Ethical and Moral Issues free essay sample

Individuals deal with ethical and moral issues in their everyday life, whether is at work, home, and even at school. The following will review the differences between ethical issues and moral issues. The differences between personal ethics and business ethics, follow by examples of common ethical problems in business. Ethics is the study of standards of conduct and moral judgment; moral philosophy the system or code of morals of a particular person, religion, group, profession, etc. (Your Dictionary, n. d. ). Which refers to the concept of what is right and wrong, moral and immoral. Moral is relating to, dealing with, or capable of making the distinction between right and wrong in conduct (Your Dictionary, n. d. ). The difference between ethical issues and moral issues can be significant, subtle, or can sometimes appear the same. Ethical issues is a problem or situation that requires a person or organization to choose between alternatives that must be evaluated as right (ethical) or wrong (unethical) (Business Dictionary, n. We will write a custom essay sample on Ethical and Moral Issues or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page . ). For instance, an ethical issue would be businesses ignoring unethical practices by its suppliers, such as use of child labor and forced labor, production in sweatshops, violation of the basic right of workers, and ignoring health, safety and environmental standards. According to McDougall (2008) In 2008, UK clothing firm Primark fired three Indian suppliers, after an investigation from the BBCs Panorama and The Observer uncovered children laboring to produce some of its cheapest garments. Moral issues is an issue of moral concern shown to be any issue with the potential to help or harm anyone, including yourself. (P. l. e. , 2009). Some examples of moral issues would be lying, stealing, cheating, and committing a crime. If a single mother worked at baby retail store where they supplied food and clothing, and was struggling to feed her baby because she had no money until next weeks paycheck; does she think about stealing the food at the store she works in to feed her baby or ask strangers for money in the streets? It all depends on what an individual thinks is morally right or wrong. Personal ethics is a category of philosophy that determines what an individual believes about morality, right and wrong, and affects all areas of life, including family, finances, and relationships (Wisegeek, n. d. ). Many philosophers argue that children will learn how to share, work hard, and tell the truth because these actions can benefit them. For instance, if a child decides to break the rules of a game, the child will create conflict, and build a barrier between his/her peers and themselves. However if a child decides to obey the rules, then that child will be happy, enjoy friendship, and will become closer with his/her peers, benefiting them. Business ethics is different from personal ethics because business ethics is the behavior that a business adheres to its daily dealings with the world (Wisegeek, n. d. ). Depending on the business, ethics can vary because not only does this apply on how businesses interact with the world at large, but also dealing with single customers one on one. Both good and bad business ethics apply in companies every day. Good business ethics happen when companies have encourage a more environmental approach, treat suppliers with fairness, and being more friendlier to employees. Bad business ethics occurs when companies ignore the best interest of their employees, customers or even the society, in order to earn more money or protects its position. Bad business ethics examples would be the use of child labor, sweatshop slave labor, animal testing, and even companies contaminating our ocean and river system in order to cut costs on cleaning operations. Some believe that ethics and morals appear the same, others believe there is a subtle or significant difference. The following has explained the difference between ethical and moral issues, and the difference between personal and business ethics. Consumers and employees rely on businesses making ethical and moral decisions in all business transaction, therefore practicing good ethics and morals will definitely help a business be successful.