Morality is grounded in the profit principle. There are two versions that this principle tells. The first is that good business ethics is said to result into good business (Fieser, 1996). This however is considered to be a weak principle because the effect of morality principles that a corporation implements can only be seen after some span of time. For instance, the concept of implementing moral principles that desire the best interests of the public so that the corporation can have a long trusting relationship with its public customers can only be economically advantage after some time. This is because the corporation will still need to seek and wait for the consumers' trust. And, according to researches and studies, trust are usually given by customers after some continuous time of being satisfied with the products or services that the corporation offers. Fieser further provides the following examples to this principle.
Some moral business practices may not be economically viable in the long run, such as, perhaps, retaining older workers who are inefficient, as opposed to replacing them with younger and more efficient workers
Those moral business practices which are good for business depend upon what at that time will yield a profit. In a different market, the same practices might not be economically viable. Thus, any overlap which exists between morality and profit is both limited and incidental.
On the other hand, the relation of morality to profit can also be considered a strong basis for corporations to observe moral obligations to society. One is when it is based on the demands of consumers in the market. For instance, when consumers demand for safe products, it is only sensible that corporations that maintain morality obligations to society can succeed because they simply satisfy the needs of consumers. Those corporations who do not, on the other hand, may loose and fail in the competition.
Morality is grounded in the law principle. This approach indicates that corporations should have moral obligations to society based on what the law dictates....
It is a fact that the law upholds all things that will be good to the society. Hence, in businesses, obeying the law almost equates to providing the society with their rights as individuals. However, the law does not always embed moral concepts. As in our previous example in the early part, some advertisements that exaggerate information which is a form of dishonesty violates morality but do not violate the law because there is no embedded moral concept in the existing law about advertisements that exaggerates information.
Morality is introduced as a third factor. This approach implies that morality should supplement all the principles of profit and law that corporations observe. Many corporations ensure that aside from focusing on the profit that the business makes and on the obedience of the law, morality is present in their business operation. There are three common moral standards followed by corporations who know that they should have moral obligations to society. They are as follows.
The entirety of the business must not cause any harm to the public.
Everything should be fair.
As how the law indicates, the human rights of the public must not be violated
Conclusion
There are still many arguments and principles that can be discussed to prove that corporations should have moral obligations to the society. In general, however, there is one main reason why corporations should. That is, many corporations' success depends on the support of the society. Hence, it is only fair and proper that corporations should return the favor by observing their moral obligations of providing the public with what is good for them.
References
Fieser, James. Do Business Have Moral Obligations Beyond What the Law Requires? Journal of Business Ethics, 1996, Vol. 15, pp. 457-468
http://www.utm.edu/staff/jfieser/vita/research/business.htm
Gregg, Samuel. Corporate Obligations Should Reflect Stakeholders' Best Interest.
2001. Online Opinion. http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=1342
