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BUSINESS ETHICS CIA MOVIE: ERIN BROCKOVICH

What ethical issues have been highlighted in the movie? The movie contains scenes that clearly highlight ethical issues in business. 

The first ethical issue that comes up in the movie is when Erin without being a lawyer gets permission to investigate the case further. The permission should not have been granted as she was not a lawyer nor had she any legal experience.

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The main ethical issue is Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) practice of poor waste disposal which lead to the water being contaminated with hexavelant chromium which impacted the health of the people in the Hinkley area leading to diseases such as cancer, infertility, chronic headaches, nausea and other fatal diseases.

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Another ethical issue is of Bribery. The company offers to settle the case of Jensen’s family by making a monetary offer; they also tried to bribe the law firm in order to stop the investigation.

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The company’s actions also harmed the environment and its policies did not really show care and respect towards their employees which was also an unethical action.

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Another ethical dilemma in the film is the deception of PG&E, and the effect that the deception had on the members of the Hinkley community. PG&E deceived the entire town of Hinkley by allowing them to believe that their water source was safe.

Was the approach taken by the organisation satisfactory? No, the approach taken by the organisation was not satisfactory primarily because of the ethical issues involved. Also the organisations members portrayed insensitivity towards the environment and its own employees while being self centred and selfish. The company also did not take any responsibility of the condition of the individuals in the Hinkley area which was primarily because of the water provided to them by the company. Eventually the company had to pay the members of the community as directed by the court but the company should have been more responsible and careful and shown concern towards the society and the Hinkley community.

If you were the leader of the organisation in the same situation, how would you resolve the issue? 

If, I were the leader of the company I would stop the supply of the chromium infected water to the community when it was first noticed at the plant. I would also find ways to treat the water so that it would be fit for human consumption, so that the community would not be infected by the chromium nor would they be troubled by lack of water supply.

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I would pay for the people of Hinkley with any health problems to see a doctor of their choice, in order to receive a second opinion on their health condition. We will admit wrongdoing and send a letter of apology to all who were affected explaining what went wrong and encouraging them to see another doctor as soon as possible.

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I would also ensure that the people would be given all possible monetary support to provide maximum relief to all the people affected by such act of the company.

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I would also remove all the corrupted employees in the organisation who had information on such happening in the company and hid it from the top management.

Can you think of other ethical issues that companies have had to deal with in the recent past? Give two examples. The two examples that come to my mind are of Walmart: In the year 2012 Walmart was caught in a bribery scandal in Mexico. The companies top officials new about the issue and had tried to cover it up. The bribes, which may have totalled more than $24 million, were paid to win permission to open new stories vastly more quickly than would have been possible had the company adhered to Mexican laws. The bribes were initially hidden from Walmart's global headquarters in Bentonville, Arkansas, by disguising them as normal legal bills (a.k.a., accounting fraud). Walmart's global headquarters immediately launched an investigation of the practice. But, despite finding much evidence of at least suspicious behavior (and, at worst, clear violations of Mexican and US laws), Walmart effectively shut the investigation down. Jindal Steel: The chairman of the Australia-India CEO Forum, steel magnate and parliamentarian Naveen Jindal, had been charged with allegedly paying bribes to government

officials in order to buy coal blocks at below-market price. As part of the broader ''Coalgate'' scandal, which has consumed Indian politics this year, police have alleged that former junior coal minister Dasari Narayan Rao was paid kickbacks in exchange for allocating coal blocks at below-market cost to private Indian firms. The police case reportedly alleges Mr Jindal's company paid a bribe of 22.5 million Rupees ($410,000) to Mr Rao, in the form of an investment into Mr Rao's own company.