Ethical Analysis of Gumdrop Northern

At the conclusion of this audit, the following(a) ethical Issues were set emergence to externalist law and treaties by trade manuf make dealured landmines to Afghanistan and Iran use of substandard materials apply to construct form equip disclosing Information from the military that would impede Injuries and the hypothesize plan to send discover notices under the Worker Adjustment and retrain Notification (WARN) Act, and disunite ties to the corporal bargaining agreement which resulted in 100+ employees out of work.Despite the several issues that waste been identified, we argon optimistic that we washstand implement solutions that crumb correct these incidents and prevent future issues from happening. Due to the magnitude of the issues that were found it is essential to get a basic representing of ancestry in ethical motive. Ethics can be perceived differently among people be cause it has several nuances. According to Frederica, Farrell and Farrell, The American inheritance Dictionary defines ethics as, The study of the general nature of morals and of special(prenominal) moral choices, moral philosophy, and the rules or standards governing the conduct of the members of a profession. (p. 7). This Is a near(a) starting point to help us further understand the importance of ethical compliance. For the purpose of this memorandum, the definition that leave whole be utilize is the principles, values, and standards that businesses should adhere to, to ensure it is acting within ethical standards. Furthermore, studying ethics in business is very all- of the essence(predicate)(prenominal) because ethical misconduct is a considerable concern in business throughout the world. My ethics bearing and I exhaust referenced this definition and disceptation through the date of our audit, and is the foundation of our findings.Now that we take a leak discussed the definition and importance of ethics in business, we will discuss ACH ethical Issue th at was observe in Gumdrop northerlyer trading operations. After to each one ethical Issue has been addressed, we will discuss authority solutions and our reasoning for the progression In your short and long-term goals. honorable Issue 1 Ignorance to International Law and Treaties by exporting manufactured landmines to Afghanistan and Iran. This is a very ever-changing issue because there is conflict of enkindle.This conflicts with your parent confederation, the De deviatement of apology because you are a long-term military contractor that manufactures munitions, body armor and outfit vehicles for the United States military. The U. S. Litany is currently rubbish in a decade-long war in the Middle East, and landmines curb been common amongst the fatalities since the beginning of the war. Improvised fickle devices (Deeds) accept continued to be the number one killer of United States arm forces in Afghanistan, and 60 percent of all combat- related deaths in 2011 alone wer e caused by Deeds (Moral, 2011).Deeds are the approximately common method used by insurgent groups and rebels who wage non-traditional warfare, and are designed to kill or cause serious bodily harm. The conflict of interest that my committee and I are most concerned with is the simple fact that you are argue to supply effective body armor to the coalition forces to protect them from explosive blasts, but you are also supplying the enemy with the essential tools that cause these aforementioned explosive blasts.This conflict of interest not only violates international law and treaty, but you are potentially responsible for deaths of uniformed power serving in the armed forces. It is your function to behave ethically, and this has not happened by your ignorance to the law, and the endangerment you have caused to uniformed force. In addition, the landmines hat you sell to the Taliban and Iranian politics are defective, and many of who attempted to plant the mines was killed in the process delinquent to the faulty switches.It should also be noted that many of these deaths were children and soldiers of each various(prenominal) country. This ignorance on every angle is unethical by all counts. The priming coat of this ethical issue can have a wide guide of effects healthyly, and can have severe repercussions on corporate stakeholders. The legitimate effects are very straightforward. The corporation can potentially be taken to court to file the violation of international law, and the consequences can be severe.For example, Department of Justice lawyers are rumored to be involved where families of injured or killed service members can consult attorneys to investigate Gumdrop Northerner contributions. Furthermore, the stakeholders are also potentially at risk. Anyone who has a stake or claim in your business can be directly affected because of your negligence to law, and this can deterioration your reputation, which is important in keeping your contract wi th the Department of Defense. In addition, it can Jeopardize the future of your company.Ethical Issue 2 The Use of Substandard Materials employ in the Companys Manufacturing and Failure to Disclose to Stakeholders It has also been brought to our attention that Gumdrop Northern has utilized substandard materials in their manufacturing. Given the nature of your business, the United States military require state of the art body armor that has the sophistication to stop lancinate shrapnel aimed for the body. The use of substandard materials is unaccep tabularize because the safety of our soldiers is paramount in todays war.The body armor is the unproblematic way of life of protection that protects Americas sons and daughters, and the armor you are providing the U. S. Litany does not protect them to Afghanistan and Iran. The substandard material is not only limited to the personnel body armor, but it also is connected to the armored vehicles used to entrance military personnel thr oughout the theater. It has been revealed that there is a thin stable gear of steel on the underside of the vehicle that makes them extremely vulnerable to makeshift explosive device explosions.This is alarming because, as antecedently mentioned, Deeds are among the chief causes of death of soldiers. You have structured a vehicle that is defensive on the sides and top, but have ignored arguably the most important part of up-armored vehicles used in the Middle East. This also leads to the negligence of the company to stag this development to its primary and secondary stakeholders, and also-ran to understand the stakeholder orientation. The failure to disclose information can cause the rescission of an agreement.In your case, the Department of Defense can void the agreement with your company and also pursue a money settlement. Also, the purpose of the stakeholder orientation is for you to understand and address the demands of a stakeholder. The U. S. Litany is your primary stake holder and you have failed to meet their demands and standards by using substandard materials and failing to disclose this information to them. It is your responsibility along with early(a) top managers in Gumdrop to act in a responsible manner by providing truthful information to all stakeholders.We have found in our audit that you have failed in this field, and you have not complied with ethical standards. Ethical Issue 3 The formulated plan to send out notices under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, and severing ties to the collective arraigning agreement, which resulted in 100+ employees out of work. We have found that your actions under the WARN Act are completely legal because you have acted within all the guidelines underlined in the act. Also, your plan to file for failure to reject the collective bargaining agreement is another area of concern.However, we recall it is unethical to do so because of the circumstances that you have found yourself in the aforementioned ethical issues. This issue is controversial because you are middling among the lines of ethical and legal issues. We believe that this is an unnecessary approach, and there are other venues to pursue to resolve the issues at hand. I believe you should place authoritative value on your shareholders because they are primarily responsible for the day-to-day operations and ensuring your company is bringing in profit.Therefore, you should treat your people right and you can accomplish this by giving them a fair shot. If you trade pose at the table, it would seem unfair to dump them so quickly because they have families to feed, bills to pay and priorities to maintain so we think you should do the right topic and help them in any way possible. The ethical issues hat we have identified are substantial and they can have serious potential effects on the reputation of your company and its future. With that said, we have outlined a detailed plan that we have formulate d as the vanquish for the business.Resolving the Ethical Issues All of the issues have been put on the table and addressing possible solutions is statement of Gumdrop because this is where we believe you have failed. We suggest that a get together is held by the gore of Directors to re-tool the mission statement of Gumdrop Northern. When all of the issues are put on the table it helps to have all eye players there to innovative think of the direction the company wants to move in. For the starting time ethical issue, the resolution is quite simple.We believe that Gumdrop Northern should adhere to international law and treaty by severing your ties with Afghanistan and Iran. It doesnt make sense to supply the enemy with antipersonnel ammunition, and protect the individuals fighting the enemy. Although more than half of your profits derive from these clandestine operations, it is conflicting with your interest by protecting the United States military with your manufactured products . This relationship should be terminated, and it should tie into your companys mission statement.Furthermore, it is your moral and ethical responsibility to report your shortcomings. I believe that showing integrity defines a company, and this can be the first step to repairing and bearingening your relationship with your stakeholders. It is also a great first step into repairing your corporate image. Moving on, the second ethical issue that we discovered is definitely a priority in addressing. The United States Military deserves the best protection because of their illnesses to volunteer their lives to fight for our freedom.Gumdrop Northern is using substandard materials when pukka equipment should be used in preparing the body armor and armored vehicles. I think that the best solution to this problem is using the best equipment open to help protect the soldiers. I believe you should immediately recall all the body armor that has been issued, and rebuild the body armor that the soldiers use. This move is good for your image because it shows you have identified faults in your products, and will work unrelentingly to alter it to meet military standards.You are also doing yourself a upgrade by telling your primary stakeholder that there are issues with your product, which is something that you have failed to do so. In addition, you should also revamp the armored vehicles that you supply to the troops. This is the primary mode of the transportation for uniformed personnel, and ensuring the safest vehicle possible should be a priority. Gumdrop Northern should provide additional sheets of metal to the bottom of the vehicle to strengthen the most vulnerable part of the vehicle. Finally, the third ethical issue can be resolved by not doing any of it.It is our belief that you should take responsibility for your actions, and slowly repair your image. I believe that taking care of your shareholders is important in business because they make sure your company is wor king. Therefore, the essential service of this resolution is to own up to your mistakes and build on what you have. This solution shows ethical responsibility, and this is the focal point of this memorandum. I previously mentioned that an essential part of this meeting is also to identify fiduciary duties of the old-timer Executive Officer and the Chief Operation Officer.It is the ethical responsibilities of each of these managers to gain back the trust and cartel of the stakeholders (I. E. United States Military). This is the best alternative that is the best for the business considering the ethical issues that were identified and the potential circumstances that were discussed. It is the right thing to fixing your problems. By owning up to your mistakes it may damage your companys problems in the short-term, but you are strengthening your company in the long run.I believe the first couple of months will be difficult because of the backlash youll chive by showing your integrity , but with strength and perseverance, Gumdrop Northern can return to prominence. I also believe that part of repairing the company is implementing an ethics committee and appointing an individual to act as the ethics officer. I believe this is essential because it would help prevent issues like the previously mentioned from happening in the future. It also will keep Gumdrop Northern in ethical compliance. Your company has fallen short in this area, and it should be a priority in your companys mission statement.