BUSINESS ETHICS 8
Running head: BUSINESS ETHICS 1
Business Ethics
Name
Institution
Introduction
The Chinese labor market has often been at the center of conversations as pundits assess the extent to which cheap labor continues to attract multinational companies into the country with the view of utilizing on reduced costs. However, even as this aspect of cheap labor continues to attract major global entities, there has emerged a concern related to business ethics due to the underlying concern about the handling of employees who offer employment in some of these international companies. The business ethics concerns, in this case, relate to the failure by the multinational companies to provide a friendly working environment for the employees as an aspect that has often led to claims of suicide as employees give into depression. In essence, it is notable that the multinational companies in China often use third-party companies that recruit and allocate labor to unsuspecting Chinese workers at meager prices.
The outcome of this approach is that the third party companies set stringent daily production targets for the workers, yet they pay such workers significantly low wages. The business ethics concerns, in this case, relate to the general handling and management of human resource among multinational companies working in China, and the emerging reality that these entities are using cheap labor as a tool towards exploiting these workers. On the same note, a more confounding issue has been the question of the reasons behind the notable cases of labor-related abuses in the country. This paper, therefore, seeks to assess the concerns related to labor abuses in China and the possible business ethics perspectives that may be derivable from this issue.
Literature Review
Krueger (2007) presents a critical point of view in relation to the underlying trend of multinationals pitching a tent in countries such as China in such of cheap labor. According to his research, the scholar notes that in recent years the decision by most of the multinationals to seek labor in China has been more about the lenient laws on labor relations than it is about the availability of cheap labor. The research by Krueger (2007) also notes that the ethical concerns around the improper handling of employees where such staff endures long working hours under immense pressure and in notably deplorable environments reveal a lack of regulatory framework in China. According to the research, it is impossible to encounter such extent of unethical handling of employees in Western countries an issue that often motivates global entities towards seeking such unethical approaches in their access to labor.
The sentiments are similar to the ones raised by Burke (2001) who notes that most multinationals operating in countries such as China have failed the test of ethical businesses due to the continuous use of exploitative means to achieve success without considering the welfare of the employees. The research by Burke (2001) reveals that in most cases, the only possible reason that does unethical business in countries such as China to thrive is the fail by such countries to adhere to ethical business standards. On the same note, similar research by Harrison & Scorse (2010) argues that businesses in countries such seem to focus on the outcome and rarely consider the means. The assertion brings to the fore the question of cheap labor in China and the possibility that this type of labor occurs under duress and is therefore not a result of an agreed set of terms. Pun et al. (2016) in their research on the recent Foxconn scandal notes that most of the multinationals use these third-party entities as a decoy towards promoting exploitative labor relations with gullible employees. The scholars note that the Apple scandal may have brought to the fore an underlying concern that has often been at the center of International Labor Relations dialogues which relates to fairness and the welfare of employees.
The study by Pun et al. (2016) reveals that most of the international businesses that head into countries such as China are more focused on the profits than on the welfare of the employees an issue that raises concerns about such entity’s ethical standards. Indeed, Gao (2009) also questions the underlying reasons that often lead to such extents of impunity among businesses in their handling of employees in China. The scholar reveals that most of the companies that are currently operational as international businesses in China seem to have a preoccupation with profits. Gao (2009) also notes that while companies should have a central objective of making profits, such purposes should not obscure the ability of these businesses to remain ethically grounded.
Wang & Juslin (2009) share the same views as Gao (2009) on the issue of the overall business objective vis-à-vis the need to uphold ethical standards. Perhaps, this then introduces the question of ethics and the extent to which a majority of companies in China fail to recognize the importance of upholding high levels of ethics regardless of the cost. Wang & Juslin (2009) however questions the role of Confucianism in China. According to Wang & Juslin (2009), while it is abundantly, evident that the Chinese ethical values are inclined towards benevolence and compassion, it is unclear how companies such as Foxconn thrive with such extreme inhumane handling of employees. The concerns, in this case, are primarily in consideration of the Western setting where there are rarely any religious inclinations when it comes to the handling of businesses (Wang & Juslin, 2009). To this end, there is an underlying argument that the Chinese business environment has failed the moral test of upholding the welfare of employees.
The Effects
Greenwood (2012) reveals that the effects of the approach to human resource in China to business are observable in both the short-term and the long-term. The scholar notes that over time, more companies in China have tended to focus more on the overall contribution to the economy of the country and less on the corporate agenda of providing a friendly working environment. The effects of this view are that the public has become more conforming to instances of exploitation and unethical handling of employees. Greenwood (2012) reveals that as long as these companies have willing individuals who are eager to work at low prices under overly deplorable conditions, then there is a chance that the Chinese business landscape will not be able to deal with the underlying concerns associated with unethical conduct.
In the end, it is also important to reveal that Greenwood also views the underlying Chinese culture as collective and therefore more inclined towards upholding ethical conduct. For this reason, the scholar argues that the extents of unethical handling of employees in the Chinese setting only serves to show that those multinationals have had a direct implication on labor rights and labor relations.
Methodology
The process of assessing the extents of unethical handling of employees in China must involve an evaluation of existing information and direct interactions with some of the people with firsthand knowledge.
Research Purpose
The purpose of this research will be to assess the possible business ethics issues related to employment in China. The paper will focus on the potential problems that affect multinationals in China about labor and the possible consequences of unethical handling of employees.
Research Approach
The research will adopt a deductive approach to the process of evaluation and will use a qualitative method in the study. The theoretical framework, in this case, focuses on job satisfaction as a critical focus on employee success vis-à-vis the consequentialism as a crucial model. The basis for this deductive approach is to provide an understanding of the possible reasoning behind a focus on profits as opposed to upholding decent handling of the workers.
Population and Sampling
The population sample, in this case, will focus on a wide range of respondents within the specific setting. The first group of respondents relates to employees who either have worked in these Chinese multinationals or are currently working in these entities. The workers in this context provide essential information on the possible issues that affect the employees and the extent to which this unethical conduct affects such employees. The second category within the population sample is the human resource management teams that manage multinational entities in China.
The human resource teams in this context will offer adequate information on the extents to which the companies have seemed to focus more on profits than on the humane handling of employees. Finally, the population sample will also utilize information from government officials with information on the legal framework and the ethical issues that the government must grapple with when allowing such multinationals to operate in the country.
Sampling Method
The process of developing research information on this topic will involve the use of non- random sampling. The sampling approach, in this case, may utilize non- probability approach that will not provide an equal chance to all the participants so that the process offers an opportunity for the researcher to identify the three categories of participants. The non- probability approach is the most appropriate in this case because it provides the process the requisite edge towards offering a wide ranged sample.
Collection Methods
The data collection process, in this case, will involve two different approaches. The first will be the use of interviews as a means of providing information on the three categories of participants. The discussions will utilize one on one interaction with the participants with the view of deriving information on the ethical issues that such entities are facing. The research will also use questionnaires that must be filled to provide supportive information on the topic. The business ethics issues, in this case, will emerge in the course of interviewing and assessing the questionnaires presented in the course of the research.
Finally, the research will also utilize secondary data from past literature, which in this case will include journals and current media on the issues affecting employees in China. The secondary data in this context will also provide information on the approaches that multinationals in China have been adopting in the course of cutting on labor costs. The data collection methods will be critical towards giving sufficient information on the ethical issue under survey.
Summary
The entry of multinational entities in China has had a direct implication on the labor markets as Chinese employees seek financial benefits from these companies. However, this entry of international businesses has also had direct impacts on the extent of labor relations in the country. This research proposal, in this case, suggests the use of qualitative research, which will be inductive. The study will also use the consequentialism model as a critical framework in the course of conducting research. The population sample with be obtained from across a multidimensional setting. The data analysis process will also involve a thematic process that will seek to enhance accuracy.
References
Gao, Y. (2009). Corporate social performance in China: Evidence from large companies. Journal of Business Ethics, 89, 23–35
Greenwood, M. (2012). Ethical analyses of HRM: A review and research agenda. Journal of Business Ethics, pre-published online before print, 24 May 2012, doi:10.1007/s10551-012-1354-y.
Harrison, A. & J. Scorse. (2010). Multinationals and Anti-Sweatshop Activism, American Economic Review 100 (1), pp. 247-73.
Krueger, D. A. (2007). The ethics of global supply chains in China—Convergences of East and West. Journal of Business Ethics, 79, 113–120.
Pun, Ngai, et al. (2016). Apple, Foxconn, and Chinese workers’ struggles from a global labor perspective. Inter-Asia Cultural Studies, 17(2), pp. 166-185.
Wang, L., & Juslin, H. (2009). The impact of Chinese culture on corporate social responsibility: The harmony approach. Journal of Business Ethics, 88, 433–451.