Challenging Unethical Behavior

Case 4.3: Down the Drain
After a yearlong search, you finally have a job in the industry of your choice. The industry is high-status and dynamic, with excellent growth potential. Landing a job in this industry makes you the envy of your fellow graduates in the MBA program. However, you discover that the company is using a recently banned chemical as a cleansing agent, which is then flushed down the drain. When you ask why the company is acting in this fashion, you are told that it has a large supply of the chemical in storage and it is only using up the remaining amount—to toss what is left would be silly. To safely dispose of the cleansing agent is a bother, and the alternative compound proposed by the government is very expensive. Moreover, you are told that the company officials believe that the government has been overly cautious in banning the chemical because the company has had no past reported health problems related to it. Your supervisor tells you, “Don’t be naive. Real companies operate differently than you expect. If you want to succeed in this company, you’ll have to go along.” What should you do?
Case 4.4: A Tight-Knit Group of Brokers
You have worked together with three other stock brokers in the same company for the past 12 years. The four of you are the best of friends, with strong personal ties going back 30 years; you grew up with these people, know their families, and go to the same elementary school and same church. Nevertheless, it is a surprise when one of the four reveals that he has been successfully trading on “tips” from an unmentioned source. You know that your friend has been having personal financial difficulties, but things seemed to be improving. Now you think you know why. Your friend invites you and the other members of the group to join in the trades based on the tips. You, too, face financial challenges as your children approach college age and apply to private schools with high price tags. Your parents are aging and face a deteriorating financial situation. You have recently become concerned about dipping into your savings merely to meet monthly living expenses. One of your friends eagerly accepts the offer to trade based on the tips, but another argues that doing so may be against the law. She says that the trades are not worth the risk of getting caught, and she is in no way interested in hurting her family or career. You suspect that she might not participate in a cover-up if an investigation occurs. Your trader friend explains his scheme. It seems foolproof, though perhaps of doubtful legality. The risks of getting caught appear minimal. What should you do?
NOTES

Berger, P. L., & Luckmann, T. (1991). The social construction of reality: A treatise in the sociology of knowledge. London, UK: Penguin Books.
See p. 246, in Mead, G. H. (1964). On social psychology: Selected papers (A. Strauss, Ed.). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
See p. 1624, in Donne, J. (1959). Devotions upon emergent occasions. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
4 Managing Social Influences on Ethical… p. 211 (211 of 673)
Pg. 212

Consider reading the following cases found in Chapter 10 that apply to the concepts presented in this chapter:

BP: The Big Oil Spill: What Went Wrong • Dow—DuPont: The Bhopal Disaster • Google: Doing No Harm • VW: Dieselgate
CASE APPLICATIONS
Use the weight-of-reasons framework to figure out what you would do in the following instances. As you do so, apply the lessons from this chapter. Identify the social influences on your decision, and in identifying possible courses of action, consider whether you should exercise voice, blow the whistle, or exit (where they are applicable). If you choose voice, consider the political tactics needed to “close the circle.”
Case 4.1: Ethical Dilemma at High Value Discount Appliances
The High Value (HV) chain of discount appliance stores, started in 1988 with the merger of three smaller chains, achieved sales in excess of $28 billion under the respected leadership of its CEO, John Sutherland. Investors included major banks, insurance companies, real estate developers, and investment banking houses. HV was touted by the media as one of the most outstanding companies in the United States. It was especially praised for its culture, which has been described as being “fresh, dynamic, and exciting.” Fortune chose HV as one of the 10 best companies to work for in the United States.
John Sutherland came from a prominent U.S. family and was a pillar of society. An active supporter of many prominent causes, he was considered one of the most influential and respected U.S. philanthropists and a patron of the arts. He was also a major contributor to political parties and part-owner of two professional sport franchises, the Dallas Ravens (in basketball) and the Miami Bulldogs (in football). A star ski bowler in his college years at Dartmouth, Sutherland had devoted considerable time to making it a national sport in the United States. In 1989, he founded the U.S. Ski Bowling Association (USSBA), which now has eight teams. As USSBA’s main corporate sponsor, HV attached its name to nearly all the league’s activities. HV’s brand and the USSBA were nearly indistinguishable.
In 2001, you had the chance to meet Sutherland at a ski bowling match. You too had been a star ski bowler in college and had even been a good professional player before tearing your

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