Exam 2: Business Ethics and Social Responsibility

Milton Friedman's standard for business social responsibility is one that requires a company to do all that it can for its community.

Discuss the following advertising issues and determine whether the ads are ethical. a. $\underline{\text{Mrs. Butterworth's}}$ syrup has a label that states there is "Grade A Butter" in the syrup.The fine print on the label describes "0.4 percent butter" in the "syrup product." b. $\underline{\text{Carnation Coffeemate Lite }}$ is advertised as having "50% LESS FAT." The claim is true but there is less than 0.5 grams of fat eliminated from Lite as compared to regular $\underline{\text{Coffeemate}}$ .It is important to understand that the average American consumes 100 grams of fat per day.

Situational ethics is also known as moral relativism.

The policy on travel reimbursement at Public Service Company is that receipts for meals under $25.00 are not required.Internal auditors at Public Service have recently discovered that 80 percent of all meal submissions are in a range from $12.50 to $12.99.When one manager is questioned about his submissions and those of his employees he responds,"So,they make a little bit on meals - it helps their miserable salaries." The manager's evaluation:

Rationalization is one form of ethical analysis.

The Alabama Attorney General recently filed suit in federal court in Montgomery,Alabama,alleging that Maytag secretly reconditioned defective microwave ovens at its Magic Chef plant in Anniston,Alabama; altered their serial numbers; and sold them as new.Janis Cooper,a vice president for Maytag,says the company is reviewing its procedures at the plant and that Maytag "considers the trust of our customers very important." Regardless of whether the allegations are true,what problems will Maytag experience as a result of the incident?

To obtain the protections and benefits of the sentencing guidelines,companies must have a code of ethics.

Having a code of ethics does not reduce a company's sentence under the federal sentencing guidelines.

The enlightened self-interest school manager serves only the shareholder.

Ethics can provide a strategic advantage for companies.

The "Tony Bennett Factor" refers to the importance of adhering to values as a key to long-term success.

Which school most parallels the Friedman model for social responsibility?

The level of cheating in high schools and colleges is declining.

Why does the late Dr.Milton Friedman feel that managers should not involve their companies in social issues?

Professor Ahlstrom asked her student, Jay Knopf, if he had a chance to look at the reading assignment for the day’s class. Knopf replied, “Yes, I have.” When Professor Ahlstrom asked Knopf a question about the reading, he did not know the answer. Professor Ahlstrom said, “I thought you said you had read the assignment.” Knopf replied, “You didn’t ask me if I had read the assignment, you asked me if I had a chance to look at the assignment, and I did look.” There is no ethical category that applies to this situation.

Discuss some similarities of the countries listed as the most corrupt in the 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index.

A 2012 Josephson Institute study found nearly half of high school students copied homework from other students.

An ethics officer and/or ethics hotline are both critical to an ethical culture in a company.

Once a legal loophole has been used to the advantage of business and the disadvantage of a customer,the number of options for self-regulation declines.

​VW discovered that its engineers had developed a software program that allowed some of its car models to run without emissions controls except when the cars were undergoing emissions testing.The company goal was to reduce emissions and maintain fuel efficiency.The falsification of emissions data is a federal crime.Which of the following ethical resolution models would have helped VW employees analyze their conduct better as they were developing this software?