LS312 Ethics and the Legal Environment

Focus on how a company can integrate ethical theories into a business decision. Apple is known for outsourcing manufacturing jobs to other countries. For instance, they have a relationship with Foxconn in China to manufacture their iPhones. Laws in China that apply to work safety, such as child labor laws, differ from the protections in place under U.S. law.

If child labor laws in China allow those under 16 years of age to work in the Foxconn factories, identify and discuss an ethical theory that would require Apple to apply the laws from the United States. Then discuss an ethical theory that would support Apple applying the laws from China regarding child labor.

If Apple brought back the manufacturing of iPhones to the United States, it would be required to meet environmental standards as required by the Environmental Protection Agency. This would only be cost effective if the manager of the plant in the United States altered reports to the EPA indicating that Apple was meeting EPA standards.

Identify, define and apply an ethical theory that would support the plant manager’s position to alter Apple’s EPA reporting. Then define and apply an ethical theory that would require Apple to change company practices in order to comply with EPA standards.