Managers and Ethics

I worked at a small business that used cars in their daily deliveries. To save money, the brothers who owned the business would conduct most of their own maintenance on the vehicles. As a result, they would periodically be involved in doing tune- ups, changing oil, and other such activities. One day, I noticed that the brothers would pour the old motor oil down the drain rather than take it for recycling. This troubled me because I knew how greatly old oil can add to the degradation of the environment. I brought up the subject with them and they laughed it off. They told me that, as a small business, they did not have the time or the money to be concerned with the "niceties" of life. We discussed it several times, and they made it clear they would not change their ways. I didn't know what to do. I liked this job. The location was perfect and the people were nice (in every other way). I wanted to keep working there until I finished school. However, I felt that I shared in the responsibility for the damage caused by the oil if I knew it was happening and did nothing about it. If I reported it to some-one, I knew they'd know the report came from me. What could I do?
Read the Case above. Address the following questions:
• Is NIMBY involved here? If so, in what way?
• Do you share in the responsibility for negative action when you know what is happening and say nothing? Explain.
• What would you do if you were in that position?

The top ten list of environmental issues includes climate change, energy, water, biodiversity and land use, chemicals, toxics and heavy metals, air pollution, waste management, ozone layer depletion, oceans and fisheries, and deforestation. None of these issues is simple.

• Choose one of the top ten environmental issues. Then choose a company and discuss how that company could have an impact on the environmental issue you chose. How could that company minimize its impact on the issue you identified?

1. What is sustainability?
2. What are several of the most important environmental issues now receiving worldwide attention?
3. What are some of the causes of environmental pollution and depletion?
4. What is the future outlook for the natural environment?
5. Who has responsibility for addressing environ-mental issues?
6. How can ethics be applied in response to environmental issues?
7. What are some examples of sustainable business and decision models for addressing environ-mental concerns?
8. Should businesses and societies continue to focus on unlimited economic growth?

• What would you say are some ethical problems in the US Armed Forces? Do you believe those problems affect the publics overall outlook of the military and its integrity. If you were the Commander in Chief how would you go about fixing those ethical issues?