Most large business companies have a Code of Conduct, which describes the ethical rules for their work. Such documents most often cover the legal aspects of doing business and ensure that new trends that do not yet have legal regulation cannot harm society (Abdul Rahman et al., 2020, p.1192). These policies must be followed by company employees, suppliers, and partners to ensure fair and just business conduct. Apple is no exception, and it updates its office code every year to keep it relevant to current circumstances.
The core values that Apple declares in its Code coincide with the fundamental ethical principles. Jamnik (2017, pp. 89-90) highlights such as justice, loyalty, credibility, liability, charity, respect, and freedom. In Apple’s Code, these values are reflected in every article as they guarantee respect for working conditions, rights, and dignity of workers and protect them from violence, harassment, and other unethical practices. In general, the Code is divided into several areas, such as labor and human rights, health and safety, management system, environment, and ethics. These areas cover all major issues related to ethical business conduct, from respect for each client and employee to community involvement and environmental protection. In this way, Apple demonstrates its commitment to ethical business conduct.
Nevertheless, although compliance with all ethical standards and rules is the ideal goal, it is often difficult to achieve due to competing market conditions and differences in social cultures. Kruijtbosch et al. (2018, p.76) note that regulation, financial pressures, and increased competition pose moral dilemmas when it comes to the pharmaceutical business. However, this statement applies to most areas of business. For example, despite Apple’s Code of Conduct, the company often violates ethical rules to gain profit and competitive advantages in practice. For instance, recent news was that the company deliberately lowered the performance of the batteries on iPhone 6 and 7 to stimulate the sales of new models (Clayton, 2020). This decision was unethical and diminished consumer confidence but nevertheless brought profit to the company. Another example is that despite Apple’s supplier violations of underage labor prevention rules and inadequate working conditions and worker safety, the company has not terminated contracts with them for several years (Sonnemaker, 2021). This situation is unethical and, at the same time, raises two issues. First, an abrupt end to the partnership would result in a loss of profits for the company and likely increase other suppliers’ working hours. Such a decision could also be viewed as unethical, as it worsened the working conditions of other employees, although it would be considered correct under the rule of the Code on emergency (“Code,” 2021). Thus, the ethics of continuing and discontinuing cooperation would become controversial in both cases.
The second issue is related to the ethics of using minors as the labor force in developing countries. The use of child labor is viewed as illegal by global human rights organizations; therefore, it is unethical for 14-year-olds to work for a Chinese supplier (Sonnemaker, 2021). However, some countries in the world have high poverty rates in which children have to work to provide themselves with food and shelter. Consequently, in such cases, a ban on the work of adolescents who have not reached the age of 15 may be unethical as it deprives them of the opportunity to provide for themselves or their families. Thus, while companies like Apple can theoretically create global ethical practices, in reality, they are complicated by numerous social and economic problems that global efforts and fundamental change can address.
Reference List
Abdul Rahman et al. (2020) ‘The challenges in implementation of ethics organization’, International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(11), pp. 1187-1194. Web.
Apple supplier Code of Conduct (2021). Web.
Clayton, J. (2020) ‘Apple to pay $113m to settle iPhone ‘batterygate’’, BBC News, Web.
Jamnik, A. (2017) ‘The challenges of business ethics: the basic principles of business ethics – ethical codex in business’, Review of Innovation and Competitiveness, 3(3), pp. 85-100.
Kruijtbosch, M. et al. (2018) ‘Moral dilemmas of community pharmacists: a narrative study’, International Journal of Clinical Pharmacy, 40, pp. 74–83. Web.
Sonnemaker, T. (2021) ‘Apple knew a supplier was using child labor but took 3 years to fully cut ties, despite the company’s promises to hold itself to the ‘highest standards,’ report says’, Insider, Web.