BUSINESS ETHICS 1

Business Ethics

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BUSINESS ETHICS 2

Business Ethics

Question 1

There are many ethical pitfalls associated with employing undocumented workers, and

one of them is the fact that they are prone to exploitation. Exploitation does not necessarily

require one to be willing to do something. Many undocumented immigrants come to the US in

search of jobs, and they are often desperate. Most of them work under deplorable conditions,

including accepting extremely lower rates than what the government permits. For example, John

pays up to 25% below the government’s minimum rates, meaning that he is exploiting his

workers. The government sets minimum wage rates to protect desperate job seekers, making sure

their employers pay them fairly. John’s actions are unethical because he is paying them way

below what most Americans would accept. He may be doing many of his workers a favor by

giving them jobs and the pay, but that does not take away the fact that he is underpaying them.

Under deontology, the morality of John's actions should be judged against the minimum wage

rates set by the government. The outcome might be noble, but the very act of employing

undocumented workers and underpaying them is wrong under deontological ethics.

Question 2

It is not easy to achieve morality in a free-market capitalist economy. Utilitarian ethics

teaches that a decision is morally justifiable as long as it produces the maximum benefits for the

highest number of people. In a free-market capitalist economy, however, only a few individuals

benefit at the expense of others. Business firms always want to maximize profits even when

doing so causes harm to people and the environment. Governments strive to create fairness in the

market by ensuring businesses remain socially responsible. They develop rules that govern

pricing decisions, such as setting price ceilings to protect consumers.

BUSINESS ETHICS 3

Governments also develop production and quality standards to make sure business

entities offer excellent-quality goods and services. It is also the responsibility of governments to

ensure firms do not pollute the environment, thereby making it unsafe for all the people. A free-

market capitalist economy is an unethical system since only a few individuals, especially those

with capital, benefit. Without the intervention of the government, companies will create

monopolies and set exceptionally high prices. Unscrupulous businessmen and women will also

emerge, and they will reduce the quality of goods and services to make more money. In a free-

market economy, the concept of the tragedy of the commons becomes even real, and it prevents

the system from maintaining ethics.

Question 3

John's practices are typical of a free-market capitalist economic system, where capital

owners want to exploit those without capital. A capitalistic society comprises the haves and the

have-nots, and the former always explore ways to use the latter to enrich themselves. A free-

market is all about every man for himself, and that explains why those who do not own capital

have it very rough. John has the option of hiring documented workers, both immigrants and

Americans. However, he wants to reduce his costs by getting cheap, illegal labor. The same thing

would happen in a free-market economy. Without the intervention of the government, many

employers would pay peanuts. They would even come together to set meager rates, as this would

allow them to make profits. It is because of people like John that the government's involvement

in the market is justified. If the government did not intervene, many people like John would

emerge, and many people would be on the receiving end of an utterly unethical market system.