Please read each passage below, I need a minimum of 150 words for each part (1 & 2 ) which is a total of 300 words in response. I DO NOT need a reference or title page, however please provide the reference(s) underneath the passage. Please label as I have done below, example Part 1 and place your response along with the reference. Please cite properly and use correct grammar.
PART 1
Ethical dilemma’s in the 21st century have been brought to light more frequently in recent areas due to an abundance of information sharing. News outlets are not the only method of transporting information about unethical behavior within a company, in many cases, and issues have seen a surge in gaining light through social media platforms. Such was the case with Frito Lay in Topeka, Kansas over the summer of 2021 when a strike of approximately 80% of the workforce caused the Frito Lay plant to revisit some of the working conditions dictated by a toxic workplace culture.
A toxic workplace culture is an issue that all organizations can experience regardless of industry association or business model. Unethical leadership behavior can carry through an entire organization quickly that can lead to further ethical issues in the future. Stories of toxic workplace cultures branching from poor leadership, undesirable consequences, and varying standards for employees can all fall under this category. Long-established working conditions and cultural norms can no longer be the standard of how a business operates. Diversification of the workforce and hiring individuals with ethical standards must be considered when needing to make a cultural shift. “With the current emphasis in many organization to hire for cultural fit, a toxic culture can be exacerbated by continually repopulating the company with like-minded personalities and toxic mentalities” (MSU, 2022).
With the case of Frito Lay, the lack of immediate response gave way to a public outcry for conditional change by changing the culture of the work. Complaints of 12-hour work days with no breaks, 7-day work weeks, and even reports of a person being kicked to the side of the production line after collapsing were magnified through social media interpretations. According to Gonzalez-Padron, “Companies saw increased societal pressure to take responsibility for the direct and indirect outcomes from their core business. Consumer groups used social media or protests to generate public outcries for responsible business” (Gonzalez-Padron, 2015). The strike caused a number of outages throughout the country, from a product supply standpoint, that generated limited availability and cost the company millions in sales. If Frito Lay would have addressed the issue quicker, it was not until 14 days after the strike when addressed to the public, the public outcry and massive social media pull for a better working environment could have saved the damage to the reputation of the company and less worldwide media coverage of the event.
Frito-Lay. (2021). Frito-Lay Statements Regarding Topeka Strike. Retrieved from https://www.fritolay.com/frito-lay-statement-regarding-topeka-strike
Gonzalez-Padron, T. (2015). Business ethics and social responsibility for managers. Zovio.
Michigan State University Online. (2022). 5 Common Ethical Issues in the Workplace. Retrieved from https://michiganstateuniversityonline.com/resources/leadership/common-ethical-issues-in-the-workplace/
PART 2
One of the most critical ethical dilemmas that a business can face is ignoring or hiding its negative impact on the environment, which is essentially a consideration of sustainability in the business. Companies that refuse to consider the effects of their business on the environment and society as a whole do so at their own risk, but that is a large risk to take when public opinion gets involved. For example, in a 2019 article in The Guardian, it was reported that an influential investor partnership worth ~10 trillion dollars accused major companies such as Amazon and ExxonMobil of failing to disclose key facts pertaining to the companies’ effects of doing business on the environment. The companies accused were misleading both internal and external stakeholders on the true impact of their business on the “climate crisis, water shortages, and deforestation” (Ambrose, 2019). In this instance, both the lack of transparency with the internal/external stakeholders and the actual damage to the environment are detrimental to all involved, as consumers and investors will unintentionally continue to support brands that are harming the environment when those brands are not transparent. This proposes a major ethical dilemma as climate change has become a major concern for people all over the world, from regular citizens to those in global corporations.
In recent years, many companies have decided to implement sustainable principles and strategies in their organizational goals. There are many possible reasons for the increase in consideration for the environment, but the most important influence may be that by intentionally addressing global issues, sustainable business practices can actually drive business success (Spiliakos, 2018). In fact, there are currently 193 countries worldwide that have committed to incorporating the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals to pursue a more sustainable world by 2030 (Neufeld, 2021). Once these initiatives trickle down to the businesses in the participating countries, more companies will be legally required to report the accurate findings of the effects of their business on the environment and to take action if they are found to be harmful.
References
Ambrose, J. (2019, June 16). Major global firms accused of concealing their environmental impact. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/jun/16/major-global-firms-accused-of-concealing-their-environmental-impact (Links to an external site.)
Neufeld, D. (2021, March 18). How many companies are meeting the UN SDGs? World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/03/how-aligned-are-un-companies-with-their-sustainable-development-goals/ (Links to an external site.)
Spiliakos, A. (2018, October 10). What Is Sustainability in Business? | HBS Online. Business Insights Blog. https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/what-is-sustainability-in-business (Links to an external site.)
