Business Ethics: Utilitarianism, Rights, Justice, Caring, and Virtue Theories

Document Type:Thesis

Subject Area:Business

Document 1

It also prevents them from being a part of illegal activities. Principles of business ethics influence employees' interpersonal relationships and corporate social responsibility. It also influences their relationships with their vendors. Maintaining morality is the core of its businesses, from top management to its new employees. Importance of Business Ethics Reduce Employee Turnover Companies with strong business ethics have managers who appreciate employees' hard work. Increase Professionalism An increase in work positivity also influences the team's attitude towards work. Work quality improvement is guaranteed when the company has a strong sense of business ethics. Business Ethics Theories Theories surrounding business ethics have been around for a very long time spanning centuries. These theories lay the foundation for a positive and healthy work environment.

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They guide the decisions and behaviors of all employees in the business. These politicians tried to create ethical guidelines to boost liberalism. The original notion arose from the works of Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill. They were prominent philosophers and economists of the time. This belief greatly influences the theory of utilitarianism. Jeremy Bentham believed that humans deserve a life of pleasure and no suffering as much as possible. Jeremy Bentham was of the firm belief that there was one best way for legislators to agree on the best policies for the country. That included comparing all possible legislatures that could be passed and comparing their consequences. The comparison would bring to light the good and bad outcomes for all.

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Post this; it would be ethical to select the legislature that would give the best utility. So, according to this theory, any action is correct or better than the others only if its utility is higher than other possible actions. This theory is quite similar to that of the caring business ethics theory. Their similarity is in terms of focus on the morality and character of individuals than the right motive of their actions. The virtuous conduct of individuals in a company implies that they should be honest in their actions. Their actions should not be an attempt at achieving bad consequences. Any action guided by wrong motives is not ethical. They also support the company's interest and the employee welfare in tandem.

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Honest actions of the leadership have never concealed bad intentions. Emotions always guide honest actions to do right by others. Virtues are fundamental to morality. One strong objection to this ethical theory is that it misses the relevance of the obligation of a business to its clients. Individuals' morals greatly influence their behavior and ethics in achieving their purposes. All of this should be done without causing harm to others. The rights theory in business ethics stresses that neither a business nor an individual should ill-treat any human in any way (Shoemaker, 1999). In terms of the principle of rights theory, employees should be treated with utmost respect and dignity. This is in context to businesses. , Audi, R. and Zwolinski, M. The fundamental rights of employees are a moral responsibility of ethical leadership.

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It should not be a result of force. Employees are entitled to a healthy working environment. This theory is also called the fairness theory of business ethics. It rejects the ideas of nepotism, differentiation, and unjust compensation of employees. The justice approach of business ethics has evolved to assume that all employees should be treated equally. Within businesses, the justice theory might be in terms of compensation justice, distribution justice, and retributive justice. Dignity is the core aspect of all of these justices Distribution justice implies benefits and workload being distributed fairly among all business members. Philosophers believed that ethical businesses might not need to be bound by justice or rights. Although, they do require passionate ethical leadership. However, modern theorists are of the opinion that this theory is apt for business ethics.

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They say that rights and justice are a result of laws that are not partial. These theorists believe that ethical behavior cannot be self-dependent. Humans are capable of developing ethical behavior and morality through their families. The core of this theory is that humans' mutual understanding, care, and support lead to mutual benefits. Business ethics requires management to be responsible for caring for all employees. Their care should be free from racial, professional, and other biases. Conclusion These business ethics theories lay the foundation for a vastly important conversation around ethics. org/core/journals/business-ethics-quarterly/article/abs/recent-work-in-ethical-theory-and-its-implications-for-business-ethics/F0ACCB8045CFC1851E75F348432C0B4C Ciulla, J. (2004) Ethics and Leadership Effectiveness - https://books. google. co. in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=kSJHEAAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA325&dq=Ciulla,+J.

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