Nike an Ethical Issue I Essays

Nike an Ethical Issue I Essays Nike an Ethical Issue I Paper Nike an Ethical Issue I Paper Nike an Ethical Issue Nike an Ethical Issue Nike is a company that was created on an agreement and a handshake between two men. That handshake between Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight became the foundation of how Nike does business. Integrity and commitment to the highest ethical standards make up the code of business ethics for Nike. A company like Nike that has a code of ethics and a foundation of how business is conducted should not have any problems with ethical issues as far as the way they do business; however there is an ethical issue in regards to Nike. Ethical Issue Nike has been accused of using child labor in the production of their soccer balls. This ethical issue has taken place in Pakistan. There are laws in Pakistan against child labor and slavery, but the Pakistan government does not take the necessary action to stop it. The United States constitution states that child labor is an illegal and inhumane practice and any United States company found guilty practicing and encouraging it will be prosecuted. The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the World Trade organization prohibits member nations like the United States, from discriminating against the importation of goods made by children. In essence it seems as if this practice is condoned. One of the reasons the practice of using child labor goes on is the fact that these third world countries are in such dire need and these children are helping in the support of their families. Pakistan has a per-capita income of nineteen thousand dollars per year. This equates that a typical person lives off of five dollars a day. Nike does not launch production directly in Pakistan. It is subcontracted through a local firm, which has to abide by Nike’s international rules and regulations when producing its goods. Nike has the duty to monitor the subcontracted firm. Nike an Ethical Issue Nike also has based its operations in Vietnam, China, Indonesia, Bangladesh, and India. It seems as if Nike thrives to operate in such countries due to the low cost labor to make its products. Twelve- year-old girls work in Indonesia sweatshops seventy hours a week making Nike shoes in unhealthy plants. There have been many other claims about the mistreatment of workers of sweatshops in other countries in which Nike has subcontracted. Ethical Perceptions across Cultures. The ethical perceptions across the cultures in regards to child labor come from the various sources. The culture for countries such as Pakistan, in which the earnings of one person goes to feeding ten people, it is very difficult for a low income population to survive. With the population in Pakistan being at one million and is an important center for the production of goods for export to international markets. In 1994 exports brought three hundred eighty five million dollars to the economy of Pakistan. Those exports came largely from the use of child labor producing goods. Therefore that culture is somewhat dependent upon those children that work illegally. Looking at the situation from a culture such as the United States, we view it differently. The economy as bad as it may seem it is nothing of that of other countries. The United States is rich in comparison and does not condone such practices. The idea that Nike using child labor open debate as to what is ethically right. Some would say that Nike is doing a great deed for Pakistan. The parents willingly send their children off to work in a factory to help support them so the argument along with that would be to buy more products that the children produce. This would increase their demand and they would produce more. This would allow them to earn more. It is believed this would give them a chance to rise above poverty level and the benefits would not only pay off for the families of the children, but for the nation as well. The argument to increasing the demand of the products made by child labor would be that it encourages child labor. That in turns encourages more birth rates, which creates more slavery, and sweatshops. Education among children will continue to decline. More and more children will be bought and sold on the black market and the problem would never end. Risk and consequences associated. There are many risk and consequences involved with Nike conducting business utilizing child labor around the world. This places a negative impact on Nike and it goes against what is written in the code of conduct for Nike. This could also cause a decrease in sales and a loss in revenue due to the American public opposing this type of practice in business. Conclusion Nike is a business that was built on good values and ethics. Those same values and ethics are in question in regards to the labor they use in third world countries. This labor comes in the form of children. Children are sent to work in these factories by their parents so they can help support them. These children receive very low wages and the working conditions are substandard. There are laws and regulations that govern these practices but they are not strongly enforced. These countries are very poor and the income that Nike brings to these countries drastically improves their economy. The United States constitution states that child labor is an illegal and inhumane practice and any United States company found guilty practicing and encouraging it will be prosecuted. The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade and the World Trade organization prohibits member Nike, an Ethical Issue nations like the United States, from discriminating against the importation of goods made by children. Nike did not directly have these children working in these conditions. They hire subcontracting firms to make their products. Nike is responsible to monitor the subcontracting firms to ensure all business practices are within the rules and regulations set forth. The ethical perception across the cultures varies among the cultures. The third world countries view this as a means of providing for their families and improving the economy of their countries. Others view this act as unethical and criminal. Nike has taken risk in their production of products in which the use of child labor is used. This risk not only cost them their reputation but it prove to be a huge financial loss as well. References Websites www. American. edu/TED/nike. htm www. nikebiz. com