Monthly Archives: September 2017

Toronto Chef and Food Network star Susur Lee regretfully apologizes and promises to pay back all employees after placing IOU’s on mishaps in his restaurants. Claiming to be unaware of the Ontario’s Employment Standards Act which states that “…. employers can’t take tips and other gratuities to cover things like spilled food or beverages and broken supplies…”, Chef Lee would deduct tips from his employees at his eateries: Fring’s, Lee and Bent. Luckily, this illegal act was brought to the public’s attention with an ex-employee who posted a picture of his IOU worth more than $100 on the internet. With the power of social media and the help of a petition signed by over 7,100 fighting for compensation, Lee has stopped his fraudulent IOU system and will be repaying his employees. 

Chef Susur Lee.

Upon reading CBC new’s article, I was shocked by how unprofessional a World-renowned chef dealt with mistakes at his restaurants. Is punishment the way to go to address mistakes? Surely each mistake was noted by having one’s tip amount decrease, but there was no solution provided to avoid these mistakes from reoccurring. Consequently, Lee’s IOU system has a negative effect on employees’ attitudes, which can consequently affect the business as a whole. For example, tips are an essential incentive for one to work to the best of their abilities. However, if these incentives diminish, there is less motivation to work hard, thus deteriorating the business’ work ethic and overall customer service output. Looking at the fundamental components of teamwork discussed in class, feedback must be rooted in good intentions. Personally, I believe inservices are a productive alternative to Chef Lee’s IOU method of addressing employee mistakes. As a Lifeguard for the Corporation of Delta, seasonal inservices are held to discuss, improve and strengthen our skills within the workplace. This method not only allows for issues to be addressed but for solutions to be practiced. As opposed to Lee who punished his employees for harmless mistakes, an inservice would be a method in which he could effectively communicate improvements for the recurring issues at his restaurants.

Ex-employee Dylan Turner’s tip reduction.

Moreover, a welcoming atmosphere and positive attitude are essential for a successful workplace. With the harsh use of IOU’s, ex-employee Taylor Davis says that they worked in an environment of “intimidation and fear”. They feared to make mistakes which caused a division between employer and employee. Similar to group projects at school, an accepting environment must be established for a cohesive work ethic to be produced. Therefore the implementation of his IOU system resulted in mistakes to be continually made with the added stress of being heavily penalized.

Ultimately a business is a team. Therefore the same components that produce a productive team must be utilized to achieve a successful business.

Other Sources:

https://www.ontario.ca/page/new-laws-employees-tips

https://www.change.org/p/lee-restaurants-stop-the-iou-system-and-refund-confiscated-worker-tips

Article Source: 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/susur-lee-restaurant-staff-iou-1.4252959

Image Sources:

http://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2017/07/susur-lee-open-healthy-fast-food-restaurant-toronto/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/susur-lee-restaurant-staff-iou-1.4252959

Word count: 446

An allergy-reaction device known as an EpiPen not only holds the power to save lives, but holds the power to exploit buyer’s essential needs. According to Fortune Insiders article “Mylan EpiPen Pricing Crossed Ethical Boundaries”, Mylan, an EpiPen company unethically increased its price of product from $100 to $608 within a timeframe of 2 years. From a business perspective, an increase in revenue like such is seen as impressive, however from a consumer’s point of view, it is seen as selfish as Mylan is profiting from exploiting the necessities of others.

~EpiPen’s packaging~ https://www.statnews.com/2016/07/06/epipen-prices-allergies/

Therefore, the rise in price of this life-saving tool supports Friedman’s theory that “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its profit”. If Mylan’s root intentions were to save lives, a “six fold price increase” would not have occurred. By capitalizing on the fact that the demand of EpiPens would be constant due to its limited shelf life, Mylan abused its power by increasing its prices. It’s unethical pricing proves that the business’ true intention were to profit and not address health needs. Consequently, this damages the integrity of the company as consumers have a negative perspective of the company’s objective. As a result, marketing, a business specialization which will be discussed in Comm 101 can be utilized to rebuild the relationship between the consumers and sellers of Mylan.

Moreover, as a near monopolistic business, Mylan did not require the need to increase its price to benefit, however by doing so, its margins of profit have dramatically increased as people who require EpiPens will still buy them. Therefore, a substitute product could limit Mylan’s abuse of power of increasing price. If this product was in a competitive market, it is probable that the potential of Mylan losing its customers to cheaper retailers would increase.

~Epipen’s rise in price~ http://fortune.com/2016/08/24/mylan-ceo-epipen-heather-bresch/

Despite being deemed as unethical to society, Mylan’s increase in price for EpiPens does follow the basic laws and ethical customs discussed by Friedman. Mylan’s increase in price was transparent for consumers and was done in a legal way. However, it’s reason to increase price was unethical. Therefore, Mylan’s tactic to increase prices catered to the best interest of the seller and in turn negatively affected those of the buyer. Thus, the increase of price for EpiPens supports the premise that a business’ primary objective is to profit  instead of upholding any social responsibilities.

In my opinion, the best solution to reduce the repercussions of a price increase would be to survey the group of consumers of the product and to find an equilibrium of accommodating the needs of the seller and those of the buyer. Ultimately, in order for a price increase to be ethical, it must benefit both the interests of the business and the consumer.

Word Count: 439

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