Mkt - 772 Third-World Families at Work Assignment

1. Problems:

The problem of this case showing is child labor. Jonathan Stein, a new vice president of Timothy & Thomas North America, was really shocked by what he saw during his business trip to Pakistan. He saw girls obviously under 14 years old working at the factories. His company focuses on social responsibility and prohibiting the use of workers under the age of 14, which are contradictory to what he saw in Pakistan. During the visiting of these factories, Yusuf Ahmed, Pakistani sourcing manager of T&T, tried to explain that this situation is rational here and this helps a lot of families. Stein could not take it because it is far from the ethical idea he has. He has trapped in a situation where it is difficult to decide what to do. If he gives up renewing the contract with Lahore company, there would be a lot of families and children losing their jobs for subsistence. On the contrary, if he renews it, it would break the regulations of his company and get some negative influence to his company.

1. Stakeholders:

I would like to talk about this part from two sides.

If he signs the contract, his company might get bad reputation by using child labor. Then the impacts on stakeholders would be as follows:

1. Investors, such as financial insurance institutions, may reduce their investment to T&T.
2. Stock price going down makes raw materials suppliers do not want to give credit.
3. Customers are not willing to buy products from T&T.
4. Employees might leave their jobs.
5. Minority shareholders may sell shares.
6. Owners lose profit.

1. Approach: 

I would like to say what the Lahore company did is inconsistent with Virtue Ethics. Virtue Ethics refers to the theory that emphasizes a good person’s ethical thinking and behaviors. As a normal person, I think you definitely do not want to buy your children something, made by someone in your children’s age. As a boss, you also do not want to hire someone in your children’s age. That’s way too cruel.

1. Ramifications: 

1. Ask the Lahore company fire those girls under the age of 14 without doing anything else for the adults. This make those girls and their families lose their source of income, so that they cannot afford their daily expending.
2. Ask the Lahore company fire those girls under the age of 14, while raise the salary of their parents. This protects those girls’ rights and make their life a little bit easier by pay raise.

1. Position:

I think they should ask the Lahore company fire those girls under the age of 14, while raise the salary of their parents. Firstly, it is good for its company’s image in the long-term running. If they sign the contract without thinking about child labor issue, its asset and reputation will be gone. They can do a better job by firing underage workers and raising the salary of their parents. Consumers are the backbone of a clothing company. If they know that they are buying products from a company using underage workers, they will surely boycott T&T. Secondly, child labor is cheap. Companies don’t need to pay them well and give them good well-being. All of these make companies more profits. However, it is unethical to hire child labor. It makes children lose their opportunities to study. Too much work makes them stunted because this is the time they are growing. It is easy for underage workers to get hurt, mentally and physically, when they are working. Thirdly, it has a bad influence to the whole society. Lacking of education, those underage workers continue living in a poor way. This makes the unemployment rate worse. All in all, they should fire underage workers and pay their parents more.