Assignment-3

Etch-A-Sketch Case Study

Rashpreet kaur Shergill (200546387)

Kamalraj Hyginus Martin (200532541)
1.
Ethics, also called moral philosophy, is the discipline concerned with what is
morally good and bad and morally right and wrong. The term is also applied to
any system or theory of moral values or principles. The Ohio Art Company's
decision to shift manufacturing to China was moral. First, and probably most
important, the company did not violate any laws, and its judgment to subsea was
depending on some other choices. If somehow the company did not find ways to
reduce manufacturing costs below $10, it could have gone bankrupt. The
company would have been unable to continue operations if production were not
relocated. Employees would have lost their jobs in either scenario. The primary
obligation of the company was to generate returns within legal limitations.
Moreover, the company's decision profited stockholders, which is regarded as an
ethical choice.
Moreover, the responsibilities of Ohio Art Company to its staff members must
also be regarded. The company, which the community relates as relatives, should
not immediately disregard its staff members. They have a duty to safeguard the
needs of the entire community. On the contrary side, it was unethical to its
Chinese employees in that it did not even assure minimal level conditions for
workers in China.
The economic benefit of Ohio Art Company's decision was that the business did
not even go bankrupt, allowing it to compete effectively with all other large
retailers (such as Walmart and Toys 'R' Us") and that the shareholders remained a
source of income for their home nation, i.e., the political establishment. The firm
was also able to provide jobs to poor Chinese locals, who've been capable of
moving from the countryside to the city, thanks to higher-paying jobs. American
consumers, on the other hand, profited from cheaper rates. In terms of social
costs, the company's closure led to the demise of the local area. Given that Bryan
has a population of only 8,000 people, 100 people lost their jobs.
Moreover, employment conditions in China were deplorable, with workers living
in deplorable conditions and earning pitiful wages.
Finally, would have the production not been relocated, Ohio Art Company would
have lost its ability to compete and go bankrupt. But in the other hand, if the
company was willing to search for several other alternate solutions and ways of
saving money, such as reducing expenditures, they might well be able to continue
to compete.

2.
We can infer that Ohio Art should re-evaluate its agreement with Kin Ki to
produce Etch-A-Sketch toys on the basis that the New York Times' depiction of
working conditions is accurate. Regardless of the country in which they reside,
people shouldn't be treated so harshly. Human force exploitation is not regarded
as a moral act. We can see that the Ohio art company chose to outsource the
production operations to the kin ki because they trusted the information they had
been given. Having stated that, it is the obligation of the Ohio art enterprise to
confirm any information provided by their subcontractors. Additionally, the OAC
has not purposefully engaged in the unethical practise as they intend to be.
On the other hand, the argument put forth by others, however, is that since all
Chinese manufacturers operate sweat shops, this is part of their culture and way
of life. Some communities value their reputation for hard work and place a
greater emphasis on using human resources as efficiently as possible to grow
their total economy. For instance, Japan forced its inhabitants to work hard and
continually for the wellbeing of the country and to make up for the losses
following the Second World War. Denying fundamental rights, however, is
intolerable at all costs. Thus, Ohio Art should refrain from influencing their
standards. Yet, rather than spreading misinformation, Kin Ki manufacturers have a
responsibility to tell Ohio Art of their labour conditions. Ohio Art Company's
contract with Kin Ki must therefore be terminated.

3. Mr. Killgallon, in our opinion, is conscious of the labor problems at Kin Ki. Ohio
Art Company has emerged as one of the leading companies in the toy market
since the 1960s. They have been so productive that their own total sales topped
100 million units. They have indeed achieved a high benchmark and therefore are
able to prepare to internationalize their manufacturing, as users did with Kin Ki.
When they made the decision to export their Etch-A-Sketch manufacturing to
China, they should really have taken into account numerous considerations
including accessibility, labor standards, and conditions of employment. Mr.
Killgallon, as CEO of Ohio Art Company, should be aware of the specifics and
criteria for expanding internationally.
As a good business executive, he must be conscious of the employment
conditions in China. They have studied and regarded all the working conditions in
China since the start of their journey of heading there. The company executive
must then verify and monitor their workforce employment conditions because
they could be prosecuted if some problem occurs with the workers subsequently.
Throughout this case, we believe the company executives have been conscious of
the employment conditions but chose to overlook those in order to turn a profit.
They wished that no one was conscious of their toiling manual labor in China and
that they would remain profitable.
4.
The Ohio Art Company has a variety of strategies for preventing to appear in the
New York times in a bad way. Additionally, they must be tough with kin ki and
their ethics to conceal such negative statements. The Ohio art company has the
right to demand their suppliers to work no more than 40 hours each week. To
obtain accurate information about the Kin ki and their moral conduct, they ought
to choose an internal regional manager. The human rights and work ethics of the
nation in which they are working should be thoroughly taught to these managers.
They must make sure there is no trained or semi-skilled labour shortage in the
organisation because this forces employees to work overtime. The tasks,
obligations, and compensation of the employees should all be specified in the
employment contract.
More breaks should be permitted for the workers during their shift.This allows the
employees to regain their energy and work efficiently without any tiredness. Strict
compliance with the minimum wage standard is required. Making certain that all
employees have access to pension and medical plans. This makes the employees
safer and more secured while working in the manufacturing environment. To
ensure the workers' human rights, the company must annually inspect its
subcontractors and suppliers by the in-house researchers and vigilance team.
These are a few of the actions the company needs to ensure the basic human
rights and work ethics, as well as to raise its profile.

References:

1. https://www.britannica.com/topic/ethics-philosophy .
2. https://prod.reader-ui.prod.mheducation.com/epub/sn_39bf9/data-uuid-
1c3033a58484424ebdc7b7264b169fe5