Business Ethics

42,000 gallons of oil per day. 11 deaths. BP.

Causing the largest oil spill in Gulf history, BP continues to attempt to repair the damage that it unfortunately brought to the economy and environment when the catastrophe began in April 2010. While BP has been putting effort to solve this issue by establishing a $20 billion fund to compensate the victims of the oil spill, it is simply not enough. Like many other companies, BP may have (attempted) to create a “green” and environmentally-friendly behind its bright and shiny yellow and green logo. However, after the recent tragedy, more scientists, business professionals and even the general public are now scrutinizing the business ethics and morals of BP, which has been making huge profits with little care towards its negative impacts on the environment. Because of the oil spill, marine life in the gulf has been destroyed, and the lifestyles of many living in the affected areas are altered as well.

In her article for the Jakarta Globe, Rachel Beck states that being a socially responsible company includes “eliminating harmful business practices, donating to charities in their local communities or having strong ethics policies”. Also, in R. Edward Freeman’s video on Stakeholder Theory, he says that a business is in decline if it “routinely ignores or violates local custom and law that doesn’t pay attention to the quality of life in the community or issues of corporate responsibility and sustainability and its effects on civil society”. In order to be considered a “good” global citizen, companies have to be able to give back to society by offering positive impacts on the economical, environmental and cultural aspects of life: characteristics that BP should look at improving to ameliorate its image.

On a brighter note, here’s a company that is trying to lessen its carbon footprint: Ben & Jerry’s. It’s a company that measures its success “not just on how much money [they make]… but by how [they’re] doing socially as well”.

It seems like a win-win situation. As Rachel Beck also reports in her article, “70 percent of consumers say they would pay a premium for goods from socially responsible companies”. Because I love ice cream and since I now know that Ben & Jerry’s is a company that strives to positively contribute to society, I won’t mind paying a few extra dollars in support of the company.