Globalization of Levi Strauss

Globalization is the process by which businesses or other organizations develop international influence or start operating on an international scale. According to economic and political writer Doug Bandow, “Some critics of globalization have contended that the process has helped the rich and hurt the poor. However, the best research indicates that this is accurate: ‘Poverty is falling rapidly in those poor countries that are integrating into the global economy.”. In both documentaries “The True Cost” and “Living on One Dollar” we can see how companies exploit their employees for consumer benefit, as well as the social and economic inequalities that are attached with globalization.

Masoro is a small village in Rwanda, Africa. The factory here is considered a remote and desolate place without reliable roads, running water and electricity. Moreover, the local workers are not equipped with the essential manufacturing skills required to be an influential supplier in the global supply chain. However, Kate Spade chose this factory as its supplier even though it meant increasing the budget in order to solve the unfavourable factors for manufacturing. Kate Spade mainly made this decision to fulfil a simple idea: Helping empower women. Kate Spade is a fashion brand known for its clothing and handbags for women, and its majority of employees

According to Derber, “Globalism promises to further weaken the social ties and values that civilize both individuals and business. Unencumbered by national loyalties, corporations now ram the world searching for the cheapest labor in desperately poor countries” (Derber, p. 54). Globalization is a form of corporate wilding because the corporation will do anything to increase their profits and pay for cheap wages.

The United States has laws that affect the hiring practices of all country based companies. Regulations of federal agencies such as the U.S. Department of Labor protects employees in the United States from discrimination to wages. Other Countries may not have the same protection for its citizens as an example. Although U.S. based organizations would not be bound to the wage laws of other countries, they are usually morally bound to ethical practices by which they establish core principles that are filtered down to their employees. Jeopardizing this standard of ethics would have a broad based effect on the organizations overall effectiveness considering a platform of which to maintain a standard that all employees can act on behalf of. Compromising ethics and social value could present major public relation issues. A perfect example of this would be the Hershey Corporation. The Hershey Corporation of the United States is North America’s largest chocolate producer, however at one time most of its cocoa was purchased from West African Nations. These Nation’s had a very poor record of labor fairness and was reported to employ children in long and unsafe working conditions. Although this was against Hershey’s published core values, the company sought refuge in the fact that none of these children were employed by the Hershey Corporation and therefore claimed plausible deniability. A public relations campaign ensued which prompted the corporation

The United States should enforce regulation of their companies marketing and labor practices in developing countries in order to a foster stronger economy while being socially conscious of basic human rights. Enforcing regulation prevents the citizens of developing countries from being unfairly marketed to in order to buy products that hinder the country’s growth and development.

It is very sad that our civilization place the human rights of companies or corporations to profit over human and labor rights. In the Western World, some of the working condition and wages are not the best for any human being to experience. This types of conditions hurts the poor and the richer keeps getting richer. Bottom line the globalization is not up to par with what was intended to be,in fact, it is a major problem that what it was expected.

Consumers increasingly consider the social impact of the money they spend. Some will pay more to support retailers who assert sustainable practices, for instance, by buying products made with recycled material. Others avoid companies notorious for irresponsible or unethical practices, such as outsourcing manufacturing to exploitative sweatshops in under-developed countries. More than ever, retail store owners must consider the ethical and social ramifications of their actions, as well as the actions of their suppliers (Mack, n.d.).

Companies in the U.S are taking full advantage of people in foreign countries as a means to creating profit. Illegal and hazardous products are being shipped overseas, as it is impossible to will the maxim governing their actions as a universal law. U.S companies are not regarding the well being of the consumers, in which case the U.S fails to respect these third world countries as ends and humans of intrinsic worth. Therefore, the company’s actions are morally wrong.

In the modern world we live in, globalization creates inequality despite its significant role in our economy. Globalization is the integration among nations of political views, products, ideas, and cultures. Utilizing modern technologies, international trade are made possible among large corporations and individuals around the world. With these advanced technologies, these corporations are able to build factories around the world, expand their production, and supply the world populous with more consumer goods. Unfortunately, these pros come with a cost. Despite the amazing contributions that globalization has brought, these corporations have resorted into using cheap labor and regulate unequal rights for workers in the global scale.

a. Can a multinational firm adopt varying ethical standards [such as with regard to product safety (Pinto), employee benefits (Nike) and “kickbacks” to win business (HP)] in its global operations? Why or Why Not? Discuss in depth based

Most people will immediately spout about their opinion without really knowing the facts. Kathy Gifford always comes to mind when we hear anything regarding sweatshop and child labor. Not everyone understands exactly what a Third World daily life is consumed of. There are many misconceptions about the work environment of factories in other countries, and just as there are pros and cons related to every place of employment, we will dig further into the ethical and moral realities that people and sometimes children are faced with.

“Globalization means different things to different people,” so therefore individuals have their own standpoints regarding various things. In this case, an issue that has arisen is the allegation of mistreatment of employees in developing countries. Slimline is an apparel manufacturer in Sri Lanka, which does business disparately. The company employs 5000+ employees, whom help produced $50 million worth of apparel annually. In this company, the entry level wages are set higher than the local markets and to mention that some of their employees have undergraduate and graduate degrees. Slimline does not have the typical

Discussions regarding business and human rights in international organizations started in the late 20th Century, in the 1980s. International discussions began with the draft of the UN code of conduct on transnational corporations. Prior to the topic being brought up in the early 1980s, it was the prevailing view that businesses had only an indirect legal obligation to protect human rights. As an effect of the rapid spread of globalization as late as the 1990s, business and human rights began to gain more attention. In fact, the first major warnings from NGOs regarding human rights in business practices did not occur until 1991. Late 20th-century globalization catalyzed the human rights violations and therefore facilitated the NGO warnings and calls to action. NGOs like Amnesty International raised serious questions about the ability and willingness of businesses and national governments to abide by human rights when it is against the interests of their international trade. As a result, human rights responsibilities legislation regarding the public and private sectors gained traction in legislative bodies in the years directly leading up to 2000. The fight for human rights in international business practices continues today with manufacturing companies all around the world that export goods primarily to the US. This fight for human rights in business practices began in the final two decades of the 20th century because of the acceleration of

The topic of this paper is business ethics within Gap Inc., a multinational retail – clothing company. The foundation of its corporate ethical approach is summarized in the Code of Conduct . This paper outlines the ethical problems Gap Inc. faced in the last years and more important, the solutions they found in order to remain a successful company. It shows how large companies deal with common issues like child labour and sweatshops.

There are a number of situations in which reasonable minds can disagree. Businesses normally face such situations. For example, a company situated in country A may be selling clothes from country C. It happens that the media has been criticizing the company for selling products, which are believed to be produced by children. Suppose the company conducts research and find out that the clothes it is selling are made by children. The investigations also shows that it is not the girls fault nor is the company’s fault to have the girls who are still young employed in such a company. It also shows that the society does not educate girls beyond the sixth grade. To worsen the situation,, the researcher found that the society is poor and cannot provide the basic needs to the young girls. The respondent reveals “if you shut this plant down, you will literally take food off the table for these families and that there are no other opportunities in the town.” This means that preventing the employment of young girls would cause more problems than improve their situation. On the other hand, laws from country A may prohibit the child labor. Some thinkers may believe that the young children should be allowed to go to school. This is because it is their legal rights. However, if legal measures are taken and that the girls are prevented from working in the factory, it will not assist them but instead cause more problems. For example, forcing them to