Corporate Social Responsibility And Ethical Obligations In The Garment Industry

Discuss about the Blood, Sweat and T-Shirts Review.

Corporate Social Responsibility or the CSR refers to the various initiatives on the part of the concerned organization to assess and own responsibility for the various effects of the activities on the part of the company in the matters that pertain to the social and environmental well-being of the concerned region. The term generally refers to the extra efforts that the concerned company might afford in addition to the required matters that are put forth by the various environmental protection and regulation groups (Crane, Matten & Spence, 2013). The corporate social responsibility might refer to the various corporate self-regulations that might be combined together to form a business model. The policy of corporate social responsibility is known to be a self-regulatory policy that helps a certain business to monitor as well as ensure the active compliance of the same in the matters pertaining to the law and the ethical standards that are maintained by the business and the national as well as the international norms that are followed by the concerned company (Carroll, 2015). Blood, Sweat & T-shirts is a British documentary series that had been broadcasted on BBC Three in the year 2008. The documentary series follows that journey of the six fashion consumers of British origin who had been travelling to India in order to work alongside the garment producers in India in order to prepare the garments that were to be sold at the various high-street stores in Britain. The following report deals with the view points of the retailers portrayed in the documentary, Blood, Sweat & T-shirts and attempts an explanation of the same. The report proceeds further to put forth the ethical obligations that should be maintained by the retailers and the other professionals who are involved in the process of the manufacturing and the transportation of the garments. The report proceeds further to attempt the application of the ethical theory that was proposed by Kant. The report finally approaches the end with the recommendations that might be followed in order to deal with the problems that the concerned garment makers might be facing in terms of the various ethical issues that have surfaced in these years.

The retailers at Blood, Sweat & T-shirts are observed to have been following a narrow view of the corporate social responsibility towards the manufacturers of the garments. The retailers who have been procuring the garments at low prices from the various Asian markets have not been paying the concerned workers with the proper wages neither were they being provided with the proper working conditions at the concerned factories. The concerned documentary reveals that the concerned workers have not been granted the basic amenities that were required by the workers in order to produce the garments. The documentary reveals the journey of the six fashion clients of British origin who had been visiting the Indian subcontinent with the motive of residing as well as working alongside the various workers who had been working at the various factories wherein the garments were being manufactured (Bbc.co.uk, 2018). The documentary reveals the poor conditions in which the workers had been working at the various factories situated in the Indian subcontinent. The factory workers are paid very meagre amounts as compared to the price of the actual end products. This might be referred to be one of the unethical practices that have been in practice in the concerned garment industry.

The Broader View of Corporate Social Responsibility

The broader view of the corporate social responsibility is considered to be more ethical as compared to the narrower viewpoints on the corporate social responsibility. The broader viewpoint of the corporate social responsibility states that the companies should pay heed to the various responsibilities that the concerned companies might have towards the communities wherein they might have been operating alongside the objective earning profit on the basis of the products and the services that are provided by the concerned company towards the clients of the concerned business organization. The broader view further states that the companies might also need to put forth a lookout for the various matters of the business that might affect the concerned surroundings in an adverse manner (Tai & Chuang, 2014). The broader view of the corporate social responsibility of the concerned organization might include the various matters that deal with the betterment of all the stakeholders of the concerned organization, the clients, the suppliers, the employees as well as the environment wherein the concerned organization might have been operating (Ruggie, 2017). Thus, it might be safely concluded that the consequences of the various activities of the concerned organization have a huge effect on the overall society of the wherein the concerned company had been operating. The business organizations are generally considered to be large in their expanse and hold greater responsibilities towards the concerned society. The businesses have to abide by the various rules and regulations that have been set by the concerned social setup wherein the company might have been operating. The concerned company might have to follow the various guidelines and the responsibilities that have been bestowed upon the institution by the concerned society, thereby binding the concerned organizations to the areas that bear responsibility to the concerned sections of the society that have been involved with the concerned industry. The various organizations that have been functional in the society have a certain amount of responsibility and duties to the various sections of the society wherein they have been operating (Schwartz, 2017). Thus, it might safely be said that the concerned organization should abide by the various laws that have been set by the concerned governmental body of the society wherein the concerned business organization might have been operating. The company must allow the concerned employees of the concern to have the fundamental rights that need to be followed by the residents of the concerned country. This might lead to the proper functioning of the organization thereby leading o the overall growth of the organization keeping in mind the various matters that deal with the society wherein the company operates.

Kantian Ethical Theory and its Relevance to the Garment Industry

In today’s global business economy, the garments that worn by people in one country have been produced by the workers across the ocean. These are passed from one business to another before these clothes are being sold for profit by retailers. All types of companies both large and small have capabilities to commit resources for monitoring the quality of their products. Therefore, it can be argued that if these companies can do that, they are capable to commit adequate resources to their employees and must ensure to provide a perfect working condition of these factory workers. In the developing countries like India, where there is an abundance of skilled yet cheap workers, is a preferred choice of the overseas retailers of garment factories. The managers from the western hemisphere, visit these Asian countries so that they can maintain their profit, balanced with cost. In doing so, the western managers fail to ensure that their factory workers enjoy a decent working conditions and respect for the human as well as labor rights. In this case, the larger companies are capable to do these arrangements single handedly but the medium and small factories need to collaborate with the industry associations so that they can solve these ethical issues relating their employees.

Kantian theory believes that the categorical imperative is the basic principle for determining whether one’s act is deemed to be ethically correct (Kant, 2017). In his theory Kant has proposed three versions or three maxims of categorical imperatives. Firstly, an act can be considered ethically correct when it will be accepted and made into a universals law. For instance, in the garment factories, if the managers make a fake promise that the employees will have bonus at a specific occasion but do not keep their words thus make an untruthful agreement with their employees, this action is unethical (Voeller, 2016). The second maxim denotes that a person must be treated as an end and not the means to achieve an end. This states that each and every person should be treated with respect and not the means to fulfil or achieve personal goals. In the garment factories of India, the situation of the workers is intolerable, moreover they are treated to be the means of fulfilling personal happiness or goals of the retailers as well as the owners. Finally, the third maxim supports the concept of good will (Wood, 2017). It calls upon every individual to act as the members of ideal kingdom where each of them will complete their duties. A good will that acts from duty can be distinguishable as a will that overcomes all hindrances to keep the moral law. A dutiful will is a special case of good will that becomes visible in the adverse conditions. This theory argues that act performed regarding duty have moral worth. Duties often restraint people as well as prompt people to act against their inclinations, still comes from the agent’s violation, they want to keep the moral law (Korsgaard, 2014). In the case of factories, the good will need to the primary factor among the retailers as they solely depend on the skills of the employees hence must perform their duties based on ethics.

Conclusion

The ethical concept introduced by Immanuel Kant can be associated with business ethics more intensely in the employee and employer relationship. Kantian ethics has particular belief that protects both the employees as well as the consumers by ensuring that profit is not an end itself (Kant, 2017). it implies that the companies cannot exploit the consumers as well as the workers for earning more profit. In addition to this, the ethical theory of Kant supports the fact that the profit of the firms should be used for satisfying all the stakeholders. This theory also follows the stakeholders’ theory. Kant viewed business enterprises as moral communities which again supports the concept that the employees’ interests must be taken care of. The consumers along with the employees also need to be treated with respect and care. The theory supports that view that the employees are also expected to work in democratic manner. This idea is to have power to contribute to the business decisions (Certo, 2018)). The Kingdom of Ends principle implies that the employees have ethical right to whistle blow when identify any unethical issues affecting them and it is their duty to do it. There are two crucial and practical application of the theories by Kant in respect to the relationship between the employees as well as employers. The first is the contracts cannot be broken hence must be fulfilled. It is because if the contracts were allowed to be undone in the universal scale, then a havoc can take place (Lee et al., 2018).  This protects the interest of the workers as in the theory severances must not be allowed. The other application can be seen in the Open Book Management which has become popular among the recent firms. It supports the views held by Kantian ethics because it is a way to inform the employees on a one to one business in their progress and acre opportunities.

In the perspectives of the consumers, it can be said the demand and preferences put pressure on the production and supply chain hence the manufactures indirectly compress the rights and advantages of the workers in their firms. In the case of garment industry, the market is quite strong hence it is becoming monumental challenge for keeping up with the demand of the customers especially in the terms of material supply (Moorthy et al., 2015). As the global competition of this industry has been lifting, hence no company is ready to allow other to win. In doing so, the companies are putting pressure to the employees and other associates in unethical ways. The consumer preferences in one type of product is the driver of production but when it exceed, it becomes unmanageable for the companies. In the garment factories located in India, Pakistan and other developing countries, mass customization or the individual customization of mass products allow product variety in the rapidly evolving market (Mo & Shi, 2017). It includes the niche markets as well as individually customized products purchased from the retailers. Thus, in responding to this sharply increasing demand, the retailers are making unethical decisions.

This can be stated that as the customer demand or choice have been pressuring the production, these customers have power to change this scenario also. The consumers put the garment firms under pressure to lead the way in sustainable living (Culiberg & Miheli?, 2016). Even in a decade ago, the public used to place the onus for action on the governments but now in this cost-conscious economy, such things have changed a lot. This poses a perfect balancing act for the brands, they need to demonstrate own sustainable behavior while assisting the consumers consume meticulously. The company’s sustainability goals can be met with the customers onside. In this situation, ethical sustainability has become a mainstream issue.

The purchasing behavior or preference of one particular brand of the customers have to be based on the moral judgement (Fleischman, Valentine & Godkin, 2015). This is because the consumer behavior on a brand can influence the policies as well as practices of the company. In order to purchase a product ethically produced, the customers need to be more aware, willing as well as able to identify fundamental ethical concerns. There are conditions under which the companies are called to task or rewarded by the customers (Ferrell, 2016). The ethically successful companies can build positive consumer attitudes toward the organization hence more popularity of the brand. Kant’s maxim of good will here transforms into ‘good ethics is good business’ where the consumers demonstrate power to penalized the unethical brands and reward ethical conducts of the organization towards their employees and other stakeholders.

The concerned company might be advised to extend certain amounts of the profits that are earned towards the concerned employees of the organization. This might help the concerned employees to receive a good amount of motivation thereby leading them to perform better in the concerned field. The company is advised to put forth an effort in the direction of the betterment of the living as well as the working conditions of the employees of the organization. The company might motivate the various employees of the concern by helping them with the education of their children which the poor residents of the Indian subcontinent might find to be a huge support in their direction.

Conclusion

Thus, in conclusion to the above discussion it might safely be said that the various retailers who have been marketing the various garments at the high-end fashion streets of Britain should also look out for the various employees who have been serving the organization at the grassroot levels by manufacturing the various garments that are exported to be sold at the various high-street fashion houses of Britain. The companies that have been outsourcing the manufacturing processes of their garment to the various developing countries of Asia should be attentive to the various matters that pertain to the well-being of the concerned workers of the company.

References

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