International business has scaled significantly over the last thirty to forty years due to increase competition, agreements between nations created by the General Agreement in Trade and Tariffs (GATT), and opportunities created by technology. There are a wide variety of corporations that have expanded their operations through increased sales to international customers, establishing facilities in foreign locations to leveraging different resources, or through the use of subcontractors for product development and manufacturing. Nike is one organization that has established a global presence. This document will describe some of the ethical issues that Nike has faced due to use of subcontractors to manufacture its products. These issues and
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The logo “Just Do It!” is recognized by numerous individuals as the Nike brand and has become a very popular phase within many cultures. In 2008, Nike had over $10 billion in annual revenues, sold its products in over 140 countries and had 600 factories owned by subcontractors that made its shoes and apparel (Hill, 2008). Although Nike’s brand is well known around the world, this brand suffered significant damage with some unethical business practices that surfaced in the 1990’s. Subcontractors that Nike used to manufacture their products were treating there employees poorly and had awful working conditions. Nike was accused of running sweatshops in areas of the world where the populations were poor. Wages paid to employees were less than minimum standards for those areas and the appropriate safety precautions were not being employed to protect the workers from harm (Hill, 2008). Ethics is defined as “an individual’s personal beliefs about whether a decision, behavior, or action is right or wrong” (Griffin & Pustay, 2010, p. 122). Although Nike was not violating any laws, nor were any of the subcontractors that employed the individuals, the situation raised ethical concerns about Nike’s organizational behavior. Nike was faced with accusations about their company and business practices which affected their relationships with their sponsors and customer base (Hill, …show more content…
“Kantian ethics holds that people should be treated as ends and never purely as means to the ends of others” (Hill, 2008, p. 142). Scholars that have studies Kant’s ethical philosophy have found it to be incomplete in its logic. It is a very general statement and does not support emotions or other critical elements that surface in ethical dilemmas. Nike’s behavior was not in line with this ethical philosophy. The organization was treating their subcontractor employee’s as a just a means to an end. When Nike established their ethical code of conduct, they included language to conform to the Kantian ethical philosophy. This language stated that “Nike partners with contractors who share our commitment to best practices and continuous improvement in management practices that respect the rights of all employees” (Hummels & Timmer, 2004, p. 77). The also included language to address their expectations on the safety and health of their employees in the
The logo “Just Do It!” is recognized by numerous individuals as the Nike brand and has become a very popular phase within many cultures. In 2008, Nike had over $10 billion in annual revenues, sold its products in over 140 countries and had 600 factories owned by subcontractors that made its shoes and apparel (Hill, 2008). Although Nike’s brand is well known around the world, this brand suffered significant damage with some unethical business practices that surfaced in the 1990’s. Subcontractors that Nike used to manufacture their products were treating there employees poorly and had awful working conditions. Nike was accused of running sweatshops in areas of the world where the populations were poor. Wages paid to employees were less than minimum standards for those areas and the appropriate safety precautions were not being employed to protect the workers from harm (Hill, 2008). Ethics is defined as “an individual’s personal beliefs about whether a decision, behavior, or action is right or wrong” (Griffin & Pustay, 2010, p. 122). Although Nike was not violating any laws, nor were any of the subcontractors that employed the individuals, the situation raised ethical concerns about Nike’s organizational behavior. Nike was faced with accusations about their company and business practices which affected their relationships with their sponsors and customer base (Hill, …show more content…
“Kantian ethics holds that people should be treated as ends and never purely as means to the ends of others” (Hill, 2008, p. 142). Scholars that have studies Kant’s ethical philosophy have found it to be incomplete in its logic. It is a very general statement and does not support emotions or other critical elements that surface in ethical dilemmas. Nike’s behavior was not in line with this ethical philosophy. The organization was treating their subcontractor employee’s as a just a means to an end. When Nike established their ethical code of conduct, they included language to conform to the Kantian ethical philosophy. This language stated that “Nike partners with contractors who share our commitment to best practices and continuous improvement in management practices that respect the rights of all employees” (Hummels & Timmer, 2004, p. 77). The also included language to address their expectations on the safety and health of their employees in the