Name: MUHAMMAD ALIF BIN MOHAMMAD ANUAR

ID Number: AM2001006550

Section No: Section 01

Lecturer: ZILA BINTI ZAINAL ABIDIN

Course and Course Code Submission Date:

BUS3023 : BUSINESS ETHICS 10 June 2022

Assignment No. / Title Extension & Late submission:

Allowed / Disallowed
Individual Assignment
DISALLOWED
Assignment type % of Assignment Mark Returning Date:

INDIVIDUAL 15%

Penalties:

1. 10% of the original mark will be deducted for every one-week period after the submission date

2. No work will be accepted after two weeks of the deadline

3. If you were unable to submit the coursework on time due to extenuating circumstances, you may
be eligible for an extension

4. Extension will not exceed one week

Declaration:
I/we the undersigned confirm that I/we have read and agree to abide by these regulations on plagiarism
and cheating. I/we confirm that this piece of work is my/our own. I/we consent to appropriate storage of
our work for checking to ensure that there is no plagiarism/ academic cheating.

Signature: Alif Anuar

(Alif Anuar)

This section may be used for feedback or other information

Table of Contents

Background .............................................................................................................................. 1
Issue 1: Treat employee unfairly ............................................................................................. 2
Issue 2: Recyclability claims. .................................................................................................. 3
Recommendations ................................................................................................................... 4
 Raise a minimum wages ............................................................................................... 4
 Bringing in experts to review their salary and promotion policies on a regular basis
4
 Innovation ...................................................................................................................... 5
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 6
References ............................................................................................................................... 7
Background

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. is not only the world's largest retailer, but it is also the world's
largest corporation. Wal-Mart was founded by Sam Walton with a single store in Rogers,
Arkansas, in 1962. By 1968, the company had expanded outside of Arkansas, and by the
1980s, it had opened stores in every state in the US, as well as its first locations in Canada. By
1995, it had opened stores in every state in the US, as well as in Canada.

Sam's competitors believed that his vision of a successful business based on low costs
and excellent service would never work. The company's success, as it turned out, exceeded
even Sam's hopes. The company swiftly expanded outside of Arkansas, mostly across the deep
American South, as a result of its success in all of the aforementioned locations. Walmart had
grown to become the largest retailer in the United States by 1990, and it began to expand
abroad by opening a new store in Mexico, followed by outlets in the United Kingdom, Germany,
China, and Canada.

Sam attributed Walmart's rapid development not only to the low prices that drew people
in, but also to his employees. He counted on them to provide a fantastic shopping experience
that would entice customers to return. Sam communicated his company's vision to employees in
a way that was almost unheard of in the business. He made them partners in the company's
success, and he was convinced that it was this relationship that made Walmart great. Sam's
Club, the company's warehouse club, opened in 1983, and the first Supercenter locations
opened in 1988. The chain had grown to over 11,000 outlets in 28 countries by the second
decade of the twenty-first century.

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Issue 1: Treat employee unfairly

According to recent research, Walmart is an unethical business and several arguments

support this claim. Unfair treatment is one of the most serious challenges that Walmart
employees confront. The issue is the employees' poor wages. The company's major goal is to
deliver inexpensive prices; nevertheless, this is only achievable by reducing operating costs.
That is, employees are frequently underpaid. Some employees are unable to afford health
insurance. Moreover, Women who work for the company have a slim possibility of
advancement. They are also paid less than men. Women make up more than 70% of the
workforce, with only a handful holding higher positions.

Furthermore, Walmart emphasizes that individuals should be paid for every minute they
work. This statement appears sensible and creates trust in the company. However, people are
not usually compensated for working overtime. To save money and reduce operating costs, the
corporation hires illegal immigrants as inexpensive labor. In September 2021, Walmart stated
that it would boost the minimum wage for Sam's Club locations from $11 to $15 an hour, but
Walmart employees were left out, while the parent corporation upped the minimum salary for
Walmart employees from $11 to merely $12 an hour.

Thousands of Walmart workers are still struggling to make ends meet due to poor pay,
and many are speaking out to agitate and push for a raise. Walmart employees who are part of
United for Respect for Walmart are campaigning for the firm to pay a $15 minimum wage. The
company should overcome such issues in order to flourish and progress, and customers and
employees will be satisfied. Dealing with the difficulties will only benefit the company because
they are an impediment to achieving the organization's goals.

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Issue 2: Recyclability claims.

Next issue is regarding recyclability claims. By labeling and advertising its different
private-label plastic products and packaging as recyclable, Walmart has engaged in illegal,
unfair, and deceptive business practices. According to Greenpeace Inc, Walmart indicates false
and misleading labels stating that its disposable plastic products and packaging are recyclable
when they are not. For that reason, Walmart has violated California consumer protection
regulations, such as the California Environmental Marketing Claims Act (EMCA), which prohibits
misleading environmental marketing claims.

The claims are false, misleading and deceptive because most consumers in California
do not have access to facilities that can recover the items made from plastics other than
polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or high-density polyethylene (HDPE). According to California
law, a corporation that labels its products as recyclable or otherwise environmentally friendly
must keep records to back up its claims, and must offer such proof to any member of the public
who requests it. Despite Greenpeace's repeated inquiries, Walmart has refused to give any
evidence to back up its recycling claims.

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Recommendations

 Raise a minimum wages

There is nothing Walmart can do to solve the problem except raise a minimum wage. Walmart
needs to raise their employees’ wages to at least $15, $18 or even $20 an hour. Therefore, it
would improve employee’s satisfaction. Increasing an employees' compensation will not only
relieve their current tension, but will also make them feel more confident about their future
prospects. Also, Helping an employee make ends meet is the best method to assist them
manage their financial stress. Because they will no longer be distracted by financial issues, their
productivity and satisfaction will improve. On top of that, it can also improve Walmart brand
reputation since the issues have been spread worldwide and damage their brand reputation.

 Bringing in experts to review their salary and promotion policies on a regular

basis

Given the volume of complaints, Walmart should acknowledge that there is most certainly a
problem and announce that they will take proactive measures to figure it out and ensure that it
does not happen again. Walmart will need to hire specialists to examine their pay and promotion
practices on a regular basis in order to produce the most equal employment policies possible,
and they will need to ramp up their efforts to educate employees about the dangers of
unconscious prejudice. Most significantly, Walmart must acknowledge that unconscious bias is
characterized by subtlety. For each case of gender discrimination in terms of compensation or
promotion, an explanation may often be offered. Patterns develop when compensation and
promotions are analyzed in aggregate. At this aggregate level, only Walmart can detect gender
prejudice.

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  Innovation

To begin with, while many businesses and governments are focused on recycling, this is only
one aspect of the picture. There is a pressing need to look past it. We all have a responsibility to
question features of the plastics system that appear to be unavoidable. Do we still desire
disposable carrier bags, for example, given that they are burned or thrown away after only a few
minutes of use? Investing in new ways to deliver items to people without generating plastic
waste will help alleviate this problem and create a $10 billion worldwide opportunity. Next, to
offer common direction and standards, businesses must define a "Global Plastics Protocol"
cooperatively. The existing method is far too permissive and unclear. "Bioplastic" and
"recyclable" are terms that might cause confusion and, in the worst-case scenario, provide a
safe sanctuary for green washing. A strategy like this might also help the industry agree on
material selections, ensuring that only appropriate materials that can be recycled, reused, or
biodegraded safely make the cut.

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Conclusion

To sum up, corporate social responsibility is no longer defined by how much money a
company donates to charity; rather, it is defined by how actively it participates in initiatives that
enhance people's lives. In the international business community, corporate responsibility has
emerged as a prominent topic and is gradually becoming a mainstream practise.CSR is an
important component of any company. It not only allows businesses and organizations to
communicate with customers, but it also gives them a platform to positively engage with the
world around them. Therefore, a corporation has responsibilities not only to society, but also to
those with whom it does business. Today's discretionary tasks may become tomorrow's ethical
responsibilities. According to Prof. Carroll, if businesses fail to meet their social responsibilities,
society will force them to comply with the law. Before that happens, it is recommended that
businesses engage in voluntary ethical and discretionary actions.

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References

Sainato, M. (2021, October 28). ‘You can’t pay bills on $12 an hour’: Walmart employees left out

of raises. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2021/oct/28/walmart-pay-

hourly-low-wages-working-conditions

Levine, J. (2019, May 21). Walmart Ordered to Stop Mistreating Workers – LaborPress.

LaborPress. https://www.laborpress.org/walmart-ordered-to-stop-mistreating-workers/

Segal, E. (2022, February 21). Walmart Is Sued For Gender And Race Discrimination By

EEOC. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/edwardsegal/2022/02/11/walmart-is-sued-for-

gender-and-race-discrimination-by-eeoc/?sh=799cb95c5614

Gregory, T. (2020, December 15). Walmart is misleading us on plastics. Greenpeace USA.

https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/walmart-is-misleading-us-on-plastics/