Case Study: Conscience Or The Competitive Edge '

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Conscience or the Competitive Edge? Olivia Jones, coming from a large British clothing company from the U.K. visits Bombay for a business trip and faces an ethical dilemma at the point of her return back to her country. Coming from a first world country into a third world country she was faced with nothing but good hospitality and great luxury as if she was still in her own country. Prior to going on her business trip, Olivia had already made a negotiation regarding the price of the shirts her company was going to purchase. Towards the end of her trip, she had requested to visit this factory which was located in an area with slums, the factory being only 5 feet high. She also learns how the factory workers were very poor and were working 12-hour shifts at a time unlike a typical 8- hour shift. They …show more content…
The relevant stakeholders, in this case include the employees of the clothing company, being Olivia Jones, the factory workers making these shirts for the company, the customers purchasing the clothes and the community in general. When it comes down to Olivia, if she makes the decision to tell her company what she witnessed was wrong, she can risk losing her job where as if she continues doing her job without saying anything she will feel guilty for the poor factory workers but keep her job. The factory workers may get paid more, have lesser hours and work in better conditions if an ethical decision is made. On the flip side, if Olivia decides to keep her best interest in her company only, then the factory owners will continue working in the same, tough conditions. The customers will be charged a higher price in order for the company to pay more to the factory but if the price is kept at a negotiated amount the customers will pay for the same low price. The community function more effectively as a whole if the right decision is made otherwise there will be greater