It is sometimes said that the phrase “business ethics” is an oxymoron. In this course we will attempt to dispel this popular conception. By working our way through many of the moral issues to which the practice of business gives rise, we will show that the interests of business people and moral philosophers converge. Topics include: What is the relation between business and free market capitalism? What is the nature of moral reasoning? Do corporations have social responsibilities? What social responsibilities do corporations have when operating in the global context? Are there universal ethical principles which can guide the conduct of multinational corporations? Do international sweatshops violate human rights? Can the capitalist market economy be justified? What constitutes a just distribution of the goods and services produced by society? Is affirmative action morally justified? How much information about a product is a corporation morally obligated to disclose to consumers, and how and to whom should this information be disclosed? Is business bluffing ethical? When is advertising ethically questionable? What rights and obligations do employees and employers have in the workplace? Do employees have the right to know of work-related safety hazards? Is whistle-blowing morally justified?

This course introduces students to the attempts by scholars to understand whether, and the degree to which, humans can/should be held responsible for their actions. Do humans have ethical duties and responsibilities toward one another or themselves? If so, what are the foundations of those ethical duties, and what do they demand? Our survey of the scholarly responses to these questions will be separated in two parts: First a review of prominent positions on meta-ethics, followed by a survey of the five dominant ethical theories.

Antirequisite(s): Governance, Leadership and Ethics 2002F/G.