Is Wal-Mart an Ethical Company? Essay Example

of a class action suit for profiling.Disabled workers won a lawsuit in 2001 when a judge found Wal-Mart guilty of violating the American with Disabilities Act (Wal-MartWatch). From another view, Wal-Mart is one of the largest private employers with a diverse and multi-cultural workforce. The company employs more than 251,000 African-American associates; more than 39,000 Asian and 5,000 Pacific Islander associates; more than 165,000 Hispanic associates; more than 16,000 American Indian and Alaskan Native associates; more than 856,000 women; and more than 355,000 mature associates who are 50 and older.

Their 15-member board of directors includes three women, two African Americans and one Hispanic. Wal-Mart provides job opportunities for associates with disabilities (Wal-Mart/Fact Sheet). Health Care Wal-Mart claims health-care costs put the company at a competitive disadvantage. Only half of their workforce is covered and preventive care is not available to associates. It takes a long time to get coverage and those with pre-existing conditions must wait even longer. The company charges extra for ambulatory and emergency room visits.

Some employee’s spouses are excluded and premiums are high. Many of the employees and their children are forced to seek public assistance. The company is also accused of phasing out full-time employment to avoid offering insurance (Wal-MartWatch). From another view, Wal-Mart takes feedback from employees in attempt to improve their health-plan.

They claim 90% of their employees take health insurance. The company offers over 50 variations so the employee can customize their plan. They offer prescription medicine for $4. 00.Both full-time and part-time employees are eligible and the waiting period has been cut in half.

The company offers 401k/profit sharing and bonuses as well (Wal-Mart/Fact Sheet). Environment Wal-Marts

environmental history is not admirable. In 2004 they faced violations in nine different states. Various violations included air pollution, water pollution and hazardous storage issues. In 2008, Wal-Mart exec Lee Scott admitted the company was “not green”, but going green was good publicity for the company and that they had a long way to go before it could happen.Based on the size of its stores (average 2000 sq.

feet), the company requires huge amounts of land, energy and labor to operate them (Wal-MartWatch). From the other view, Wal-Mart is attempting to make their stores more energy efficient, reduce waste and offer customers products that prolong the environment. LED lighting is being used in the stores and is being tested in China. In Mexico wastewater treatment plants were added to all stores.

In Japan the company encourages re-usable bags resulting in a 21% reduction of plastic bags that wind up in landfills.They appear to have focused on reducing waste (Wal-Mart/Fact Sheet). Labor Relations When it comes to respecting workers and family obligations, Wal-Mart doesn’t seem to care. The company was fined for violating wage and hour laws, family leave laws and hiring undocumented workers. The company fired workers on medical leave, forced employees to work off the clock and was negligent on giving breaks.

The company was found to be in violation of child labor laws and used workers 16 to 17 years of age perform activities normally prohibited by the Fair Labor Standards Act (Wal-MartWatch).From another view, Wal-Mart employs more than 2 million associates worldwide. They are one of the largest private employers in the U. S, Mexico and Canada.

They are diverse and offer

full-time and part-time job opportunities. The average full-time hourly wage is $11. 62 depending on the area. More than 75% of its store management started as hourly employees. The company offers mentor programs and training in the areas of Equal Employment Opportunity, Sexual Harassment Prevention, Americans with Disabilities Act, and the Family Medical Leave Act (Wal-Mart/Fact Sheet).Community Impact Some reports state that Wal-Mart has a negative impact on communities.

A study by the University of Pennsylvania shows poverty rates rise. A UC Berkeley study revealed jobs created by Wal-Mart drive down wages and benefits. Social Science Quarterly found nationwide, thousands of families fall below poverty levels due to Wal-Mart expansion. An Iowa State University report found grocery store sales declined when a Wal-Mart opened nearby. A report issued by the AFL-CIO found that as foreign Wal-Mart imports increase, U. S.

jobs decreased.Other issues include subsidies Wal-Mart relies on for expansion and that Wal-Mart contributes to the Nations’ health care crisis (Wal-MartWatch). From another view, Wal-Mart does have positive affect in communities. The company supports more than 10,000 diverse charities and encourages employees to volunteer.

They provide economic opportunity by increasing traffic to surrounding stores, they create new jobs and they offer on average 10% lower prices on goods (Wal-Mart/Fact Sheet). A CATO study concluded that Wal-Mart has no significant impact on the size and growth of small business.The stores presence in a community does impact some “mom and pop” stores but the entry of other stores to the area outweighs the negative effects through “creative destruction” (Sobel, 2008). Ethical Standards Ethical standards include a rights approach which protects and respects moral rights. Human dignity is

considered based on human nature and the ability to choose freely. Every person is treated as an end and not a mean to another end.

Rights considered would include individual choice, truth, injury or harm and privacy.The fairness or justice approach treats humans equally and if not equally, then fairly and bases via a standard. Considerations would include pay, value, hours, and work ethic. It would keep the organization in mind and consider what is reasonable and unreasonable (Velasquez, 1988). Other approaches such as the common good approach weigh action against its relationship to society with respect and compassion.

It looks at the conditions important to everyone’s welfare. Policies, laws, policing, health care, education and recreation would all be considered.The virtue approach weighs actions with ideal qualities that benefit humanity. The highest potential of character includes truth, beauty, honesty, courage, compassion, generosity, tolerance, love and fidelity, integrity, fairness, self-control and caution.

One would question if I do this, is it the best choice (Velasquez, 1988). Conclusion In attempting to answer the question if Wal-Mart is an ethical company the utilitarian approach weighs what choice provides the most good and does the least harm. This approach would look at the customers, employees, shareholders, community and environment (Velasquez, 1988).Under this approach and considering the positive views, Wal-Mart would be considered an ethical company.

The company in the area of employment, health care, environment, labor relations and impact on community has made great strides from its origination. If along the way they make mistakes and gained bad publicity, they have made efforts to correct. They appear to keep customers in mind by offering low prices, the employees in

mind by offering a diverse work environment, advancement programs and typical benefits.The shareholders include all of society, the community in general and an attempt to improve the environment.

In attempting to answer the question if Wal-Mart is an ethical company the egoist approach would look at personal advantage both short and long term. Self-interest is equated with morality and best promotes the agent’s interest. The choice that produces the best advantage for the company is the one preferred. The company comes first and foremost (Shaw, 2008).

Under this approach and considering the negative views, Wal-Mart would not be considered an ethical companyThe company in the area of employment, health care, environment, labor relations and impact on community has not always made the best choices but the choices made were viewed as best for the interest of the company at that time. Law suits have found them guilty in the areas of employment and discrimination. Health care benefits were viewed as an expense to the company more so than the employee. They took short-cuts in the area of air pollution, water pollution and hazardous storage that had negative effects. They have also produced a negative impact on areas of the community where ther businesses have folded due to their presence. In a capitalist society, Wal-Mart is/was not acting much different than other organization do.

They are in business for profit, they compete very aggressively and they expand in the area of private property where they own their production and distribution (Shaw, 2008. ). On the other hand, they have taken criticism and attempted to correct their image. They have improved on some of their policies and

procedures. Depending which side of the fence you view from, Wal-Mart is either a company that is soft and willing to conform or one that is greedy and eager to expand at any cost.They are viewed as good to some and evil to others.

References Fortune Magazine. America’s Most Admired Companies. http://money. cnn.

com/magazines/fortune/mostadmired/2007/snapshots/2255. html Seglin, Jeffrey. (2004). Is it ethical to shop at Wal-Mart? Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. http://www. scu.

edu/ethics/publications/ethicalperspectives/wal-mart. html Shaw, W. H. (2008). Business ethics (6th ed. ).

Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth Velasquez Manuel, Moberg, Dennis, Meyer, Michael J. , Shanks, Thomas, McLean, Margaret R. DeCosse, David, Andre, Claire, & Hanson Markkula, Kirk O. (1988). Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University.

Issues in Ethics, V. 1, N. 2. Sobel, Russell S. & Dean, Andrea M.

(2008). Has Wal-Mart Buried Mom and Pop? : The Impact of Wal-Mart on Self Employment and Small Establishments in the United States. Regulation Magazine. http://www. be.

wvu. edu/divecon/econ/sobel/WalMart/v31n1-1. pdf Wal-Mart. About Us. http://walmartstores. com/AboutUs/ Wal-Mart.

Fact Sheet. http://walmartstores. com/FactsNews/FactSheets/ Wal-MartWatch. Issues. http://walmartwatch. com/issues/