Ethical Dilemma

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 What is Ethical Dilemma?

• An ethical dilemma or ethical paradox or  moral

dilemma is a moral situation in which a choice has to
be made between two equally undesirable
alternatives.
• OR
• It is a problem in the decision-making
process between two possible options, neither of
which is absolutely acceptable from an ethical
perspective.
•
 .
• Ethical dilemma are situations in which there is a choice to be
made between two options, neither of which resolves the
situation in an ethically acceptable manner. In such cases,
societal and personal ethical guidelines can provide no
satisfactory outcome for the chooser.
• Every person can encounter an ethical dilemma in almost every
aspect of his life, including personal, social, and professional.
Some examples of ethical dilemmas examples include:
• Taking credit for others' work.
• Offering a client a worse product for your own profit.
• Utilizing inside knowledge for your own profit.
 What is Business Dilemma?

• A business dilemma exists when an

organizational decision maker faces a choice
between two or more options that impacts on
(a) the organization’s profitability and
competitiveness, and (b) its stakeholders.
 The Structure of Ethical Dilemma
.
.

Doing what is A bad outcome

Either Results in
morally right or
bad effects

Doing what Good or at least

Or is morally Results in better effects or
wrong outcome
 Sources of Ethical dilemma
• I. Failure of Personal Character
• People whose personal values are not
desirable may misuse funds, steal supplies
from the company, pad expense accounts,
take unjustified leave, shirk or avoid obligation
to fellow-workers, take bribes for favouring
suppliers use inside information for their
personal benefit and to the harm of others.
• II . Conflict of Personal Values and Organizational Goals:
• The company uses methods or pursues goals unacceptable to the manager.

• Reported case-1: Bayer AG 

• It is a German multinational pharmaceutical and life sciences company

which is one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. 
• George Couto, an employee of Bayer AG, exposed that Bayer AG used to
re-label Cipro and sell it to another pharmaceutical company, Kaiser
Permanente, with a different identification number so that it could claim
more money from the Medicaid programme.
• Article: NYTimes.com: Bayer Agrees To Pay U.S. $257 Million In Drug Fraud
 .
• III. Organizational Goals Versus Social Values
• Activities of a company taken as unethical by
the stakeholders, due to changing social
scenario or milieu.
• Reported case-2 Johnson & Johnson's Talcum
Powder Controversy: Putting Profits before
Consumer Safety?
 .
• IV. Personal Beliefs Versus Organizational
Practices
• Ethical dilemmas in organizations arise when
they employ multi-racial and multi-religious
employees. Several organizations are accused of
racial discriminations and gender bias in the
work place and have been paying fines of billions
of dollars or opting for out-of-court settlements.
• Reported case-3 Wall-mart
• The case is ongoing.
• - "Wal-Mart Female Employees Try Again for Sex-Bias Class Action", Jordyn Holman, Bloomberg 7 Nov 2017
• - "Judge sinks class in Wal-Mart gender bias suit", Anne Youderian, Courthouse News Service, 5 Aug 2013
• - "Wal-Mart must face California bias case, Judge Rules", Karen Gullo & Joel Rosenblatt, Bloomberg News 22 Sep 2012
- “2,000 Women File Wal-Mart Gender Discrimination Charges with EEOC”, Matt O'Donnell, Top Class Actions, 16 Jun 2012
- "Mart seeks end to refiled gender-bias lawsuit", Dan Levine, Reuters, 17 Jan 2012
- "Wal-Mart Workers Limit Gender Bias Suit to California Stores", Margaret Cronin Fisk, Karen Gullo, 27 Oct 2011
- "Supreme Court sides with Wal-Mart in sex discrimination lawsuit", Bloomberg, 20 Jun 2011
- "Wal-Mart Gets High Court Review in Million-Worker Bias Case", Greg Stohr, Bloomberg, 6 Dec 2010
- "Wal-Mart Asks Supreme Court To Hear Bias Suit", Steven Greenhouse, New York Times, 25 Aug 2010
- “Walmart fails to halt suit”, Bloomberg News, 12 Dec 2007
- "Wal-Mart Loses Bid to Block Group Suit in Bias Case", Karen Gullo & Margaret Cronin Fisk, Bloomberg News, 6 Feb 2007 
- “Wal-Mart Asks Court To Narrow Bias Lawsuit”, Bloomberg News, 9 Aug 2005
• - “Wal-Mart Wants to Declassify Lawsuit”, Anthony Sebok, FindLaw, 11 Aug 2004
• - “Wal-Mart Bias Case Moves Forward”, Amy Joyce, Washington Post, 23 Jun 2004
•  
- Wal-Mart: Wal-Mart Will Seek Further Appellate Review In Gender Class Action Lawsuit, 6 Feb 2007 
• - Wal-Mart: [PDF] Employment and Diversity Factsheet, 24 Jan 2007
• - Website for plaintiffs and information for members and potential members of the class action lawsuit: 
Wal-Mart Class Website
• - Equal Rights Advocates (co-counsel for plaintiffs): Dukes v. Wal-Mart Stores (includes summary of the case and links to certain
legal documents) 
 .
• V. Production and sale of hazardous but popular products
• Where does the ethical burden lie, when business sells products
known to be actually or potentially harmful to society?

• Is the principle of caveat emptor in mercantile law to be adapted

suitably?
• caveat emptor (latin) “ let the buyer beware”
• the principle that the buyer alone is responsible for checking the
quality and suitability of goods before a purchase is made.

• Should individual rights and free choice override social costs?

 V. Production and sale of hazardous but popular products (Contd.)

.
• Could drunken drivers and carefree smokers deprive
others of their legitimate rights to life and safety?

• Could free trading in hard drugs, dynamite and guns

be considered ethical?

• Will the ineffective control ‘Smoking is Injurious to

Health’ and that too given as a ‘Statutory’ warning
legitimatize the unethical business?
 .
• VI. Other Ethical Challenges
• Price fixing and profiteering due to monopoly, and often
by artificially created scarcity.
• Shifting unfair shares to the producer stakeholders and
employees.
• Discriminatory wage structure.
• Using up too fast, scarce and irreplenishable industrial
resources and raw materials.
• Shifting or locating business at the cost of society.
•  Overworking women and children.
 How do We Establish Ethical Standards?

• Think and reflect about yourself, about the

management, about the people, and about the
relationship and the values you wish to incorporate.

• Create time for thinking

• Reflect.
• Periodically take time off to reflect and consider
‘where I am’, ‘where I have to go’ and ‘how I am
going there’.
 .
How to Resolve a Dilemma?
 Is a policy, a decision or an action
• .

Ethical? Unethical?
 Ask Three Questions

• To resolve these questions that create a

dilemma, ask three questions

• Utility: Do the benefits exceed the cost (Share

Holder)?
• Rights: Do they respect human rights (Society)?
• Justice: Does it distribute benefits and burdens
evenly (Employees)?
 How to Resolve
Ethical Dilemmas?
• Two basic approaches are possible in resolving ethical
dilemmas: deontological and teleological
• Deontological (action-oriented) approach:
• An ethical standard consistent with the fact that it is
performed by a rational and free person.
• These are inalienable rights of human beings and reflect
the “characteristic and defining features of our nature”.
• These fundamental moral rights are inherent in our
nature and are universally recognized.
 How to Resolve
Ethical Dilemmas? (contd.)

• Teleological (results-oriented) ethics:

• The moral character of actions depends on the

simple, practical matter of the extent to which
actions actually help or hurt people. Actions
that produce more benefits than harms are
“right”; those that don’t are “wrong”.
 How to Resolve
Ethical Dilemmas? (contd.)

• Center for Ethics and Business offers “a brief,

three-step strategy” in which both the
deontological and teleological approaches
converge

• STEP 1: Analyse the consequences

• STEP 2: Analyse the actions
• STEP 3: Make a decision