...Job Discrimination: Its Nature * Discrimination in its root meaning refers to the act of distinguishing one object from another. * In modern usage, the term refers to "wrongful discrimination," or distinguishing among people on the basis of prejudice instead of individual merit. * Discrimination in employment involves three basic elements: * It must be a decision not based on individual merit. * The decision must derive from racial or sexual prejudice. * The decision must have a harmful impact on the interest of employees Forms of Discrimination: Intentional and Institutional Aspects * Discriminatory acts can be categorized according to the extent to which they are intentional and institutionalized. * An act may be part of the isolated behavior of an individual: * Intentionally discriminates based on personal prejudice. * An act may be part of the routine, institutionalized behavior of a group. * The act must intentionally discriminate out of personal prejudice. * An act may be part of the isolated behavior of a single individual who unintentionally discriminates because he or she uncritically adopts the practices and stereotypes of his or her society * An act may be part of the systematic routine of a group that unintentionally discriminates because group members uncritically incorporate the discriminatory practices of society. Discrimination: Its Extent * Discrimination exists when a...
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...Business Ethics Case Study Peter Paulson's offer to provide the previous case documents to Steven Craig is professionally unethical but morally permissible. In addition, I believe that the offer was not theft but possession by entitlement and permission. His actions are a great example of how professional ethics and morals don't always align in the analysis of a case. Part (1) Peter Paulson's offer although helpful commits the Texas Board of Professional Engineers code. As an expert witness for a previous case against PPC, Peter Paulson was exposed to certain documents which would help with the current case against the same company. The code states in 137.63.c.4 that "The engineer shall not give, offer or promise to pay or deliver, directly or indirectly, any commission, gift, favor, gratuity, benefit, or reward as an inducement to secure any specific engineering work or assignment." In Peter's case he was asked to "secure specific engineering work" for a fee. The practice of sharing the public documents is legal and professionally ethical but when a fee is procured for the transaction the act becomes unethical. The documents in both cases were public because they were documents of court which could be obtained by any lawyer. When Peter placed a fee on documents that were public his actions were in violation of the code and made his offer professionally unethical. Part (II) Table 1. Line drawling of "The Offer" showing non-theft (Peter's perspective) Feature Theft...
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...take is the utilitarian one with the lowest net costs. (Points : 1) 2. Utilitarianism is attractive to many because it matches the views we tend to hold when discussing governmental policies and public goods. (Points : 1) 3. Negative rights are defined entirely in terms of the duties others have not to interfere with you. (Points : 1) 4. Cost-benefit analysis is used to determine the desirability of investing in a project (such as a dam, factory, or public park) by figuring whether its present and future economic benefits outweigh its present and future economic costs. (Points : 1) 5. Rule utilitarianism looks only at moral rules of a particular action. (Points : 1) 6. Intrinsic goods are things that are desired for their own sake, such as health and life. (Points : 1) 7. Considerations to follow in determining what the moral thing to do might be are: (Points : 1) 8. UNOCAL worked with the Burmese army to push the pipeline using forced labor. (Points : 1) 9. Major problems with the utilitarian reliance on measurement include: (Points : 1) 10. UNOCAL agrees that it shares responsibility with the Burmese army over treatment of pipeline citizens. (Points : 1) 11. Many economists now advocate retaining the market system and private property while modifying their workings through government regulation. This is known as a: (Points : 1) 12. According to Locke, the power of government should be: (Points : 1) 13. Modifying Locke's views on free markets, Adam Smith's arguments rest on __________...
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...Business Ethics Case Study Peter Paulson's offer to provide the previous case documents to Steven Craig is professionally unethical but morally permissible. In addition, I believe that the offer was not theft but possession by entitlement and permission. His actions are a great example of how professional ethics and morals don't always align in the analysis of a case. Part (1) Peter Paulson's offer although helpful commits the Texas Board of Professional Engineers code. As an expert witness for a previous case against PPC, Peter Paulson was exposed to certain documents which would help with the current case against the same company. The code states in 137.63.c.4 that "The engineer shall not give, offer or promise to pay or deliver, directly or indirectly, any commission, gift, favor, gratuity, benefit, or reward as an inducement to secure any specific engineering work or assignment." In Peter's case he was asked to "secure specific engineering work" for a fee. The practice of sharing the public documents is legal and professionally ethical but when a fee is procured for the transaction the act becomes unethical. The documents in both cases were public because they were documents of court which could be obtained by any lawyer. When Peter placed a fee on documents that were public his actions were in violation of the code and made his offer professionally unethical. Part (II) Table 1. Line drawling of "The Offer" showing non-theft (Peter's perspective) Feature Theft...
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...CHAPTER SUMMARY – CHAPTER 1 – ETHICS IN THE WORLD OF BUSINESS Frequently, the ethically correct course of action is clear, and people in business act accordingly. Exceptions occur when there is uncertainty about ethical obligations in particular situations or when considerations of ethics come into conflict with the practical demands of business. In deciding on an ethical course of action, we can rely to some extent on the rules of right conduct that we employ in everyday life. However, business activity also has some features that might limit the applicability of our ordinary ethical views. One distinguishing feature of business is its economic character which can be summarized as the conduct of buyers and seller and employers and employees. A second distinguishing feature of business is that it typically takes place in organizations which is a hierarchical system of functionally defined positions designed to achieve some goal or set of goals. Because business involves economic relations and transactions that take place in markets and also in organizations, it raises ethical issues for which the ethics of everyday life has not prepared us. Decisions making occurs on several distinct levels: the level of the individual, the organization, and the business system. The level of the individual represents situations that confront them in the workplace and require them to make a decision about their own well-being. The level of the organization can be identified...
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...Women vs. Wal Mart Ethical Case Analysis Key Ethical Issue The main ethical issue in the Women and Wal-Mart case is its discrimination of women in the workforce, and how they go hand in hand with the utility, rights, and justice arguments of discrimination. The Utilitarian arguments claim that discrimination leads to inefficient use of human resources. This applies to the Wal-Mart case because they were not getting full use out of their employees because they would often times promote a man instead of a woman, even if she had more experience and was better qualified. Studies conducted by a statistical expert that the six women hired, Richard Drogin, revealed that a much larger amount of men were receiving promotions at every level in the Wal-Mart workplace, even though women’s performance ratings were higher than men’s. Wal-Mart was clearly not promoting or giving benefits to these women because of their gender, and they were stuck underneath the “glass ceiling.” The Rights-based arguments claim that discrimination violates basic human rights. In this case, Wal-Mart didn’t view women to be equal to men because men were receiving the promotions when it should have been the women, as stated before. A Kantian argument also states that a person would not want to be discriminated on the basis of their characteristics that do not affect the person’s ability to perform a job, in this case, being a woman. Wal-Mart is not viewing their male and female employees as equals, as...
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...The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals that is founded on his belief that the worth of man is inherent in his skill to reason. John Stuart Mill holds another belief as presented in the book, Utilitarianism, which is seemingly conflicting with the thoughts of Kant. What is most unique about the ethics of morality is the idea of responsibilities to particular individuals. According to both Mill and Kant, moral obligations are not fundamentally particularistic because they are rooted in universal moral principles. Both philosophers have made great impacts in their niche areas in the field. An analysis of their theories may help develop a better understanding of them and their theories. Mill holds an empiricist theory while Kant holds a rationalist theory. Kant explains morality through forms that he believes are essential to free and sensible judgment. Mill’s utilitarian approach is a form of consequential theory because the rightness or wrongness of an act is determined by the outcomes. Kant’s ethics of duty is the foundation for his categorical imperative, which gives the basis for his universal duty based theory. Mill’s theory of utilitarianism is the main structure of consequentialism. John Stuart Mill, who made utilitarianism the subject of one of...
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...Dishonest * Unjust 3. Purpose of ethical theories: Move beyond Divine Command Theory 1. Decisions are made based on guidance from a divine being * E.g., Ten Commandments, U.S. Constitution Joe’s Dilemma, Revisited Using Divine Command Theory, make the argument that: 1. Joe should keep the money Thou shall not steal 2. Joe should give the money to his father Honor thy father and thy mother Divine Command Theory Pros? : Can be simple Wide buy-in in homogenous groups Realistic? Unethical behavior can be constrained Cons? : Creates conflict in heterogeneous groups Conflicting Ethical Egoism Theory Everything is determined by self-interest * We should limit our judgment to our own ethical egos and not interfere with judgment of others * Laws are needed to maintain order. Adherents Ayn Rand, Thomas Hobbes * There is a positive harmony of interests among free, rational humans, such that no moral agent can rationally coerce another person consistently with his own long-term self-interest Adam Smith 1. Joe should keep the money. He wants to go to camp What makes people happy? Spending on Self or Others N =632: Nationally representative The Utilitarian Algorithm 1. Specify the range of possible actions. 2. Identify all who are affected by the action(s) 3. Estimate the aggregate consequences of the actions for their utilities...
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...principal? I think this makes Mills argument confusing and causes the structure of it to become fragmented. Mill then connects ones desires to its ends and that in the utilitarian doctrine, happiness is the only thing that is desired no matter if it is certainly direct or in a more indirect manor. He uses this structure to prove that each person’s desires and actions are driven solely by their own general happiness. The very popular phrase “if a tree falls in a forest and nobody is around to hear it, does it make a sound” in my eyes...
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...Utilitarian And Kantian Concept Of Punishment Print this Table of Contents S. No. | Content | Page No. | | Introduction | 3. | | Research Methodology | 4. | | Chapter 1: Utility of Punishment | 6. | | Chapter 2: Retributive Justice And Legitimacy | 10. | | Chapter 3: Can Capital Punishment Be Justified | 13 | | Chapter 4: Finding A Middle Way | 15. | | Conclusion | 17. | | Bibliography | 18. | Introduction Punishment entails the intentional infliction of pain or some type of deprivation in an institutionalized form that individuals would generally prefer to avoid. This requires justification to be morally acceptable. Attempts to provide justification for infliction of punishment are made by various punishment theories. Punishment theories generally can be separated into a handful of philosophical camps—consequentialist theories, non-consequentialist theories, and mixed (or hybrid) theories that contain both consequentialist and non-consequentialist elements. What distinguishes these theories is their focus and goals: Consequentialist theories are forward-looking, concerned with the future consequences of punishment; non-consequentialist theories are backward-looking, interested solely in past acts and mental states; and mixed theories are both forward- and backward-looking, with each hybrid placing a different emphasis on culpable past conduct versus future consequences. The present paper will briefly examine the two dominant consequentialist and...
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...them - see the key quotes section under the topic area of each moral theory. And if you'd like to blog on anything in the news send it to me - I'd be delighted to read it and - if it fulfils the criterion of good ethical thinking (!), post it!!!!! Utilitarianism is a normative, consequentialist, empirical philosophy which links the idea of a good action to one which promotes maximum pleasure or happiness, found by adding up costs and benefits (or pains and pleasures). It has two classic formulations - Bentham's hedonistic (pleasure-based) act utilitarianism and Mill's eudaimonistic (happiness-based) rule utilitarianism. In this article we make some preliminary comments on Bentham and Mill before analysing a famous case in 1972 where utilitarian ethics seemed to cause a very immoral outcome - the Ford Pinto case. Click here for a powerpoint presentation on the same subject...
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...Ethics 368 22 June 2014 The Ford Pinto Case from a Utilitarian Perspective “Utilitarianism adopts a teleological approach to ethics and claims that actions are to be judged by their consequences” (DeGeorge 44). When looking at an decision from this view, we are to be impartial that decisions are not right or wrong by themselves, but also that we must analyze the results to determine if actions are good or bad. We know that Ford became more completive in the subcompact market from the Pinto sold in 1971 thru 1978. Ford also captured their fair share of the market for subcompact. There are several things about utilitarianism that make it appealing as a standard for moral decisions in business. One of them being “act utilitarian”, which holds individual actions to a test. “A theory developed by Jeremy Bentham and introduced to the world in his book An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation, released in back in the 17th century” (Bentham, Jeremy). There are many ways to determine the outcome of an action. Our reactions to pain and pleasure is a measure. The good that an action provides for the majority of those involved or the greatest number of people is another. Ford had a product to deliver and consumers wanted it. In determining whether this action produces more pain or pleasure for the majority, hedonistic calculus can be used. It is easier to be impartial, when using this calculus on an ethical decision. The calculus weighs all the factors involved...
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...Ryan Bruvik October 8, 2014 Faith and Values Professor Mann Muay Thai In this essay I will discuss why 20,000 Thai children (under the age of 15) participating in Muay Thai, for prize money, is unethical from utilitarian and deontological perspectives. Muay Thai is defined as “a martial art developed in Thailand in which blows may be struck with the fists, elbows, knees, and shins” (Collins Dictionary). It is a male combat sport much like boxing that lasts five three-minute rounds and has been apart of the Thai culture for over 700 years (Marantz 2013). This paper will explain both sides of the argument for and against this ethical dilemma. From a Utilitarian perspective I would like to discuss how underage children participating in Muay Thai for money does not provide the greatest benefit for the greatest number currently or in the future. The major problem with Utilitarianism is that we do not know the future, as it is unpredictable. The main Utilitarian argument for children fighting is the income from fighting (win or lose) that helps support the children’s families in Thailand and serves as a mean to escape poverty (Marantz 2013). It also helps boost the economy through things such as tourism and gambling. These examples show that children fighters can bring a lot of good for a great number of people; however this might not necessarily be the greatest good. The major cons of Muay Thai include parents strictly relying on their underage children for income and...
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...Business Ethics Concepts & Cases Manuel G. Velasquez ABSTRACT Summary of the main points of the first two chapters in the book. The remaining chapters are application of the concepts summarized as relating to political forms of government and market systems. These further chapters are less relevant to the DBA class that this summary was prepared for. Chapter 1 – Ethics & Business Ethics is the principles of conduct governing an individual or a group. It is the study of morality. Morality are the standards that an individual or group has about what is right and wrong, or good and evil. Moral norms can usually be expressed as general rules or statements, such as “Always tell the truth”. Moral values can usually be expressed as statements describing objects or features of objects that have worth, such as “Honesty is good” and “Injustice is bad”. Five characteristics can help pin down the nature of moral standards. 1. Moral standards deal with matters that we think can seriously injure or seriously benefit human beings. 2. Moral standards are not established or changed by the decisions of particular legislative bodies. 3. We feel that moral standards should be preferred to other values including (especially?) self-interest. 4. Moral standards are based on impartial considerations. – that is, a point of view that does not evaluate standards according to whether they advance the interests of a particular individual or group, but one that goes...
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...Business Ethics Concepts & Cases Manuel G. Velasquez ABSTRACT Summary of the main points of the first two chapters in the book. The remaining chapters are application of the concepts summarized as relating to political forms of government and market systems. These further chapters are less relevant to the DBA class that this summary was prepared for. Chapter 1 – Ethics & Business Ethics is the principles of conduct governing an individual or a group. It is the study of morality. Morality are the standards that an individual or group has about what is right and wrong, or good and evil. Moral norms can usually be expressed as general rules or statements, such as “Always tell the truth”. Moral values can usually be expressed as statements describing objects or features of objects that have worth, such as “Honesty is good” and “Injustice is bad”. Five characteristics can help pin down the nature of moral standards. 1. Moral standards deal with matters that we think can seriously injure or seriously benefit human beings. 2. Moral standards are not established or changed by the decisions of particular legislative bodies. 3. We feel that moral standards should be preferred to other values including (especially?) self-interest. 4. Moral standards are based on impartial considerations. – that is, a point of view that does not evaluate standards according to whether they advance the interests of a particular individual or group,...
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