
The methodology of the study is to test for several different variables…...
mlaReferences
Cho, Y., Song, H. (2015). Determinants of whistleblowing within government
agencies. Public Personnel Management, 44(4): 450-472.
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