Question:
Describe about the Ethical Consumerism at Bangladesh?
The report is on the Ethical behaviour that has to be followed in Bangladesh. Various aspects has been put on light. The actions to be taken by the multinational companies working with them are discussed. The lack of support from the government and its ignorance is highlighted. The ethical behaviour of Kellogg`s foods is shown which would help to compare the world standards. The importance of the code of conduct is discussed. The various steps to be taken to avoid such accidents are discussed. The study is done with the help of various journals and books. Business ethics has a major role in doing business in today`s world. All that is related to business ethics is there in the report.
Ethical consumerism refers to those consumers who buy products that are produced ethically, distributed with ethics without damage none of labour, nature or environment. These consumers also believe in the products that are more organic and can be recycled. In the following report the importance of ethical consumerism is analysed. In the given report a tragic accident has taken place at Rana plaza in Savar, Bangaldesh (The Economist, 2013). This incident clearly took place because of the ignorance of the management in renovating the building. The building was so old that the roof fell upon the workers while working. This is very unethical and it demands a logical explanation from the management. It shows the clear motive of the management to let the workers work at a place which was so unsafe that it fell on them. The workers have a right legally to fight against them. Compensation should be offered to them and their dependents. It was such a huge loss of lives. It killed around 1134 people and 2500 were injured. It was claimed to be the worst accident ever happened in garment industry (Ranaplaza-arrangement.org, 2015). Further in the report the preventive measures and various approaches to consumerism will be analysed. The collapse of Rana Plaza, which took the lives of so many people at one shot, is the most tragic incident that has ever happened in the garment industry (Simpson and Taylor, 2013). The owner of the factory threatened the people to kick them out of their jobs if they did not join immediately. All the borders of unethical behaviour crossed the border and the government was sitting mum. Those companies who use to order from this industry came into spot light (Shaw, 2011). These companies were responsible for the growth of these industries in Bangladesh. There was a need to come up with huge ethical safety instruments safeguarding the lives of the employees working at such premises. The government ensured the families about compensation, yet there is a lot to be done. Getting cheap labours at the cost of their lives is highly unethical.
The apparel companies like Mango, Benneton, Primark etc were the customers of these industry (Cannon, 2012). These companies should comply with international standards while being the customers of this industry. Having the certificate of Disaster management department of Bangladesh is not sufficient, the companies will have to check time to time whether the check points are made or not (Newsroom.kelloggcompany.com, 2015). Scope of such massive accidents can be controlled if necessary and strict actions are taken. Bangladesh, being one of the world`s poorest economy will have to follow this compliance. There economy is mainly based on garment industry. It is the highest source of their revenue. The MNC`s can work in three different directions to help this industry to follow ethical consumerism. The first approach is to promote a healthy working environment through corporate social responsibility and make the lives of the labour not only safe but also happier. ; This campaign can also help them to earn the money they deserve to get from these countries. Second approach can be they quit Bangladesh, that is logically not possible, but there is a horizon of hope that if the multinational apparel brands boycott Bangladesh and move to some other place, then might Bangladesh government might look into the matter. A threat of losing such a high revenue generating industry would bring the government into senses. The third approach is that the companies can remain in Bangladesh working together with many NGO`s and as Corporate social responsibilities should handle the construction of this plants. The only way to enhance morale in an organization is to respect its employees. Recognizing each one of them as individuals is very necessary. The more an organization focus on the happiness safety and health of its employees, the more it is likely to grow. It is understandable that today`s economic hurdles are very huge but that does not mean that workers would be treated like machines to earn profit. If the employees feel included in the organization, they will always retain themselves and see the workplace as their homes (Csr-weltweit.de, 2015).
Bangladesh is one of the poorest countries in the world. There are some institution in the country like Bangladesh manufacturers and exporters association, Bangladesh knitwear manufacturers etc who have some responsibilities towards safeguarding the interest of the workers. The government has no precise policy on corporate social responsibility. Although there are ministries who have a little to do about the health and safety of the workers like the ministry of commerce and ministry of information. There are business houses who take care of corporate social responsibility but they too are tax deductible. There are laws that are mandated by the United Nations but there compliance is too rare in view. This is the reason of such massive accidents. There are two corporate social responsibility expertises present in the country. They are the Bangladesh enterprise institute and the corporate social responsibility centre Bangladesh. Institutions serve as a network for the compliances of the laws regulating CSR. These organizations help the companies in performing corporate social responsibility in Bangladesh. The institution looks after the cases where in the companies are not effectively able to implement the responsibilities. They help them to match the global standards for code of ethical conduct. They help companies in exchanging views on these responsibilities and make new changes in the way. They provide great deal of contacts that companies seek to perform corporate social responsibility. The business organizations wish to enhance their garments globally and they can do so by showing some ethics towards the society and the employees.
KELLOGG`S
Kellogg`s company is announced as the most ethically sound company after Ford Motors in 2014. It is committed towards maintaining an environment of integrity and compliance. The company`s position in the market is because of its ethical trade practices. Being sixth time the world`s leader at the code of conduct is not an easy task. To attain such a respectable position, the company must have compiled to various laws. Conducting business after these many compliance is tough but the company promises to continue this always in the future. The behaviour of the company toward all its stakeholders is very good. The company invests a good deal of capital in securing the future of its employees. The direct result of its sound behaviour reflects on its growth. The company takes the opinion of the employees at every nook and corner. The company also conducts session on the needs and grievances of the employees (Anon, 2015). There is a feedback program in the company for all the emplopyees. A case came up when there were some bacteria on its food product which led to the sickening of 400 people in 43 states of a country which led to their deaths. The company is ethically concerned that it voluntarily asked the distributors to stop selling the product and later withdrew the whole product from the market (Newsroom.kelloggcompany.com, 2015). They work across the globe and help sending food poverty messages to all communities. To develop sustainable products in Kenya and Malawi they have invested so much capital. The company assists the farmers to produce sustainable products. Kellogg`s is committed towards maintaining a healthy and safe life of its employees. They take necessary actions to protect their workers from any accident. They have all the safety measures at hand to make the employees safe from injuries. They work so much for the employees that they have regulations to safeguard the privacy of the records of their medical, financial files. They believe in the upgrading the power of their employees through sustainable growth. They serve the customers with the best of their needs and fulfilling their demands. Maintaining excellence in their product is their strategy that maintains the reputation. They believe that they pack their reputation in every package. If any of the packages is found unhealthy or unhygienic, it will cause to their reputation. They passionately look into the matter of safety of the health of customers. If anything is faulty, it is immediately reported to the management and necessary actions are to be taken. The company takes pride in saying that they choose those suppliers, sales representatives, agents etc who hold high ethical standards in managing business relationships. It is necessary for all the suppliers to read all the code of ethics of the company. There is huge child right conscience in the country. They strictly prohibit the working of those non-family member who are less than 15 years of age. The company is very lenient for its employees and consumers and behaves like a mother to them, but while doing business also they very competent. They have existed in the market for so long, this has happened only because they have good marketing strategies. They market the product with good quality food, individuality and brand recognition and sincere advertising. Misinterpretation of the product is a crime for them. They promote the maintenance of behaviour that supports sustainable agriculture for the benefits of their customers. As global producer Kellogg`s believes in changing the patterns of agriculture that uses a lot of fertilizers. Organic food is what they believe in growing. Their global code of ethics provides a even-handed advice to grow globally. They have the quality of leadership. They believe in inclusion and diversity in the work force. They allow their workers to come up with new ideas at workplace. The focus on diversity enables the company to build an atmosphere where the employees share the diversification and new ideas generate. Integrity is high with a passion to grow more.
Conclusion:
Here we saw the various aspects of ethical consumerism. Bangladesh needs to grow its economy and garment is the highest returning industry of the country. If the government chooses to comply with the norms that safeguard workers then such accidents can be prevented. The occurrence of such accidents is also shameful for the nation. Adopting measures to protect the workers with the help of all the companies who work with them can promote the industry. The workers also need to be compensated who were affected in the accident. The study of Kellogg`s ethical behaviour towards its employees and consumers. All the companies in the world have a lot to learn from Kellogg`s. The company has so good code of conduct that it stands at the second best position in the world after Ford motors (Csr-weltweit.de, 2015). The severe case that happened in Rana Plaza, Bangladesh is lesson for other countries and industries, that this is very in human. We are humans and not just machines that more and more production is expected of us in return for a meagre wage that would fuel our lives. The government of the country has to take responsibility to protect it people. The multinational companies before investing in such poor countries should always see its legal and ethical compliance (Brink, 2011).
References
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