Ethical dilemmas people face in various business situations, as well as the competing principles and values that operate in these situations.

The extent to which the company’s activities in each case were ethical. Teams should be prepared to justify their evaluation using ethics principles and the perceived moral intensity of each incident.
This exercise is designed to make you aware of the ethical dilemmas people face in various business situations, as well as the competing principles and values that operate in these situations.

Case One- A large European bank requires all employees to open a bank account with that bank. The bank deposits employee paychecks to those accounts. The bank explains that this is a formal policy, which all employees agree to at the time of hire. Furthermore, failure to have an account with the bank shows disloyalty, which could limit the employee’s career advancement opportunities with the bank. Until recently, the bank has reluctantly agreed to deposit paychecks to accounts at other banks for a small percentage of employees. Now, bank executives want to reinforce the policy. They announced that employees have three months to open an account with the bank or face disciplinary action.

case 2- A 16-year-old hired as an office administrator at a small import services company started posting her thoughts about the job on her Facebook site. After her first day, she wrote: ‘first day at work. omg!! So dull!!’ Two days later, she complained ‘all i do is shred holepunch n scan paper!!! omg!’ Two weeks later she added ‘im so totally bord!!!’ These comments were intermixed with the other usual banter about her life. Her Facebook site did not mention the name of the company where she worked. Three weeks after being hired, the employee was called into the owner’s office, where he fired her for the comments on Facebook, then had her escorted from the building. The owner argues that these comments put the company in a bad light and her ‘display of disrespect and dissatisfaction undermined the relationship and made it untenable.

case 3- Computer printer manufacturers usually sell printers at a low margin over cost and generate much more income from subsequent sales of the high-margin ink cartridges required for each printer. One global printer manufacturer now designs its printers so that they work only with ink cartridges made in the same region. Ink cartridges purchased in the United States will not work with the same printer model sold in Europe, for example. This ‘region coding’ of ink cartridges does not improve performance. Rather, it prevents consumers and grey marketers from buying the product at a lower price in another region. The company says this policy allows it to maintain stable prices within a region rather than continually changing prices due to currency fluctuations.

case 4- Judy Price is a popular talk show radio personality and opinionated commentator on the morning phone-in show of a popular radio station in a large US city. Price is married to John Tremble, an attorney who was recently elected mayor of the city, even though he had no previous experience in public office. The radio station’s Board of Directors is very concerned that the station’s perceived objectivity will be compromised if Price remains on-air as a commentator and talk show host while her husband holds such a public position. For example, the radio station manager believes that Price gave minimal attention to an incident in which environmental groups criticized the city for its slow progress on recycling. Price has denied that her views are biased and argued that the incident didn’t merit as much attention as other issues that particular week. To ease the Board’s concerns, the station manager has transferred Price to an hourly news reporting position, where most of the script is written by others. Although technically a lower position, Price’s total salary package remains the same. Price is now seeking professional advice to determine whether the radio station’s action represents a form of discrimination on the basis of marital status.

case 5- For the past few years, the design department of a small (40employee) company has been using a particular software program, but the three employees who use the software have been complaining for more than a year that the software is out of date and is slowing down their performance. The department agreed to switch to a competing software program, costing several thousand dollars. However, the next version won’t be released for six months, and buying the current version will not allow many discounts on the next version. The company has put in advance orders for the next version. Meanwhile, one employee was able to get a copy of the current version of the software from a friend in the industry. The company has allowed the three employees to use this current version of the software, even though they did not pay for it.