What is the definition of Business Ethics?
Professional ethics that observes the ethical principles or moral issues that emerges in a business environment.
In 2011, the Irish low-cost airline Ryanair Ltd. was criticized for their ridiculous charging policies or also known as “surcharging”. A Ryanair passenger complained that the airline company was giving a €40 surcharge on passengers who did not print out their boarding cards before boarding the plane. Ryanair had no right doing so as there were aviation laws that make airlines issue boarding passes. In the end, this case went to court and the EU legislation drafted against the system of surcharging. Even majority of the media and people believe that such payment is absolutely outrageous!
In every business, a repeat customer is very important and it is based on customer trust and their belief in the service. Ryanair is supposed to be following a low-cost business model, instead it’s deceiving the customer by charging them with things as trivial as forgetting your boarding pass. Ryanair failed to remember the importance of “brand trust” and “reputation” in their line of business. The moral issue that is presented here is the deceitful image the company is giving to its’ customers, and the fact that it tried to ignore the law. After all they were giving the perception of being low-cost, but a €40 surcharge says otherwise. Through this case, Ryanair’s reputation and trust among the customers have obviously been scarred, but the lesson learned is that “honesty is the best policy” and to always give customers what you promise. Another lesson is that you should never underestimate what a customer, the law or the media can do!
Bibliography:
Tremlett, Giles. “Judge Tells Ryanair That Forcing Passengers to Print Boarding Passes Is Illegal.” The Guardian. N.p., 14 Jan. 2011. Web. 3 Sept. 2013. <http://www.theguardian.com/business/2011/jan/14/ryanair-spanish-court-boarding-pass>.
“About Us.” About Us. Ryan Air, n.d. Web. 3 Sept. 2013. <http://www.ryanair.com/ie/about>.
Marcoux, Alexei, Marcoux,. “Business Ethics.” Stanford University. Stanford University, 16 Apr. 2008. Web. 3 Sept. 2013. <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-business/>.
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