An ethical perspective on problems multinational companies in the apparel industry face, when outsourcing their production to developing countries with inadquate institutions
Abstract
This
thesis
addresses
the
ethical
problems
multinational
companies
in
the
apparel
industry
face,
when
outsourcing
their
production
to
developing
countries
with
inadequate
institutions.
I
will
use
a
case
study
of
Bangladesh,
to
reveal
the
actions
of
Primark,
Kappahl
and
the
Benetton
Group.
These
companies
will
be
evaluated
in
light
of
three
main
schools
of
ethics;
Virtue
ethics,
consequentialism,
and
deontology.
I
will
show
how
companies
have
been
dealing
with
ethical
problems,
and
I
will
in
relation
to
the
ethical
schools
find
out
how
these
problems
should
be
dealt
with.
The
thesis
shows
that
problems
in
the
apparel
industry
of
Bangladesh
are
not
being
handled
in
a
satisfactory
manner
according
to
the
three
schools
of
ethics.
The
findings
in
the
thesis
also
show
that
the
allocation
of
responsibility
in
the
apparel
industry
of
Bangladesh
has
to
change.
Corruption
and
low
levels
of
transparency
prevent
human
flourishing,
and
the
deviation
in
how
companies
try
to
portrait
them
self
and
how
they
actually
occur,
has
revealed
dishonest
companies
willing
to
break
many
ethical
barriers
to
earn
a
profit.
Finally
the
consequences
of
inadequate
institution
have
been
shown.
Description
Masteroppgave økonomi og administrasjon- Universitetet i Agder, 2014